give it up

If you want to become whole,
let yourself be partial.
If you want to become straight,
let yourself be crooked.
If you want to become full,
let yourself be empty.
If you want to be reborn,
let yourself die.
If you want to be given everything,
give everything up.

The Master, by residing in the Tao,
sets an example for all beings.
Because he doesn't display himself,
people can see his light.
Because he has nothing to prove,
people can trust his words.
Because he doesn't know who he is,
people recognize themselves in him.
Because he has no goal in mind,
everything he does succeeds.

When the ancient Masters said,
"If you want to be given everything,
give everything up,"
they weren't using empty phrases.
Only in being lived by the Tao
can you be truly yourself.
-- Stephen Mitchell, Chapter 22, Tao Te Ching

We were in the park watching some folk doing tai chi.

Lao Tzu said, "Here is how you move with chi."

He took a step forward.

"For the left foot to go forward, the right foot must push backward," he said.

"To go forward, you have to go backward," he said.

He took a step back. His left foot pushed forward and his right foot moved back.

"To go backward, you must direct your energy forward," he said.

Jesus said, "If you wish to be reborn into the next step, you must let yourself die to your old stance."

"It is called emptying and filling," said Lao Tzu.

"I see," I said as I followed his and Jesus's instructions. "If I want to open to everything, I have to give everything up."

Lao Tzu looked at Jesus and said, "The boy might amount to something yet."

Jesus said, "As long as he keeps being good for nothing."

The three of us burst into laughter.