Orange County Buddhist Church  

    Already May of the first year of the 21^st century.  It’s now been over 100 days since my mother died, and, of course, I miss her; but I think I miss her almost as much because I miss the sashimi lunches I used to treat myself to whenever I went into Los Angeles to visit with her at the Keiro Nursing Home in Lincoln Heights.  (The sashimi lunches, of course, were at restaurants in J-town, not at the nursing home.)

Does that make me a shallow person?  An evil person?  Possibly.  Maybe even probably.  However, as long as I remember her for whatever reason, and you must agree that the reason is at least positive, she still lives and has not died the second time.  You may remember that I quoted someone who said that people die twice; once, when they die physically, and the second time, when they are forgotten.  My mother has died, yet she has not died.  And, of course (jinen hooni), we will be together in Amida.

I hope you will not forget your late loved ones.  Don’t let them die that second death.  May they (and we) live on as long as Shinran Shonin, founder of our way of becoming, whose 828^th birthday we celebrate this month.

May I wish all of you mothers a very happy Mother’s Day.  I hope all who read this will treat their mothers better than I did.

Gassho,
Donkon Jaan, 
Rev. John Doami

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