Shoot for the Moon
Kara Zhang, Vancouver
She is a dance and rhythmic gymnastics champion. She specializes in painting and design. And she lit up the runways of Vancouver Fashion Week with her stunning beauty.
Her name is Kara, and she’s a 15-year-old high school student who radiates a glow of peace and poise that is rare in one so young. She is a member of Bodhi Meditation’s Canadian Youth Elite Association (CYEA), and she credits this organization for helping her to ascend toward her dreams.
Kara’s ambition and passion is reflected in the mantra scribbled across the homepage of her personal website: “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”
Kara’s parents migrated from Fuzhou, China, to Canada, where she was born and raised. In 2007, under the guidance of her mother, Kara embraced Bodhi Meditation. She was, however, barely 10 years of age, and the effects of Bodhi on her still-developing spirituality weren’t noticeable.
In 2011, she was set back by two serious illnesses which barred her attendance at school for an extended period. The experience turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as it was during this time that Kara found the opportunity to delve into deeper meditation practice. Her weekly classes and daily practice became her healing regimen. through Bodhi Meditation, her stomach, asthma and allergy problems have become things of the past, and since her health challenges in 2011 she has never been ill.
Not only has her physical health benefited, but her emotional life has been visibly enriched: People around her noticed the joy that began to consistently emanate from her as her practice deepened. She brimmed with energy and no longer worried when she competed in dance and gymnastics, and tackled everyday obstacles and problems with unflappable wisdom. Her relationship with her mother grew closer, as the little girl who had grieved her mom’s many hours away from home volunteering at Vancouver
Center blossomed Into a confident, spiritually aware young woman. The mother-daughter pair begun to spend countless hours trading Bodhi learning experiences. So. when Kara’s mother pondered taking a full-time voluntary position at the Center, Kara gave her blessing with a quote from Grandmaster JinBodhi: “If you help others, Bodhi will help you.”
CYEA would usher Kara’s life into a new, exciting phase. When she joined the association two years ago, she was inspired by the confidence and joy of her fellow disciples. The breadth of projects, debates and classes she was presented with exposed her to opportunities for growth that she didn’t find elsewhere. She quickly learned to juggle multiple work schedules, improved her efficiency, and even began managing CYEA projects and events, from classes to the reception of new students. She learned independence and responsibility by being part of a dynamic CYEA team that was given freedom to operate on its own.
July 2013 marked one of Kara’s highest points with CYEA thus for. Handpicked for her outstanding performance, Kara represented CYEA at the Youth leadership Training Comp in Malaysia as a teaching assistant. For a full month, Kara helped determined curriculum objectives, study topics and activities, which included organizing games and field trips. She served a class of 260, handing students of all ages from children to young adults. On top of teaching and providing counseling, Kara was also responsible for onsite photography and filming.
Overcoming stress and challenges while in Malaysia took Kara to the next level. There were many firsts that she conquered on the trip, from the fear of speaking in front of hundreds to her first extended time away from home. Most importantly. she learned to see things from the perspective of another. She came to understand that each individual approaches the world with unique eyes. Such knowledge helped her mature rapidly.
Kara’s mother has since become a full-time volunteer teacher at Vancouver Bodhi Meditation Center, and Kara is amply equipped to assist in this noble pursuit. She recalled her first meditation session, recounting the tears she shed: “There are a lot of people suffering,” she told her mom, “we have to save them.”
She once observed suffering with a sense of helplessness. Now, Kara’s compassionate heart empowers her with purpose, and showers light upon the people she touches as she walks the Bodhi path with grace and the enthusiastic wonder of youth.
