The Moon At The Window

Hello Lovelies,

via pinterest

Wow, that was a short vacation, indeed! I never quite made it to Paris. And guess why? My handbag was stolen from me the day I was supposed to leave! Phew!

My bag was found by a kind man the next day (today) and was handed to me by the local police, so all's well. I'm quite glad I didn't sweat too much. Instead, I remembered the poem:

The thief has stolen everything from me
except
the moon hanging at my window.

This poem (my own translation from French, see official translation below) has been written by a Zen monk a long time ago (maybe it's Ryōkan, not sure, will have to check) and I'm glad my love for Japan and anything Zen helped me stand in front of adversity. After all, it was just a bad day, I had, not a bad life!

So the good news is I get to stay and hang around here, I go on creating and painting (every day these past few weeks!) and my etsy shop remains open. You're welcome to just go in!

-Vic from TeaButterfly.

PS: more about the wonderful Ryōkan, courtesy of Wikipedia:

"One evening a thief visited Ryōkan's hut at the base of the mountain only to discover there was nothing to steal. Ryōkan returned and caught him. "You have come a long way to visit me," he told the prowler, "and you should not return empty-handed. Please take my clothes as a gift." The thief was bewildered. He took the clothes and slunk away. Ryōkan sat naked, watching the moon. "Poor fellow," he mused, "I wish I could have given him this beautiful moon." This story may be an interpretation of an account mentioned by Ryōkan in a haiku:

The thief

Left it behind-

The moon at the window."