The alms round route has changed again since patimokkha has passed. I got Non Suan again, which was fine. It would’ve been nice to try a different route but anything was better than the Station route. It was led by Tan M. who recently came to stay with us. He’s the fastest walker I’ve had the luck of catching up to so far. Luckily Tan B. was the one directly behind him and since he wasn’t that quick, the spacing between all the monks didn’t look too awkward.

The new chore of cleaning the bowl drying shed is more of a pain than I thought, but I really should have expected it. It’s the congregation point for all the monastics so you don’t know when people will turn up so you have to make the best effort of cleaning. Also Tan M. can be such a micro-manager at times but I do understand why he is the way he is. I’m guessing the chore will only last for 2 weeks until they are rotated again.

At the very end of Sangha Tea, Tan Ajahn Kevali showed us photos of his trip to Myanma, the temples in Shwedagon and the rock at Kyaiktiyo Pagoda overlooking a beautiful valley. Himself and a small retinue of monks and laypeople had gone on a visit and they spent some time in meditation in various places. Then Ajahn R. points out a photo in another album which led to the “special moments” album and it showed photos from the old days of when they had just been ordained and there were many of Ajahn Jayasaro as well. It was like going back in time to see the beginning of their journey, and humbling to know that everyone has their own start on the path.