I don’t like someone. It’s not really acceptable at the monastery to dislike someone else. It’s not a rule, there’s no requirement to like everybody or not dislike anybody, but it’s something I glean from the environment here.

If you don’t like someone, you can’t just accept it and let it be and continue disliking the person, you have to engage it. And then what? Like the person? Not.

I think you don’t have to like everybody, but when you really dislike someone, you have to engage it and transform it to reach some understanding that keeps peace within oneself, within the other person, and within the community.

So I’m working on it with this person. He’s the other monastic aspirant here. Actually, no that’s not right. He’s not the “other aspirant”. The monks think there are two aspirants here, there aren’t. I’m the only aspirant, even if he ends up ordaining and I don't. The other guy is a monastic cadet, as in “space cadet”.

Whoops, I just failed.

So I’m working on it with this person. I’m starting with baby steps and I think I’ve had a good day when I get through it without calling him “Blondie”.

Damn, try it again.

So I’m working on it with this person, but really all I want to do is beat him senseless with a plastic whiffle ball bat. Man, would that feel good!