I’m on my way out to celebrate my birthday, but I didn’t want my turn to pass without acknowledging the Buddhist refuge vow ceremony many of us at the ID Project took park in yesterday. I wanted to thank Acharya Spiegel for explaining to us what it means to take refuge and giving us the vows. His wisdom, humor and insight quickly laid to rest any apprehension I was experiencing about taking part. I also wanted to thank Ethan and the rest of the ID Project folks who organized the event and ensured it all went smoothly. I feel fortunate that our collective karma led us all there yesterday-it just felt right. And congrats to my fellow refugees!