“On mornings such as these,
Where the ocean meets the breeze,
I feel as though I’ve completely lost my mind;
But save for this insanity,
I could not clearly see,
And my creativity would be wholly blind.”
A cloud drifting over the gulf of Mexico. It makes me recall the old Chinese zen poem: “To drift like clouds and flow like water.”
“My mind rides the wind
Giving breath to this longing
Away from this place.”
“How strange is this life
From ship to shore and then back
Always in transit.”
Ferry boat in the Caymans at dawn.
“Melodic Language
Voice of the holy Dhevas
Bodhisattva’s tongue.”
A candle offering to Amitabha, sitting atop an elephant altar table and beside my sandalwood mala as well as a Nepalese hand prayer wheel. The prayer wheel’s inscription reads: “Om Amitabha Hrih.”
This haiku came to me during my studies of the Pali and Sinhala languages. Spoken Sinhala, to my ears, has a very melodic sound in its rhythm and diction.
“Red skies to the west
Yearning for that which is past
Chasing ghosts of youth.”
Red evening skies over the piney woods of East Texas.
These are three photos of my trip to the Caribbean last year. Our first stop was Jamaica and we landed in Montego Bay. As we were rolling into port that early morn’ I snapped a photo of the island. I’ve been told that I hail from a long line of sailors and I could deeply feel that connection on this beautiful morning.
Early morning and pulling into port at Montego Bay, Jamaica.
We landed in Montego Bay and got our heads and bearings about us before setting off on a bus tour to the south-central parish of St. Elizabeth. The port was bustling with trade and activities as people flitted about shopping, browsing, and deciding on their tour destinations.
Boarding the bus to traverse the island to Santa Cruz, St. Elizabeth parish, Jamaica.
We traversed from Montego bay via the bamboo avenue to the south-central part of the island to end up in St. Elizabeth parish. There we took a plantation tour for the day. The tour ride from Montego to Santa Cruz was both the most harrowing and exhilarating trip of my life as the bus operator drove at break-neck speeds on tiny black top roads up the blue mountains and through the jungles of Jamaica.
Somewhere near bamboo avenue and in the idyllic parishes of Jamaica between Montego Bay and Santa Cruz.
After a full day touring, we zipped back to Montego Bay and said farewell to the island in the sun. As we disembarked from port, I took my guitar and sang “Jamaica Farewell” as the island of Jamaica receded into the distance. That night I let mother ocean rock my rum soaked bones to sleep.
Several years ago during meditation a few bits of prose came to me which I have dubbed ‘dreamisms.’ I’ve shared them off and on with people and they tend to react favourably towards them, so I’ve decided to post a few here on the Nomad blog. These are intended to be spiritual but not at all religious in any way, although you can probably see my Buddhist and Sufi mind at work in the writings. I would generally appreciate any comments and discussions regarding what you may read here as I’m considering collecting these works and publishing them in a hard bound format.
The photos that follow were taken by a very close friend of mine with his studio, “Vysion Arts.” He is an exceptionally talented photographer and I am very honoured that he was willing to contribute his art to my writings.
“Although the Dream is but a fleeting moment, the Dreamer spends lifetimes wandering its width and breadth.”
“The Dreamer fears not the nightmare, for it is as much illusion as the Dreamless Sleep.”
I was strolling along the beach at Chankanaab National Park in Cozumel when I spied this lovely little creature sunning on the rocks and felt compelled to snap a photo.
Chankanaab comes from the Mayan language and means “little sea,” referring to the natural lagoon at the site. The beaches were some of the most gorgeous I’ve ever seen and despite being a ‘tourist’ area, it was relaxing to play a little flamenco guitar on the beach while gazing upon the azure blue waters.
“A fog hangs mid-air
Like some long ignored question
sombrely haunting.”
Whilst having a cup of Ceylon tea one morning and viewing the towering pines in the fog, I was struck by the austere beauty of the piney woods of east Texas. It reminded me of my childhood and the many unanswered and unanswerable questions thereof.
So, I feel as though I’ve posted enough ‘snapshots’ of some of my previous journeys to properly flesh out the blog for now. Assuming all goes as planned, I intend to post at least once a week from here on out to keep everyone updated. Thus far, I’m really enjoying writing and posting to the blog!
Later this year I am planning a trip to Asia, as some of you already know. My travel plans include at least the U.A.E., Sri Lanka, and possibly India. I’m very interested in seeing some of the holy buddhist sites in Sri Lanka particularly. Keep your fingers crossed for me and soon I’ll post the story of my recent (mis)adventure in attaining my passport… Namaste all!
The Nomad Madman 