Kate sounds great! Thank you for your patience! I'm in Chicago for book signings for my new book, "Our Forever Ben." I'll make announcements about that shortly.
For the moment I'm still focused on Kate.
She came through the surgery with flying colors, as my sweet Mommy would say!
I talked to her on Saturday and she remembered everything, and was extremely grateful for her life. You know, we have those moments, if we're lucky, to sit back and say "Wow, I have a new lease on life. I can see through clearer eyes. I can appreciate everything like NEVER before." Kate was crying tears of gratitude. FOR YOU! She knows you are chanting for her. She can feel your daimoku. And it's the Randolph family's determination that every single person who is chanting for Kate has a great breakthrough in faith and benefit.
Kate's illness gives us ALL a chance to breathe that gratitude in.
As I write this, we are not quite sure what kind of tumor they removed. So I am chanting as vigilantly as before. I think back to FNCC, just a few days ago. Kate and I spent an hour alone in the peace garden, taking in the quotes by Daisaku Ikeda, really feeling our gratitude towards our mentor.
And Kate reminded me of the address he gave us in 2010 before Rock the Era. She said there was a quote in that address that she chanted to understand - with her life - what every word meant. I'm sure she'd be really happy to share it with you now:
Daisaku Ikeda stated:
"You must decide
that the oneness of mentor and disciple
is the primary quest of your life."
What does this mean? I cannot tell you. It is something each person can glean for themselves. What happens to you when you chant to understand this with your life?
And here we are, in the states, coming up on the holiday season. in Chicago we just had our first snow...and it's the holiday season. (I'm visiting from Florida) As I was driving today I realized the holidays are so poignant because we are longing for a moment, a glimpse, a scent, a song, of our past. And, if we are lucky, if we are generous in our hearts, we can let the feeling in. We can see the images of our childhood, feel the hugs of our grandchildren and gaze into the eyes of our children who are now all grown up.
And bask. Bask in the beauty that we are. Bask in the lives we have. Bask in the eternity of each life. This is my second Christmas without my son Ben in physical form, but through our writings he is more with me than ever. Kate always says, "We are Buddhists. We breathe rarified air."
Yes we do.
Sending you love from me and Kate and her family!
