A Lived Life...The Art of Constant Reinvention Parts 1 & 2

Boy, what do I say about this 2016 conversation? My guest is an enigma wrapped in a riddle. After a successful career as a lawyer, college teacher & commercial actor, Mr. Pitts ended a marriage & disappeared from Grand Rapids, where he'd lived for many years. Then one day, perhaps a decade later, I get a call from him. He had taken a fascinating turn. He became a Buddhist monk & teacher. He contacted me because of a desire to work with Interfaith Dialogue Association. When I shared this information with community members & former friends, they rolled eyes in disbelief. In Mr. Pitts' "former incarnation" he was anything but monk-like. Yet, he began to attract students, & built a very solid Buddhist community here in West Michigan that never was before. There were temples in the area that catered to Thai & Vietnamese devotees, but nothing of substance that was attractive to the greater population. The work this man did was amazing. Within a year or 2 the new congregation outgrew one space & procured another. And then... One day, I learned that Mr. Pitts left everything behind, and he, along with a female student, moved to rural New York to open a B&B. Yet another reinvention. Regardless of all of this, there is no question that a vital work was created that was bigger than the man who started it. He pulled in very serious students who maintain and grow this effort. Today, the Grand Rapids Meditation & Zen Center continues to thrive. People have various theories about my guest; not all positive. Regardless, you will hear great wisdom shared in these episodes, I promise. Theme music "Nigal."