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# Smiling Buddha
- URL: https://the-stardust-journal-press.ghost.io/smiling-buddha/
- Published: 2025-11-12T18:00:05.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-01T16:50:44.000Z
- Author: Daniel Rutberg
- Tags: poetry, action, consistency defined, intentions, The noble eightfold path, #Migrated-1782924600586, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-01 12:50

**Con Sistere**  
*(To stand with)*

At the beginning,  
she asks us  
to set an intention.

Most days I say to myself:  
**Consistency.**  
Thinking it meant  
repetition.

This morning,  
I searched  
to better understand its roots—  
to aid me in my quest.

To my surprise,  
the word *Con*,  
means *with*,  
and "sistency", Latin *Sistere*—  
*to stand.*

To stand with your word.  
To do what you say.  
To walk the path  
where intentions and actions  
are one.

**Con Sistere —**  
I stand with my intentions.  
My word and my deeds  
are aligned.

The Buddha is smiling.  
A lesson finally learned.