Offerings

A book of Japanese folk tales, open to the scene of Momotaro’s birth

2 acorns, 1 without a cap

Countless brittle brown leaves that shatter at the touch, or breath

An oni mask

A bruised pomegranate

Several pieces of green Alaskan sea glass—jagged bits of beer bottles made smooth by friction and time

A fistfull of driveway gravel

A small white feather extracted from a borrowed winter comforter

4 pieces of origami sushi, slightly crushed

1 plastic tiger

1 plastic elephant

A brand-new pair of ladybug underpants

A Hello Kitty bandage, bloodied

Boy’s blue ink footprint centered on a square of newspaper

The single-pointed concentration of Girl as she slices toy wooden vegetables with a toy wooden knife again and again

Me in this moment, with all my past and present karma, watching over her

4 thoughts on “Offerings”

Ace offering in words. Thanks.

Lovely image, thank you. _/\_

PS Where did you get that cute Buddha in the photo?

Ann–

It’s actually called “My First Buddha.” You can buy it at Dharmacrafts in various sizes (http://www.dharmacrafts.com/2GIF178/DharmaCrafts-Meditation-Supplies.html); I was given it as kind of a joke gift. It’s easy to find people online saying it’s some sort of abomination, but our kids love it–they interact with the other buddha statue in our house as well, but when we set up an altar with this soft one, they understood immediately that it was theirs to take care of. It’s really grown on me. 🙂

-koun