Michael Looft

“I noticed a small frame of parch paper with a quote in calligraphy hanging outside next to the door: “Respect Buddha and the gods, but don’t count on their help.” – Miyamoto Musashi, The Book of Five Rings. I had no idea who this Musashi guy was, but he tickled me with that line.”
― Michael Looft, Crossing Allenby Bridge

“Never a fan of riding horses, I still appreciated its significance in what little philosophy I remember from school. The allegoric image of a charioteer struggling to maintain control of a white and a black horse pursuing separate courses from Plato’s Phaedrus always kept me wondering whether my own passions and desires could be kept in check by a higher reasoning function. I suppose I keep the black horse on my wall as a reminder to pay attention to the demands of my irrational side, but with an eye of keeping it from wresting control of my life. Of course, it keeps me in a constant state of struggle where some days, like the time with Bold and his family, I feel each horse gaining primacy over the course of a single hour.”
― Michael Looft, Crossing Allenby Bridge

“Even though part of me passed it off as rubbish, I still had another part that believed there to be some truth in it. When no one was looking I read my daily horoscope each morning, hoping for a five-star day. Anything less than four stars and I didn’t bother reading it. Deep down, all that stuff gave me the heebie-jeebies.”
― Michael Looft, Crossing Allenby Bridge

“You know, Mark. I hate to bring this up, but you are living in San Francisco. Best city in the world as far as I’m concerned, but it’s a transient one renowned for its part-time Buddhists and general flightiness. I really hope you haven’t succumbed to these spiritual vices.”
― Michael Looft, Crossing Allenby Bridge