Heading South

Tara on Tour

This has been a hard week in some ways, and a happy one in others. I've been looking after Isaac, who's 13 and I've really enjoyed this time with him and even the unfamiliar responsibility of motherhood! I met Isaac when he was 4 and lived with him and his mother for a year on the Drum Estate in Edinburgh about 5 years ago. He is watching me write this, pulling faces and clearly paranoid that I am going to say something compromising.

Hello this is Isaac...Anna is a crazy lady..don't listen to her! Save yourself while you can!

Well, there we go. Such faith ...but he's probably right.

I have indeed felt a little crazy this week, rather wishing I hadn't embarked on
this journey since it's so big and I really don't like travelling!! However, I do believe in the journey and I hope I will grow into it as time goes on.

So I leave Edinburgh tomorrow and that's quite an emotional wrench. Parting company from dear friends, giving up the place that has been home for a few years now really. It's always here to come back to, but that doesn't have much impact when the nature of any journey like this involves such a stepping out into the Unknown.

I'm heading down to Samye Ling tomorrow, for the last days of the Drupchen and for a meeting with Akong Rinpoche - whose project in South Africa I am fundraising for. A Drupchen is a very intense practice: prayers are done for 24 hours, over a period in this case of 7 days. It's the first time in the history of Samye Ling that such an event has taken place and it's said to be a very powerful practice for removing obstacles and negativity. Many teachers have been flown over from Sherap Ling in India to do this practice, and it will probably be quite a spectacle - lots of ritual, colourful clothing, music. This particular Drupchen focusses on Guru Rinpoche, who was responsible for introducing Buddhism to Tibet from India.

More later!