兴安- look down

yesterday, said goodbye to most of my coworkers as we left them in guilin
today, said goodbye to the rest of my coworkers
today, goodbye to a home of two weeks in xin'an, beautiful china countryside enveloped by mountains
goodbye to villagers i have come to know by their smiles and kindness
and ciau ciau bella to my talented brave teenage students of a week
they, a tearful farewell yesterday to the local elementary school students
tomorrow, i bid kendal farewell
tomorrow, adieu to my home base of three months here in shenzhen
tonight, a farewell to a circle of strangers-turned-friends united by me and kendal

why do we fall in love
and then say goodbye
so painfully?

love of varying degrees yes
but love nonetheless

4:30 am

i hear the first bird of the dawn chorus

another bird answers

tentatively

and then with excitement

a third bird joins in

what

a

sky

the fullening moon had brightened

the entire night sky

and now

all this birdsong

sends night dispelling quivers of

springtime flowers

and more birdsongs on the wind

through my barred window

breaking down the bars

grassroots style

i can smell the rain

how can one sleep

when one's bags are completely packed

and so much awaits on the horizon

as all the birds

begin

to sing alive the sun?

cucumbers

just a normal day on the job... :)

we're heading to xin'an (above guilin) for the next two weeks
then back to shenzhen for 5 days
then june 1= wings sprout me to thailand, and kendal back to usa

big M

me and kendal have been in china for 3 months

sprout

- soak the beans in a glass jar for 2-3 days... until they start to sprout and are chewy and soft. during this process, change water every morning and night.
- find a basket. lay down a soft porous cloth like linen or cotton (cheesecloth is great). i used a bandanna
- pour your beans into basket!
- every morning and night, give beans a bath. otherwise, let them sit there all day in a room temperature out-of-sun place. covered with another cloth that you rubber band or rope to the basket, so that it doesn't fly away, and no curious bugs get in
- wait and watch... it will take about a week. you can munch them all along the way
- yum!!!

reality

reality as we know it is but a reflection of reality

fuzzy caterpillar

hanging on the end of a perfect leaf
i prepare to make something i've never seen before
and i'm not sure just how to do it
but every cell in my body screams
now is the time
you are exactly where you need to be
here
now
so i am hanging on the end of a perfect leaf
waiting for instructions to arrive
and trusting
that they are on the way

blessings

sunsets are radiant
and so are your eyes

i saw a shooting star last night
reflected into the pond of a thousand frogs singing mating songs

why is the strongest answer of all
merely just another why