I will remember you smiling,
Broad grin about to burst
Into full unrestrained laughter;
A jolly, happy man
With soft round features;
A modern day Ho Tai,
Showering the sweetness of Dharma on all your childen.
Once, in Santa Clara,
We assembled in a round pavilion out of doors;
Early in the day I watched your kind eyes
Following the path of a soccer ball
Kicked playfully by a tiny energetic child.
And all the while you smiled, beaming at the child’s sport,
Composing a silent thesis on the benefit of play;
I half expected that at any moment you might run out
Onto the grass and show us all how the game was played.
You taught me then and ever after:
One who brings forth the Bodhi mind
Must have the heart of a child.
Disciple Brian Conroy (Guo Kang) respectfully bows
in mourning and gratitude for the teachings of
the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua.
