I still don’t know what to write, so I’m randomly choosing an emoji a day and writing 200 words about it. Another one of my writing slump cheats. Today’s emoji is ?               

Another day, another session of
                           working meditation
we were tasked to raking leaves
and piling them beneath each tree where they fell

It surely is autumn now
                  for everywhere the land glows
                  in browns, reds and yellows
                  under the soft rays of the sun

Ever so often the occasional breeze,
                      give the trees a shake.
And the leaves fall,
                  gracefully and silently.

It is beautiful.

In a manner of leisure, we raked the green lawns.

I chose a particular tree, one which I had taken a liking to. 
Perhaps a certain variety of maple?
Its soft leaves, bright yellow like the sun,
                  are shaped like fingers of flames spreading outwards.
Bare branches against a blanket of clouds, made a poetic picture.

How should I approach my task, my meditation? I asked myself.
Playfully, I entertained
                    various ways, various games.
I settled on a way of raking,
                 like a way of loving.

Combing the hair of my beloved, 
                  with tenderness and care.
I combed the hair of the Earth.

It feels good to be in no hurry,
                 to have no agenda,
                 no pre-determined start nor finish
                 to work so lovingly and restfully.

A few times, 
                   sudden winds scattered my efforts of a 
                   neat and compact leaf pile.
I simply looked on, and after a moment, 
                    half-laughed.
How futile my efforts seem,
                      on top of how seemingly pointless the task appears to be.

Then, 
                             a little light, some illumination:

Tending the fallen leaves of the Earth - 
                     The Earth, my life;
                     the raking, of living;
                     the fallen leaves, the unhappy things which happen.

Leaves fall, and for sure, 
                     they keep falling.
But the best way is to lovingly,
                  patiently,
                  rake them back into a neat and tidy little pile.

Perhaps, when viewed in the light of practice,
                the whole point about raking leaves
                is not about raking leaves
Therefore it is raking leaves.

Perhaps.