In readiness for our small meditation sangha
I listen to the monks of Plum Village sing and chant
I think of the brethren who reside there
And in other such organisations around the world
I wonder that I never joined such a place
Instead I have kept myself to myself
Yes, it is true that I have visited monasteries
And taken part in silent retreats
Yet I have not gone so far as joining a community
Nor have I ever taken up with a sect of any kind
But right now, as I imagine they sit together for supper
There is a part of me which says that it is a pity, a waste even
That I have not been an integral part of such a collective
