So, I have a number of monk stories I have either heard elsewhere or learned some place along my journey. This is but one of them.

There was a monk. he lived in a temple dedicated to serinity. He had all of his conditions granted to him to be happy and survive peacefully within this temple. He had food and drink, the companionship of the other monks and time to reflect upon the mysteries of this world and others. There was another monk who had befriended this monk. In meditation they would both sit together in a state of complete serenity and peace. One day an army traveled to this temple and told the monks that they must leave their home because a war was closely brewing. The monks agreed and the army hauled them away in a truck. In the truck the second monk felt afraid and he was asking the soldiers what was to happen, they did not know and the first monk only sat in meditation. As they traveled through a desert in this truck, the sun baked them to the core and everyone was sweaty and dismal save for the one  monk who sat within his meditation. After awhile of travel the soldiers stopped in the wasteland of the desert and proceeded to unload the monks. Without remorse they drove off and the monks started walking. They walked for days in the heat of the sun and night brought only painful coldness. Then it came, they were walking as a sudden storm came upon them. The wind was great and the torrents of water buried them in a muddy sludge. They both sat there and the second monks face broke into tears as he shouted, "why must we die like this!!!"

He looked to the other monk who sat there in silence as if not affected by the storm. He sat in meditation with his eyes closed and his body drenched with mud. The wind shook him but in this he was still.

The second monk looked towards him and asked,"Why is it you can be at peace when we have lost our temple and been left here in a storm.

The other monk opened his eyes and looked at his friend then said," We have never been away from our temple, it has always been in our hearts. I carry my serenity here."

Moral: Wherever you stand is always a place to be within serenity and peace. It is not the place you are in or the situation that is but it is the feeling you hold on to.

OK, I hope you all enjoyed my story, I have another one I will share at a later date.

Peace and Love to all of you.