Aurora Borealis - Bear Lake, Alaska

"Hey Dave. How's it going?"

"Good morning Norm. I've been doing some thinking. One of the reasons there is some ground to feel compassionate toward a perpetrator of crime or an aggressor is that the aggressor, because he or she is perpetrating a crime, is at the casual stage of life, accumulating the causes and conditions that later lead to undesirable consequences. So from that point of view, there is enough ground to feel compassionate toward the agressor."

"That's some pretty deep shit Dave.."

"And usually we define our enemy as a person, an external agent, whom we believe is causing harm to us or to someone we hold dear. But such an enemy is dependent on many conditions and is impermanent. One moment the person may act as an enemy; at yet another moment, he or she may become your best friend."

"Don't think that's ever happened to me Dave."

"Really? It's a truth that I have experienced often in my own life. But I have found that negative thoughts and emotions, the inner enemy, will always remain the enemy. They are your enemy today, they have been your enemy in the past, and they will remain your enemy in the future as long as they reside in your mind."

"Man, Dave, buddy! You have been up here waaaaaaay too long."

"Maybe I just need some coffee to give me strength and confidence and inner peace."

"Ya think? If I buy, you gotta promise, no more f'ing Dalai Lama insight for the rest of the shift, okay?"

"You're a good partner Norm. You show genuine compassion, and you always appreciate my wish for peace and happiness and the ability to overcome suffering"

"Shut the F. up Dave."

"Okay."