a warm February
today is cooler than it has been
there is
a breeze,
it rattles my windows
Showing posts with label Observation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Observation. Show all posts
Friday, February 9, 2024
Observation, February 9th, 2024, Friday
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Sunday, October 8, 2023
Observation - October 8th, 2023, Sunday
the sun is shing
leaves are falling
there is a chill in the air
it is cold in the apartment,
though the windows are
closed
I have not yet
lit the furnace
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Saturday, July 8, 2023
Observation - July 8th, 2023, Saturday
It is quiet… there is the soft sound of air moving through a fan, and the quiet hum of its motor…turning.
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Wednesday, February 8, 2023
Observation - February 8th, 2023, Wednesday
Observation
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Sunday, January 8, 2023
Observation - January 8th, 2023, Sunday
Observation
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Saturday, January 7, 2023
Observation - January 7th, 2023, Saturday
Observation
Cold, the furnace went out
Eighteen degrees outside in the
city
The
morning sun is pale in a silver sky
My fingers are stiff…not from
typing
Noise from the space-heater covers
everything
Pushing
cold air through hot coils…
Electricity
The water kettle boils
A
sharp whistle piercing the room
The promise of something warm to
hold
Sipping
hot coffee in the gloom
.jpg)
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Wednesday, December 7, 2022
Observation - December 7th, 2022, Wednesday
Observation
The neighbor is making noise
Groan and moans come through the walls
Yelling on the phone…demanding
…a real person to talk to
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Tuesday, December 6, 2022
Observation - December 6th, 2022, Tuesday
Observation
The apartment is quiet
The ambient-hum of electricity fills the room
The unsteady rhythm of
footsteps overhead
A tiny motor turning in the fridge
The coffee maker beeps twice
Telling me the warming plate has been turned off
It has an insistent
voice, a long-shrill beeping
The same it uses when
the brewing is done
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Monday, November 7, 2022
November 7th, 2022, Monday
Observation
The news talkers are talking
Piqued with foreboding
The anticipation of disaster…tomorrow
The reality of today
Worry is present suffering
A down payment on tomorrow’s doom
The sky is light blue
The street is quiet outside my window
The squirrel in the maple
Preparing for winter
The long sleep with spring to come
#haibun
#observation
#poetry
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Sunday, November 6, 2022
November 6th, 2022, Sunday
Observation
The November sun is bright at 8:00 am
The crooked finger of bare trees…clawing
Shadows scratching at the window blinds
Daylight savings today, with a hint of winter
The scent of cold things, late-autumn leaves
Drying in the stiff-breeze
The sound of water boiling in the kettle
Calling me to coffee and the taste of chocolate
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Saturday, March 6, 2021
Observation - March 6th, 2021, Saturday
The sky is powder blue
The sun, unnaturally bright
A silver disk of light
Melting the few remaining patches of dirty snow
There is a buzz in the air
And birdsong
The feeling of spring, and joy
At its early return.
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Saturday, February 6, 2021
Observation - February 6th, 2021, Saturday
It is cold outside, but the sun is shining
The sky is striped, blue and white
I can feel the cold coming, seeping through the windows
The sun’s light through wavey glass
Snow clings to the limbs of my tree
Each flake a tiny prism from which the sun light leaps
And there is hope, today in America…there is hope
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Wednesday, January 6, 2021
Observation - January 6th, 2021, Wednesday
It is cloudy in Minneapolis, a gray day in America
The capital is occupied by terrorists, insurrectionists
A coup de etat is being attempted in America
Shots fired at the capital
A woman rolls past the cameras on a gurney
Her face bloodied, gravely injured
Terrorists have occupied the floor of the House
The Senate chamber is under their control
Trump supporters flying Trump flags wearing Trump hats
A bunch of brown shirts, chickens come home to roost
The mob is fighting the capital police
Reports of flash bang grenades
The final process of ratifying the presidential election has been
upended
The clock is ticking, they have five days to complete their work
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Saturday, December 5, 2020
Observation - December 5th, 2020, Saturday
The floorboards are creaking above me
A reminder that I do not really live alone
Kitty is curled up in a ball on the couch
I hear the deep rumble of engine outside
Small branches swaying in the light breeze
Dark slender finger, against the pale sky
There is laughter somewhere down the block
People are walking outside, riding bikes
There is no snow on the ground, no ice
It is warm for Minneapolis in December
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Thursday, November 5, 2020
Observation - November 5th, 2020, Tuesday
Coffee on the terrace of the penthouse
Morning on 49th Street, Radio City
Rockefeller Plaza, a few hundred feet away
Columns of concrete, glass and steel push up into the powder blue sky
Green-copper spires reflected in mirrors one thousand feet tall
Their soft patina wavering in the sunlight
A curious pigeon comes to greet me
The sounds of the city are pressing
A steady drone of HVAC permeates the atmosphere
Sirens wail and saws whine, over the drone of engines
As the arhythmic clang of steel on steel fills the air with hollow
waves
While all around me hammers fall
The city hums with a ghostly bustle
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Monday, October 5, 2020
Observation - October 5th, 2020, Monday
The air is warm this morning
Unseasonably warm for October
My windows are open
And Kitty is talking about rabbits
In the quiet morning
Beneath the cool blue sky
The sun still below the horizon
As Venus fades quickly in the light
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Saturday, September 5, 2020
Observation - September 5th, 2020, Saturday
The long September sunlight
reflects off the sandstone and red brick of the building across the street, filtering
back through the green leaves of the maple outside my window.
The window is open; there is
traffic on Bryant and a rhythm to the sound of tires on pavement, as car after
car rolls by; Kitty is sleeping on the ledge by the sill, curled up on her
side.
I see patches of blue sky through
the limbs of the tree.
The air in the apartment is cool.
There scent of cinnamon and cloves
lingers in the air, I made eggrolls.
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Wednesday, August 5, 2020
Observation - August 5th, 2020, Wednesday
The scent of
garlic and curry the apartment
I made a pot
of lentils
For the
first time in weeks the air conditioner is silent
The windows
are open for a cross breeze
A dappled
light comes in through the east windows
Filtered through
the green leaves
Kitty is
complaining about the taste of medicine in her food
The dry and
dusty chondroitin that helps her with her joints
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Sunday, July 5, 2020
Observation - July 5th, 2020, Saturday
It is late
in the afternoon
In the condo
all the shades are drawn down
The unwelcome
sun is beating
Hard on the
bricks and brownstone
The air conditioner
fills the empty space
Cool air and
ambient noise
Kitty is curled
up and sleeping
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Friday, June 5, 2020
Observation - June 5th, 2020, Friday
The city is
green
It is summer
and it is quiet—right now, at 4:00 pm
If I think
about it
I can recall
the sounds of gunfire
That woke me
up in the middle of the night
The quiet lays
on Minneapolis like a green veil
The city is
restive
The demand
for justice is simmering, now
Seven days
ago, we were at a roiling-boil
I can smell
the ashes lingering—still
The chemical
scent of unnatural fire
Scratching
in my throat
Siddhartha Ulysses Gateaux, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 1st, 1969) to French/American parents. A lifelong resident of South Minneapolis, Historian, Philosopher and Theologian and Poet, educated in the Benedictine tradition, master of Buddhism in the Zen-Sufi tradition, Buddha at Large, Co-Founder of the Zen Syndicate Intergalactic, Neighborhood Buddha and the People's History Project, teaching history of religion and providing spiritual direction.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)