"Don't We All?"

Beneficent Smile, Burma (Myanmar), November 2005, Pentax Optio 555, Exposure 1/100 sec @ f2.8, ISO 64, no flash © Steven Crisp [Click on the photo to enlarge]

I love this picture. Look at that smile. You need to understand that my good friend here was being verbally accosted by the three young Burmese girls trying to sell their wares to the American tourists that drop in to this border town from Thailand's northern tip.

You could have many different reactions to this somewhat raucous attack, but I can think of none better than this smile.

I thought of this picture when I read this brief story about another kind of encounter between two seemingly different types of people. Have a look at it, and see what you think. And then you will understand the title of this post.

"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy."

-Thich Nhat Hanh

Buddha's compassion

Your Buddha Half, Tokyo, Japan, April 2007, Nikon D40 with 18-200mm VR lens, Focal length 90mm, Exposure 1/50 sec @ f5.3, ISO 200, no flash, circular polarizing filter © Steven Crisp [Click on the photo to enlarge]

Compassion
is the willingness
to play
in the field of dreams
even though
you are awake.

-- Matthew Flickstein,
"Swallowing the River Ganges"