It seems a fitting time to finally get the pictures up of Enough, the event we took part in this fall at Shed and organized by TheCaliforniaProject. It’s so easy to get caught up in a frenzy of consumption at this time of year as we dive into December holidays while still full from the Thanksgiving meal. Looking back at Enough is a great way to put it all on pause.
Enough marked the end of Shed’s month long celebration of Japan and it was a day of activities aimed at getting visitors into the state of ‘beginners mind’. Beginners mind is a term that comes from the teachings of Zen monk Shunryu Suzuki, founder of the first Buddhist monastery outside Asia (Tassajara) and author of Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind. The concept of beginnners mind is similar to the more well-known one of mindfulness: Slowing down, centering and taking in your surroundings using all the senses and without preconceptions, just as you do the first time you learn or do something. Hence Shunryu calling this state ‘beginners’ mind.
TheCaliforniaProject founder Brent Haas is very active in the SF Zen Center and invited several friends from the Center (Marcia Lieberman, Nancy Petrin, and Tim Kroll) to join him in presenting workshops and talks for Enough. Author, editor and Remodelista co-founder Sarah Lonsdale also lent her warm and down-to-earth but discerning eye to the day’s events with a mini-exhibit on thoughtful consumption. Kiddieup set up out back with drop-in origami and two sessions of silent tea for the kids.
We had a great time out back. For one—silent tea never fails to be amazing. Rambunctious kids slowing down and having tea in silence is always astounding. (If only it was replicable at the weeknight dinner table.)
Origami was also eye-opening. A few things we learned:
-Plain, medium squares of paper are best for beginners. They fold crisply and patterns don’t get in the way of intricate folds.
-Orientation is key to success. Keep the paper in the direction you see in the directions so that the top of your origami piece is the true top, etc.
-A few people who had lived in Japan and learned origami there, impressed upon us the importance of running your finger along each fold to get a good, strong crease. You can surely get the crease other ways, but the time-honored motion of running the index finger along the paper honors the tradition.
We used Densho Origami book as our guide starting with the easiest folds, the Tulip, Cat and Dog. The kids wanted to dive right into harder ones (“Folded paper, how hard can it be?!”) but quickly realized origami does take skill and careful attention. House and Piano were surprise huge hits. Cup was surprisingly easy and really satisfying. The big challenge was Balloon, a tough one that gave a sense of accomplishment in 3-dimensional expansion, who cares about the finesse of the edges.
Shed
SF Zen Center
Remodelista
Densho Origami book
Yasutomo Fold Ems Paper
A Day of Thanks It seems a fitting time to finally get the pictures up of Enough, the event we took part in this fall at Shed and organized by TheCaliforniaProject.
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