As I progress through my journey I have often chosen various paths. Each day presents an opportunity to turn left or right, reverse, or simply continue in the same direction. This is one of those moments where adjusting my course in life slightly feels like it might be worth the effort.

For many years I have been intrigued by various philosophical teachings including that of the Buddha. One of my early introductions was with a friend I had when I was around 20 years old. This friend was a practicing Buddhist and we spent many hours discussing his beliefs and the teachings he practiced. At the time I was a young kid set in my atheist ways of thinking but I still drew comparisons to these teachings and how they aligned with beliefs I already held.

Throughout my life I have been practicing many of those teachings from the Buddha naturally without thinking about it. Over the past couple of years my curiosity has grown and many of my personal ways of living seem to coincide with Buddhist principles, so it seems fitting that I would want to explore this further. Meditation and my approach toward life have already been a part of me for a while now. Rather than continuing to passively follow some of those teachings I want to put the core teachings of Buddhism into daily practice and see where this takes me. My plan initially is to put those teachings into daily practice following a more secular method and not necessarily that of any particular type (Theravada, Mahayana, Zen, etc.). My beliefs tend to taper off when it comes to anything that involves the supernatural or dogmatic beliefs, but the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path appeal to me without sacrificing core beliefs I already hold. I am still in the early learning part of what this will really mean for me but its a start.  More to come.