Protector of the House

"It's so weird and disgusting!"  This was my first impression of Gecko when I moved to Hawaii in 1997.   I was even at a loss....just to imagine geckos would be everywhere from now on as I was going to live in Hawaii.   However, as time passed by, it didn't get to bother me.   On the contrary, I came to like Gecko and now  I think it's pretty and I often take pictures of gecko.

What a change!   As you may know, it was not "gecko" that changed.   It was "I" who have changed.  No matter how I didn't like geckos, it was impossible to get them out.    Well, maybe one could get Geckos out, but in order to do that, one needs lots of energy.   The best way for me, was I needed to get familiar with geckos.   In other words, in order to continue to live in Hawaii, I needed to accept "geckos."

Of course, this is such a tiny event (whether I don't like gecko or not is nothing) but this is the core teaching of "acceptance."   "Acceptance" is not just to accept, but to change oneself to accept."   It's very difficult to change a world around yourself, but you can always change yourself to view it better.   Depending on the change of your viewpoint, this world around yourself could be better or worse. 

Interestingly, " gecko" is called "Yamori" in Japanese.  The kanji for Yamori （守宮）means "protector of the shrine.”  And another Kanji for Yamori （家守）means "protector of the house."   Because geckos eat insects, mosquito and pests,  they are regarded of the protector of the house.   So geckos are not weird.  They are indeed hardworking to catch pests during the night time, from the viewpoint of the protector of the house.   

By the way, according to my wife, she thought I was weird, too. when she first met me.  But now she seems to get used to it!  I am hoping she can continue to practice "acceptance."