"No mud, no lotus" is a famous saying by Thich Nhat Hanh, the revered Vietnamese monk, reminding us that we need the heavy squelchy tough stuff to produce that which is light, lovely and joyful: That we need the nutrients of the mud to grow the beautiful lotus flower: Basically that suffering does lead to happiness.
I tested out this theory on the Little Lumpy charity cycle event last weekend, with my good friend Ollie. We entered the inaugural 'Trail' category - 48 miles, much off-road, across countyside north of the South Downs.
Apart from the georgeous flat buttercup fields, the tracks were littered with deep ruts, heavy stones, loose gravel, tree roots, branches and spiky, stinging plants... The hills were steep, both up and down. with 1,160m of elevation gain. Fun?... Well certainly something for a granny to think about!
All went well til about 8 hours in, with tired aching muscles and screaming knees, we hit the mud. Bikes decided to stop in the middle of the squelch. Struggling to keep upright, I had to put a foot into it. My shoe was instantly eaten! I wasn't sure I would ever see it again, nor did I have the energy to do much more than despair and then giggle!
But rescue was at hand! Ollie got his bike through and came back to wade in and dig the shoe out. That might be what good friends do, but he was also exhausted and in desperate need of a very long overdue cup of tea... and I knew that was real loveliness...
When we arrived back at the finish line after nearly 10 hours on the trail, all of the other competitors and most of the event organisers had gone home. There was an air of recent effort and tangible emotion. In my zombie-like state, I was just pleased to have completed the route and to have enjoyed the stunningness of our spring green land.
But the beauty was in the mud.
see the beauty...
Thanks too to Ollie for photos
