Tiger Stadium
Some of the best trips I have ever taken included places I had no intention of going to. Once when I began teaching I was living in Chicago and I was invited to speak in Toronto and then later Montreal. I had to drive through Detroit, Michigan to get to Toronto. While driving through what they call the motor city, I noticed there was a ballgame going to take place at the historic Tiger Stadium. Being a big baseball fan when I was young, I decided to be impulsive and stop and see the game. I do not remember much about the game, but I do recall the joy of sitting in this grand old stadium and just experiencing a oneness with it. After the game, I resumed my drive to Toronto. I had no previous intention of seeing a baseball game in Detroit, but it was one many great highlights of the trip. Sadly, most of Tiger Stadium is now torn down, a lesson in impermanence. The Detroit Tigers play baseball at a different place now. The point is though, we spend so much time planning for everything. Some things we need to plan for, but we do not need to try to plan everything. We cannot control everything. That is the way of the Tao. It is nice to leave some room for improvisation and adjustment. That is where we can discover some spontaneous treasures of our practice.
