Dominique Surfing in Seaside with Long Board Lisa

This is Dominique my Friend, client and great surfer!
We spent the day in Seaside, Oregon shaving the waves.
She demonstrated her surfing prowess on a beautiful sunny day with her surf buddies surfing the outside cheering her on. Go Dominique!

Japan meets Oregon

Todd Wilson and his group Monmouth Taiko played at the Tillamook Seafood Festival on
October 5, 2008. It was fantastic!

Visit to a Cambodian Orphanage

While visiting Siem Reap I had the honor to visit a Cambodian Orphanage. Out of 100 residents, only 8 children actually showed an interest in living in America. My research showed that there is a moratorium for adopting children from Cambodia after Angelina Jolie had some problems clearing her adoption of her first child. So, those interested in adoption from Cambodia need to do their research to find out if it is possible to take your newly adopted child into the US.
These children were delightful, sweet and there was a lot of love surrounding them.
I gave donations directly to students who were brave enough to meet with me.
It was by far one of the most touching and meaningful things I did on this trip.

Who is Kamerah?

Kamerah is a dear sweet woman who runs the Ankorean Spa in Siem Reap. She has a staff of nine girls. She is generous, kind and loving.
She is hard working honest and knows how to celebrate life.
She put together a going away party in Cambodia of 25 people for me. It was the highlight of my trip to Cambodia. She is off to leave her country for the first time. She will visit Thailand with a man she met while I was visiting her. I hope she has a great time on her adventure and will bring back a lot of good memories.
She is truly like the daughter I never had. We e-mail and call as much as we can and I can't wait to see her again and most of all attend her wedding someday!

Who is Xing?

This is a photo of Xing. He is a former monk in LP. He now works at a cafe in LP. We took in a waterfall via motorbike and spent many hours trying to figure out how he can use his love of math to make a better living in LP.
I taught him and his friends how to bake cupcakes and found the cupcake liners at a local store. Which was a miracle!

The day after I gave him the recipe I came to the cafe and he presented me with a plate full of cupcakes that he made. They were pretty good!
I played GO FISH with he and his co-workers and watched videos at his cafe with the other tourists. We became good friends.
Xing always carried a tiny little drawstring bag everywhere. I asked him what was inside the bag and he explained that inside are two little beans that were given to him by an elder monk when he left the temple. When I left LP Xing reached into his pocket and gave me one of his two beans. The beauty in this moment was beyond compare and the joy that I felt was truly profound.

Deep Thoughts about paper umbrellas

After 3 months in Asia, I have had a lot of time to compare and contrast the cultural differences between Laos and Cambodia and America. In Asia, the hub of the umbrella represents the wise elders that keep the family together by providing spiritual strength and moral guidance. The paper thin material is held together by the spokes which are the family members who each work together to keep the delicate structure of the family together.
Whereas in America....the hub of the umbrella represents the TV set that sends out the messages that the family happily digests and mistakes as spiritual sustenance. The paper thin material is the ever thinning barrier our children have to keep them safe from the harm that lurks on their computer screens, ipods and and cell phones. The spokes separate and divide the families making them even more isolated than ever.
So in the beauty of such a delicate umbrella, I pause to consider if being a member of a westernized culture is protective or isolative. Your comments?

Meet a Buddhist Nun

In Luangprabang I met a Buddhist nun. I went to meditate with the monks as was my routine each day at 5:30. On this day after all the monks rose to leave the temple, I noticed she was still on the floor.
I reached down to lift her up and realized that none of the men helped her get up because the monks aren't allowed to touch women.

So, for years she has been getting up off the floor with ease...but on this very day I was lucky enough to help her. She was actually smiling just moments before I took this image.