what do you do
when your
guru is gone?
like any ordinary seeker, 
i turn to the 
Here and Now Network 
podcast, episode 219.
i turn to remembrance.
i remember transcendence.
i dance even if it’s dense, and 
see spirit through the third lens. but 
i also see through the first two —
the icy blue windows 
that see the cat dish, 
the cat nip, the loose fur, 
the splashes of water. 
i see her 
in everything. 
the late nights 
batting eyelashes.
the early mornings
with active phonetics.

her gentle paws. 
her gentle pause.

she would tell me our 
bodies are merely a facade, 
and that i would never listen 
to her wisdom 
until i was raw — not until 
she was gone.
it’s been a decade of lessons 
that have led me down 
some seriously good directions.
she’s blessed me with the medicine
we don’t receive in modern civilization. 

she was my
commitment + stillness

she taught me that
peace comes from within
and suffering is only present 
when i have a secret stash 
of attachment in my back pocket.
which i always do.
she would often prompt 
the question:
are you being? or 
are you happening? 
and would continue with 
the common anecdote — 
remember it’s your heart beating, 
not you beating your heart.
she always put me in my place
and helped me focus on 
the What and Why
“because the How and When
ain’t yours brother. that shit
comes from Creators realm.”

i would often tell her,
~ you’re my guru ~
and before i could finish with
my sentiments
she would interrupt it,
“nope. i’m not,” 
and just sit there 
and be silent.
be god. in the
quiet.

she never 
preached it.
she just was it.
she was my present. 
presence. present tense. 
she taught me not to worship 
the body, the materials, but to 
embrace the essence.

Bourgeois “Booshie” Gato Prince, 
our humble highness transcends 6/29/2023.