In life, we find many things along the way that give us reason to carry on living, or that makes us second guess our actions and reactions to the everyday things we do.
  Some of those things could simply be, a beautiful flower as it comes into full bloom, or maybe a tree that has the new blossoms, with petals that gently fall from each bud; as a breeze blows them gently across the fresh pastured grass.

   These and many simplistic things, really inspire me, they give me purpose and help me to understand more about the wide world around me. I am a Kadampa Buddhist Practitioner by faith, and I find that having a belief system that makes you perceive the world through slightly a different doctoring or ideology. Can be very enlightening.

   I was not always a Buddhist. In fact, I had no real religious beliefs what so ever, before I took an interest in the Buddhist faith. I spent three years, generally reading and researching numerous Buddhist practices. Until I came across a website advertising a teaching college not far from where I live. I spent a week there working and studying and instantly became a practitioner of the New Kadampa faith.

   The reason I became interested in Buddhism is a little unusual, to say the least, as it was a moment of pure destiny, a case of right time, right place.
    I was living in London, back then, during a period in my life, when things were very raw and unbalanced, I was hurting. I had found out five weeks before, that someone who was at the time very close to me, had passed away, after been in a coma; needless to say, this tipped the scales somewhat in my emotional state, and I spent a few weeks drinking and doing a lot of stupid things, that looking back I am not very proud of.
  One day, I was sitting on a bench in a park to where I lived, and suddenly this man appeared out of nowhere and sat down next to me. He was dressed in unusual garments I had not seen before. And after about an hour or so of conversation with this very wise and genteel man. I found out that he was, in fact, a Buddhist monk from a teaching college in London, and was having some time, visiting a friend in the area, and decided to go for a walk, and that's where he met me.

  His name was Cho Lang Gelsang I believe. He gave me something no one else could give at that moment in time. The words of inspiration I needed to sort my mind out and take the...