Q: I have been sitting and have found great peace in it, and I carry it with me throughout the day. I get pulled off center sometimes and caught up in my knots of angry or emotional thinking, but can come back more quickly. People are looking different to me and my relationship to them seems lighter and at the same time more sincere. I am also seeing myself differently, with more perspective. My question is: How do I get this into my daily life? I know that the pat Zen saying is "Chop wood, carry water," but that leaves a plethora of practical issues unaddressed.  Are there any books you can recommend or should I just trust in the next step or what?

A: Don't think of "this" as a "thing" that you have to get into your daily life.  You must be patient and have faith in the process, for the awareness that you are realizing through this practice will make its way into every aspect of your life as long as you don't get in the way by objectifying it.  Forget the books; just rely on the practice.

It's rather like eating a sandwich.  Eventually the nutrients in the sandwich make their way into skin and bone, flesh and blood, but not until they have been digested first.  You must allow your practice to mature and have faith that this practice-mind will show up as and when it shows up.  To introduce expectations and result-oriented thinking is to regress on the Path.  There is no "next step," only this one.