I said goodbye to a friend today, someone who has come to mean so much to me in these months in Milwaukee; someone who has loved and shown me support by his presence, by his presence. Over lentil soup and the breaking of bread, we shared moments of our lives and spoke of our faith. Life and faith, things that change and evolve; but in so doing become the profound experiences of who we are and lead us into that great day, the mysterium tremendum.

The gray sky becomes warm, leaves appear, bright days come and now begin to depart. On the maple tree outside of my window, leaves of surik reach before a china blue sky. It has been nearly a year since I have written, the seasons of my own life have also come and gone. The film by the symbolist Ki-Duk-Kim, Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter & Spring tells the story of a monk who lives in a monastery with his elder, surrounded by the Busan mountains of Korea. It is a story about the vow of non-possession. The monk lives a life which is content, joyful and wondrous; until he desires to have possession over the creatures of the earth, and causes living things to know death. Though I haven't killed anyone in this past year, the desire to posses in my own life has caused it's own death. I desire to posses because I am uncertain, and that uncertainty has lead to fear.