I prefer the word intimacy because it is an invitation to come closer, to fully embrace and lovingly engage with your life right where you are, rather than trying to move beyond it. It is a recognition that we already belong. To me, intimacy better expresses what I imagine enlightenment might actually feel like. It’s relaxed, receptive, ordinary even. It is not found elsewhere, apart from life, but in the middle of it. As another Zen teaching says, “The path is right beneath your feet.” Intimacy offers an encouragement to connect to the sound of the birds, the spring breeze, each other, and
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