Magic days amidst rain and thunder in Miami
They had announced it earlier, a storm is forming out on the horizon and one could feel more than normal rain and its darkness. If you live in the tropics, you know that is part of the thorn on the rose bush of life here.
Be grateful, you would hear that from various philosophers, both western and eastern
Be humble is also another universal advice.
If you wish to make another person happy, be compassionate; if you want to make yourself happy, be compassionate, His Holiness Dalai Lama tells us.
Being with American Indians, I have learned something
You have to learn to sacrifice for others.
If you live with the Native people, you would understand the meaning of sacrifice. Giving something, you cannot afford to give, one way of looking at it.
I was in conversation with my friends in Cochin, India; not my well-off friends sequestered safely, who look after me well when I am there, but the workers left stranded in the hotel that I stay while I am there. I was able to get the news and I determined that I would do something to help them, even if it is only symbolic.
Indians believe in the Great Spirit and after I finished my task for my friends in Cochin, it was as if a gift from the Great Spirit was waiting for me.
HAVANA CAFE, HOCHIMINH CITY, VIETNAM
An email with one short sentence: Hello, this is YLG.
My mind raced back 15 years to a visit to the Mekong Delta, a café at Café Havana in Saigon/HCMC. Five years later, a shared meal at one of those western style buffets in HCMC. And it has been a long silence since then.
Why today?
I have been on a journey of bliss since October 5. 2019, when a Buddhist monk from Tibet crossed my path. A friend had just visited from Tehran and I was on my way to Havana. My journey took me to the Indians, Cuba, Miami, France, Cochin, Bangkok and Siem Reap.. interrupted at this moment, but will continue .
So, this unexpected note was a gift from the Great Spirit, it is a validation of the sacrifices I do. The definition of sacrifices are individual and varied, remember it has always the element of : giving that which you cannot afford to give.
I have had a wonderful day, long conversations, renewal of magic, and a lovely curried goat dish from Jamaica and a glass of sauvignon blanc, Kim Crawford.
A book on Bhutan arrived, which I will start reading tonight .
Indians always remind me : Mitakuye Oyasin, we are all related. So, my relatives in various parts of the world: Austria Germany France Belgium Cuba Colombia Brasil Argentina Mexico Spain Israel Iran India Malaysia Thailand Cambodia
Thank you for your daily contributions to this life of magic..
