The Word Made Flesh

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In the Gospel of Saint John we read:
The Word became flesh; he came to dwell among us... through him all things come to
be; no single thing was created without him. All that came to be was alive with his life,
and that life was the light of men. The light shines on in the dark, and the darkness has
never quenched it.

Look steadily at the darkness. It won’t be long before you see the light. Gaze at things.
It won’t be long before you see this Word.
The Word became flesh; he came to dwell among us...
And stop those frantic efforts to change flesh back into words. Words, words, words!

(Anthony de Mello, "The Song Of The Bird")

What you can buy by money?

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A bed but not ... sleep
Computer but not ... brains
Food but not ... appetite
Finery but not ... beauty
A house but not ... a home
Medicine but not ... health
Luxuries but not ... culture
Amusements but not ... happiness
Acquintance but not ... friends
Obedience but not ... faithfulness
Sex but not ... love

In Prison

An old man lived alone in Punjab, India . He wanted to sow potato garden, but it was very hard work. His only son, who would have helped him, was in prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and mentioned his situation:

Dear Son,
I am feeling pretty bad because it looks like I won't be able to plant my potato garden this year. I hate to miss doing the garden because your mother always loved planting time. I'm just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot. If you were here, all my troubles would be over.
I know you would dig the plot for me, if you weren't in prison.

Love,
Dad

Shortly, the old man received this telegram: "For Heaven's sake, Dad, don't dig up the garden!! That's where I buried the WEAPONS!!"

At 4 a.m. the next morning, a dozen secret Police agents and local police officers showed up and dug up the entire garden without finding any WEAPONS.
Confused, the old man wrote another note to his son telling him what happened, and asked him what to do next.
His son's reply was: "Go ahead and plant your potatoes, Dad. It's the best I could do for you from here."

(From: buddhis net@google+) 

Angry Buddha

"A woman who practices reciting Buddha Amitabha's name, is very tough and recites "NAMO AMITABHA BUDDHA" three times daily. Although she is doing this practice for over 10 years, she is still quite mean, shouting at people all the time. She starts her practice lighting incense and hitting a little bell. 
 A friend wanted to teach her a lesson, and just as she began her recitation, he came to her door and called out: "miss Nuyen, miss Nuyen!". 

As this was the time for her practice she got annoyed, but she said to herself: "I have to struggle against my anger, so I will just ignore it." And she continued: "NAMO AMITABHA BUDDHA, NAMO AMITABHA BUDDHA..." 
But the man continued to shout her name, and she became more and more oppressive. 
She struggled against it and wondered if she should stop the recitation to give the man a piece of her mind, but she continued reciting: "NAMO AMITABHA BUDDHA, NAMO AMITABHA BUDDHA..." 
The man outside heard it and continued: "Miss Nuyen, miss Nuyen..." 
Then she could not stand it anymore, jumped up, slammed the door and went to the gate and shouted: "Why do you have to behave like that? I am doing my practice and you keep on shouting my name over and over!" 
The gentleman smiled at her and said: "I just called your name for ten minutes and you are so angry. You have been calling Amitabha Buddha's name for more than ten years now; just imagine how angry he must be by now!"

(From: "Being Peace" by Thitch Nhat Hahn, http://viewonbuddhism.org)