People bump into Buddhism. A book falls off a shelf. A chance meeting. A poster in the street, a leaflet flying in the wind. Just seeing somebody sitting meditating can resonate deeply and be a seed that later takes root. Such encounters with Buddhism can save lives. They can and do cause people to turn their lives around to the good.

For example, a woman friend of mine curious about what I was up to joined me on a retreat in the late 1970’s at Throssel Hole Priory, as it was called then. She had a hard time during the retreat but made it through, glad at the end to at last have a cigarette! As we drove back into Wales on the Sunday afternoon she announced she would not now consider suicide as an option any longer! That she even had suicide in mind was a bit of a shock. Nothing more was ever said on the subject. She never went back for another retreat!

Today I met a woman while out shopping who told me about a Buddhist book that had been passed to her by a friend. Apparently the friend had been close to ending his own life and the teaching in the book had saved him. He’d then, years later, passed it on to help his friend. Wonderful! I hope it helped her. She certainly helped me. A really professional sales person.

Yes, I am out and about again. On a phone call this afternoon a reader ended a call with ‘thank you for being in the world’. Thank YOU all for being in the world. Remember to pass on. Lives can be saved.