Homework

No narrative today. These are just some things I'm thinking about. Ethics, you might say.

I. Practice seeing:

Find out who and where the elderly are in your neighborhood.

Find the homeless.

Look at every person you pass, try to imagine who they are, where they come from, and why they dressed that way today. Why are they making that face at that moment?

What plants are blooming? Where are the mulberry trees? Why are there so many Japanese maples?

What birds are around? How many songs do they have?

What soil is under your feet, and how did it get there? Can water penetrate it? Would anything grow in it? Could you sustain a garden on it? How far down would you have to dig to find water?

When was the last time it rained? Without watching the weather, take bets on the next time it will rain.

How many cars pass your house in a day? What kind of cars are they? Who drives by? Why do they pass YOUR house? Where are they going?

II. Practice doing:

Say something that will require a lot of your time. Ask the elderly for their life stories. All of them.

Work for someone for free. Work hard.

Sell your television. Plant a garden. Try to see every living thing in the garden one at a time. Get a magnifying glass; keep going.

Walk aimlessly through the neighborhood. Make eye contact with strangers. Speak to everyone familiarly.

Go where you fear, in spite.

Memorize.

Try to understand why.

Change postures. Sit. Kneel. Change speeds. Run. Walk. Jump.

Don't hoard life. Give it freely.

III. Practice Daily -> return to I.