At Heavenly Ease

13 Jan 2021 (New Moon)

I’ve been looking at chubby monk clay figurines for some time. And last Friday, a catholic artist gave this to me.

Yesterday the service staff in his early 50s was struggling with the cash register at the cafe I was having a meal. He might have found the multitude of payment methods these days rather overwhelming.

It didn’t help that the patron before me had left the transaction midway to make an urgent call outside. She said she would come & get her card later.

In between attending to her & handling my order, the older worker might have made an error while keying in the details. As a result he needed his colleague, a lady in her 30s to unlock the cash register for him to proceed.

When the younger staff appeared to rectify the mistake, the older staff was as apologetic as he was nervous. I also saw in the “rectifier’s” face some tension. Perhaps this was her break time. Or perhaps her elderly colleague had made the same mistake too often. And maybe she was shoring up her defense in anticipation of my complaint of poor service etc.

The giver of this chubby monk clay figurine is coincidentally an artist who works with glass.

Before the tension escalated further, I offered what I think should be my most benevolent smile at the nervous pair, and said very deliberately, “Don’t worry. Take your time to sort this out. I have time.”

In hindsight, I realised simply saying, “I have time,” causes our facial features to light up. 😄🙏

As soon as my words left my mouth, the energy threatening to suffocate us in that tight little triangle around the cash register dissipated. The younger staff lost her frown as she smiled awkwardly back at me. I could feel the relief emanating from the older staff as he looked at me gratefully.

This glass figurine of Avalokithesvara seated in heavenly ease pose has been with me for years. The chubby monk clay figurine in the same pose was given to me recently.

And in that moment I felt so rich, not because of having money, but because I had averted a potential conflict. My refusal to get irritated might even help restore some confidence in the man trying to navigate the digital maze at his age.