Sun floods the looking glass valley but puffy clouds tower from the ridges that ring in the symmetrical valley. There's a hill on the Tawang side which is a mirror image of Tsenkharla. Another gentle arcing green slope on the far side of Shampula and so it goes in this perfect landscape. In class we're debating and doing skits in an effort to empower the students to speak more. It's been a successful year in the fact that I know my students better than ever before, not only names, but abilities and interests. The novelty wares off but my love for Bhutan grows deeper like the fall colors that begin to dominate the landscape. The maize stalks now towering higher than farmhouses turn golden and the rice paddies chartreuse. The greens grow deeper as creepers climb the great cypresses and wild honeysuckles perfume the summer air. The Dharma teaches that everything is always in flux and it seems that I'm a different dude than when I came to my mountain. I'm still clingy and grasping at straws but the seed of Dharma has been planted inside me even though sometimes I feel that the Dharma is lame or more aptly who wants to practice that give me a cheeseburger yo! But like it or not life intervenes and everyone must bear their crosses.
Yesterday I was T.OD which meant a 16 hour day on campus. I noticed the Guru and many others have a sidekick who they mentor since these kids raise themselves. It's best to still the mind and sit and watch all the bizarre attractions come and go and the funny patterns of life envelop us. I'm fortunate to live in this situation in the most beautiful spot in the universe, that is my boon in this incarnation. Mainly this land and the kids are my teachers and I'll never comprehend the magic that unfolds daily. The fact that a hard rock kid from the USA has the opportunely to teach simple farm kids from the borderlands of Eastern Bhutan is surreal and fantastic. But we suffer for our soup and that is life.
Yesterday I was T.OD which meant a 16 hour day on campus. I noticed the Guru and many others have a sidekick who they mentor since these kids raise themselves. It's best to still the mind and sit and watch all the bizarre attractions come and go and the funny patterns of life envelop us. I'm fortunate to live in this situation in the most beautiful spot in the universe, that is my boon in this incarnation. Mainly this land and the kids are my teachers and I'll never comprehend the magic that unfolds daily. The fact that a hard rock kid from the USA has the opportunely to teach simple farm kids from the borderlands of Eastern Bhutan is surreal and fantastic. But we suffer for our soup and that is life.
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