Spirit: Noi - who I now call Mamma Noi - Took me to her temple. It was so wonderful to participate in the rituals of the temple instead of just passing by as a tourist and taking pictures. We offered flowers and incense to the Buddha statues outside and knelt and prayed. And then we went inside where there was an elaborate shimmering alter and people from the village bowing and praying and lifting smaller statues and doing something I have never seen before...they were shaking a big cylindar that had extra large painted popsicle sticks halfway sticking out. THe people shook the cylindar until a stick falls out. On the stick was a number and then you get the paper that matches the number.(I want one of these in my house one day!) Noi tells me how she was very sick with cancer in her stomach and she came to the temple and prayed everyday and now she is not sick anymore. When she shook the tube the same nunmber came out that has been coming out through her healing process...and it refers to health and healing and how she will be cured and live a long happy life. Well, of course I wanted a turn so I shook mine and number 26 comes out. It tells me to "slow, slow, slow" take travels slow, take my time, and I will be protected wherever I go. PERFECT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Heart: We went to visit her sister and the house she use to live in. It is like a small garage with piles of stuff everywhere, a dirty floor, tv, a piece of furniture that we would put our china in, and 4 happy thai women and one older man, and cats. It's dark and dingy, the windows are covered with slabs of metal, and the open front and back door allows the only light to come in. The back yard is their kitchen, bathing, and toileting area. THey make candy fo the markets. The "kitchen" is a covered platform with a fire pit amd lots of pots and pans. There they cook the rice and coconut in all different ways with sugar and wrap it in bamboo leaves and steam. THey are super yummy! Everybody sits around on the floor in the house and makes the candy. They let me help fold some. Of course in the middle of everything they atop and eat a big feast. A friend comes by who has a shop and brings me a orange sugar drink. To have something "to go" means out of a plastic bag. I am amazed how they live and how they are still happy. Noi lived there until she was 18 years old. She tells me how all of her family is very poor, she tries to help them a little. I asked her if it is awkard that she lives in a big house now...and she says no, they can come whenever they want and they are happy and they understand. They were all so welcoming to me and wanting to give me all sorts of stuff...it made me realize how much we over induldge in unneccesary stuff and how selfish we can be....and how all that stuff just creates suffering. They have eachother and their family and food and a roof over there heads and they are pretty content. They have more genuine smiles than the people shopping at the mall, or living in fancy houses, or driving hot shot cars, or staying at the resorts. And they honor each other and all those that walk through their front door. My heart split open at this experience and the world that I come from is just non existant here...am i lucky or are they?
Nature: We took a LONG road trip to Loei National park. On our way we stopped for a big feast along the river and eat in a bungelow on stilts where Laos was just right across showing off its limestone cliffs and deep lush forests. A fisherman floats by in his old long tail boat and sets up his handmade bamboo cage right below us. THe meal was great and the word "sep" and "aloi" is chanted over and over again...and "Im! Full!". The whole drive was through small little towns on the way to Loei. THey kept saying Loei Loei loei. It wasnt until we stopped at the grape farm aka winery, 6 hours later that I understood we are going through a national park. We: Noi, Pah Luy, His wife and daughter, the genuine sweet lady, and Grandmom or Ma and the dog. 3 in the back of the truck and 4 in the cab. At first Grandmom was in the back. I couldnt believe it....the poor thing got super sick and having to release all ends on the side of the road, and she's 85. After the feast she decided to sit in the back.
They get very excited when we left Tha Bo and the roads started to dip. It was so funny to me b/c the littlest hill in the road they would get all excited to go down and up and they would slow down and hold on and say "wooooooo". Obviously they haven't been to colorado. As we got further north the scencenry really started to change and the mountains began to surface. It was SOOOOOO green and full of variety. We passed lots of mountain/hill farm areas. It looked ligh a quilt covering over the mountains. The higher we got the more enchanting it got. One funny moment was when "Falangs" (foreigns) drove by on motorbikes and they got real excited and said "Jenny look look falangs!" IT so reat that even with no language we all have many laughs together...like a dog in the middle of the road rolling around and not caring at all that truck is coming.
We left at 8 in the moring, this has been the adventure that everybody has been talking about for days. It was long...we got home at 11:30 at night. On the way home we stopped for another feast. This time we stopped at a friends house. See its hard to tell if you are out a house or a resteraunt or just an abandoned bungelow. We were still at least 3 hours from home. The next thing you know all sorts of motorbikes are coming with food and we are all on the porch digging in. LAter, inside, the family and friends are eating. We are all on the floor - most of the time you eat on the floor. Meanwhile people from all over are coming by to get this or that, we go next door to the bathroom, they come over to get bananas, everybody comes to check out the white girl:), and then we pile up the dishes say thanks and hop back in the car.
THe whole way back everybody is saying Soi SOI Soi - Beautiful and saying Jeny Soi No? and I say "Cha Soi" and they say "Colorado Same same" and I say "Cha Same Same" and about once and hour they make sure I am happy. It was on this trip....as beautiful as it is and as loving and kind as this family is...that I realized and need more conversation and human interaction and am longing for a 2 way conversation. It reminded me of being in the back of the car when I was little and not having any understanding or input to what my parents were talking about in the front seat. Again I am reminded of the retreat and not letting my mind get carried away and just sit back, breathe in breathe out, enjoy the scenery and the gift that has been given to me, and smile
Part 3: The Last Days: Dancing, Laughing, Girl time, and of course eating:)
