Discovering what is Me

Discovering what is me
In my things
My things are not me
And yet...they are
Some of them are
They represent parts of me
Sometimes they've been too tied to me
Or me to them
Hence the clutter
Too much stuff!

Decluttering
And preparing to move
Forces me to discover
What is me
What is not me
Some things
Are precious
Symbols of my journey

Others
Well, they are part of my journey too
But I can let go
My identity is not in the things I have done
Not in the hard work

(Written Sept. 14, 2018, published Aug. 2019)

Wait and See

It's what I tell myself
Again and again
These days
It's what I need to tell myself

Wait
And ponder, yes
Think about 
   What is next
   What are my choices
   What is wise
But don't be anxious
Don't push for quick solutions
Or resolution

And See
Bit by bit
Clarity comes
A piece at a time
One idea
One question
One suggestion
One conversation

Life lived slow
Is what it is these days
I don't have energy for much else
But this is good
Very good
I'm learning
Insights come
In time
Soon enough

Going to miss this language

I'm going to miss

Chinese...this language.

How many times lately have I thought of something, and it's easier to think of the Chinese, easier to see how the meaning comes through more fully, in Chinese. Ah, what a privilege to have learned some (because there is always so much more) of this language, to have been immersed in people's lives with this language, to have had such a great teacher--who loves words, and values accurate communication, as I do. 

I find myself regretting, repenting of 😊, all the times I've complained (externally or internally) about how hard it is/was--to learn, to remember the characters, that I've been satisfied with what I have now, not rigorously studying more. Now...I see only beauty, wish I had learned more, wish I had learned to love reading...wish I had delved into those books that might have helped--ones that wrestle with societal issues, ideas...

I've long known, this language, this culture--a lifetime, or a thousand lifetimes--could be spent in fascinated learning. And soon, the opportunity for learning will be passed. I'm so thankful for what I did learn. I did work hard to learn, engage and use this language, to communicate using it.

What a treasure!

(written Sept. 9, 2018, edited and published Aug. 2019)


I have touched the face...

I have touched the face
of a young boy
(10-13 years old?)
whose face had been so badly burned...
just one nostril hole
and one small (1 cm...or less) hole
for a mouth
We fed him the rice soup
through a straw

His face--it felt hard
like one solid piece
Touch the right cheek
and all moved

"He can't talk," they said
But, even with my poor language skills 
I discovered he could
After gently wiping his face
putting on some antibiotic cream
He said (muffled), "duzi tong."
"What?" "Your stomach hurts?"
(Is that when we sent someone for the rice soup?)
After eating
that pain seemed to ease

Later..."shou tong"
And I looked at his hand...
The burns or scars
had curled it
We rinsed off the dirt and soot
in the warm water
Were those bones I saw--sticking out through the skin?
We gave him some pain killer...
(nurse-friend and teacher-friend came well prepared!)
popped 1 or 2 through that small mouth opening
followed by liquid...

I got angry at the crowd standing around
(Not 'ranting angry' or 'yelling angry' but...)
They slowly gathered
a quiet semicircle--10, 20??
I asked if they wanted to help?
No response
And I think I eventually invited them to leave
suggested they should
if all they were doing was standing around to watch.
And I remember trying to point out
"No, he can talk..."

I wished they could see him as a person, 
worthy of compassion.

I didn't live in that city
Just got to be a part of a few hours
in the ongoing story.
I couldn't not get involved.
Just a short time before, in my town, I had held back
not gotten very involved
and a different homeless man had died.

Earlier 
others had tried to help this homeless boy
find him a place to live
But he didn't want to stay there
Then they heard about the fire and the burns
It was cold, it was winter
It seems he had been pushed into the fire
that several had made to keep themselves warm

Later
They continued to try to help
Kept taking him food
Tried to get him to a hospital,
but the hospital wouldn't take him in, 
without family to sign for him
One day, some official department
came for him in a truck
He was loaded into the back
(and I can't write how it was described...tears come)
My friends tried to follow up
were generally brushed aside
Until, one day
they heard a "fantastic" story....
He had been sent on a train to where his family was
Everything was great
The boy had told them so many things
The story...so 'fantastic'
we suspect
the opposite had happened

Why do I tell this story? Why today? (It is a story from the fall of 1996.) I don't know. Maybe just because I remembered, and I'm processing. And maybe because...he deserves to be remembered, his life is worth remembering. I wonder who else remembers him. I wonder about his family. I wonder...
There is so much sadness to this story. And yet there is beauty too--several people stepping in, doing what they could, seeing a person, looking into his eyes, speaking, offering compassion and dignity. It didn't seem to end the way we had hoped. But we were, and we are formed and blessed in the process. 

I had the privilege of touching his face that day, of looking into his eyes, of talking with him, of trying, along with others involved, to love him as best we could. The incredible privilege of that day...

What will I do...


"Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?"
--Mary Oliver

Here I am, moving more fully into a huge life transition.
Tired.
In some ways I'm so tired.
Tired of life here, of what I've been doing.
It really IS time for a change.

So then... it has surprised me, what with being so tired and all. 
To find passion rising up inside this heart of mine.
Time and again, in various situations.
(Okay, mostly via books I'm reading or listening to.)
I realize...I still want to do a lot of stuff.
I still want to 'change the world'!
I turn 50 next year.
In my 50th year I'll move to the other side of this transition.
(What a great way to celebrate half a century!)
And yet I feel like I did ... in high school, in university.
So many choices, so many options, so many hopes and dreams.
Wondering what will happen, what I should choose
Hoping...I can somehow make a difference with my life.
Also moments of feeling--so inadequate, so not skilled for some of the areas in which I'd love to participate in working for change.  

I will continue to wait and ponder as I go through this season.
I want to land doing something that relieves pain, brings healing, reduces injustice, brings blessing.
And I'd preferably like to do something that comes out of some of my particular gifts and abilities.

Ah, I'm still yearning for the things I yearned for when I was 15. 
That's okay I guess. 
It shows I'm not dead yet. 
And...that's a bit of a relief.




I first discovered this quote in the book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less,  by Greg McKeowen

Blessing For the Place Between

When you come
to the place between.
When you have left
what you held
most dear.
When you are traveling
toward the life
you know not.
When you arrive
at the hardest ground.
May it become
for you
a place to rest.
May it become
for you
a place to dream.
May the pain
that has pressed itself
into you
give way
to vision,
to knowing.
May the morning
make of it
an altar,
a path,
a place to begin
again.
by Jan Richardson
from The Cure for Sorrow: A Book of Blessings for Times of Grief
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