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January 26, 2005
Quickie
Just a quick update from the steets of Bangkok... I've been here about a week and despite BKK being a huge polluted traffic congeted monster of a city, I'm having quite a blast. I've experienced a traditional Thai wedding four hours north of the city which was quite a raging party...no sleep for almost 48 hours...more on that later. I got a job at an amazing Thai restaurant near Khao San Rd. as "a waiter that can speak really good English!" but I didn't come to Thailand to work more, so I don't think it's going to last...it's just for the free food and fun conversations with the international diners. I'll say it a million times, this world is smaller than we think...it's amazing how we're all connected. Meanwhile, I'm still studying the language and reean pasaa Thai chaa chaa but am making good progress! Oh, and my best buddy Lonnie is coming in less than two weeks to join in this amazing journey that Thailand is...can't wait to see ya dude. Okay, already ate some amazing red curry so I'm off to play some pool, have some drinks, and maybe do a little dance, make a ...nevermind. Peace out world!
Posted by Tom Bodhi at 06:02 AM | Comments (2)
January 21, 2005
The Family
A family of four, vacationing in the south of Thailand on Phi Phi Island, came closer than anyone wants to admit to losing everything, including their lives. Here are their testamonials:
The Mother
"How did we get so lucky?" is all that keeps going through my head, and when is that luck going to end? None of us even want to speculate. My Agnostic son believes we all have a certain date and time to die, but our clocks just weren't up yet. My husband keeps thanking our merciful God in heaven for sparing our lives and is waiting for another message for what we should do next. He says God must have spared us for a reason. I tell him to keep waiting and let me know what happens. My daughter and I are just happy to be alive.
As I speak, we're on a boat being carried through this merciless blue water that looks so peaceful and calm at the moment. We've all learned the hard way that nothing can be taken for granted. I can't imagine the pain of losing any member of my family; no parent should ever outlive their child. The only thing that concerns me is that we're all happy together in one place, dry and warm. Is it a test of fate to travel to another island after this horrible tragedy? I think the circle of light which kept us safe that unforgettable Sunday morning is as strong as ever. I can tell we're going to be okay.
The Son
Oh man, these last few days have been so intense. I've never seen so many dead bodies up close. The movies just don't do it justice; they smell worse than you can imagine and when I close my eyes all I see is the bloated rotting corpses than lined the beach where we were staying on Phi Phi Island. It's the most beautiful place I've ever been, there's nothing like it. It's also now the most disgusting place I've ever been. I think I'm gunna need a freakin shrink after this holiday from hell.
You know that one scene in "The Beach" where the dude's leg gets ripped open by the shark? I was on a little snorkling boat in that very same cove when the first waves hit. None of us saw them coming until it lifted the back end of the boat and sent everyone around me into a confused panic. A few hours later, the death and destruction thrown about the island made the shark attack from the movie look like baby stuff.
I stayed pretty calm through the whole thing because I knew I wouldn't die. It's not my time yet, and it's not time for any of my family either. I always told them, we've all got hour-glasses with the sand just falling through, one grain at a time. People always ask how I know I'm not down to the last couple grains; what if tomorrow something even worse will happen? Confidence, I tell them. It's just a feeling I have that tells me we're going to be okay for a while longer. Too bad the others weren't so lucky.
The Father
All I know is when I felt those waves hit the boat, my hands clasped together and my entire soul was occupied by prayer. I had a moment when I thought I could feel God's mighty hand holding me in his protection. Before I could blink, everything was over and I knew my family was safe, prayers answered. Hallelujah! He is a venegeful yet mercifull God. Those who lost their lives are now only closer to him, sitting by his side in heaven. We all have a purpose in life, and I believe God spared us so that we could be his messengers and loyal servants on this great Earth.
Now I pray to you Lord! Send us a signal! Send us a message! We need a message Lord and we'll do your every bidding. My family and I are ready to bow under your mighty hand and help your people realize the wrong they are doing! We have to stop this blasphemous garbage that's being fed to the innocent minds of our young. Television ought to be destroyed. Rock and roll is the noise of the devil! Nobody is perfect, Lord, including my family, but we're trying the best we can. I know why you are upset, my Lord. Please let us help you!
The Daughter
Have you spoken to my father already? I think he's a bit shaken up about this whole thing. It has been a long couple of days and we haven't slept much. I keep having the same dream over and over every night, but I wake up at the same part everytime. When I finally fall asleep again, it starts over from the beginning only to wake me up when the moment arrives. I want to ask my mom about that, but she's got enough to think about. Do you know anything about dreams? I didn't think so...
Anyway, I think my family is blessed because we all came really close to death and yet are still here together. Some of those who were near us aren't even recognizable to their loved ones anymore. My dad and brother were really lucky, because they were even on a boat when the waves came in, you know, that's scary stuff. It almost tipped over. I was sitting under a palm tree talking to my boyfriend on the cell phone when I saw the water coming. I didn't understand what was happening until it was almost too late. That's when I screamed and ran as fast as I could up onto some nearby rocks and broke two of my fingernails...oh poor me.
There are far too many who weren't as lucky as us, and many more who are lucky just to have their lives, if nothing else. I feel a connection to the other survivors... It's like we witnessed something terrible but also so incredible that it brought us together not only in grief but also in respect and love for each other and for this great planet. I hope that this feeling of connection and community lingers on longer than the press crews and rescue workers do. We all live on this Earth together; she takes care of us, as we should take care of her.
Posted by Tom Bodhi at 12:05 AM | Comments (5)
January 20, 2005
Hot New Inventory at TheOtherSide!
The word on the street is spreading, TheOtherSide is the hottest new place to be seen! It's better than the mall! Come hang out under our shade umbrellas, drink margaritas or mai thais (no alcohol unless you're over 11 and can prove it), and enjoy the show! We've just recieved a shipment of brand new inventory, and for a limited time only you can see it while it's still new! WOW! Stop on by anytime! We're located at http://www.consciouslife.org/tommyblue/theotherside/
fine print: only photos dated from 12/19/04 to 1/13/05 can be considered new. all others have been previously viewed and thus aren't as cool.
peace out.
Posted by Tom Bodhi at 11:32 PM | Comments (0)
January 15, 2005
Freedom
People are afraid, very much afraid of those who know themselves.
They have a certain power, a certain aura and a certain magnetism, a
charisma that can take out alive, young people from the traditional
imprisonment.... The enlightened man cannot be enslaved-- that is the
difficulty-- and he cannot be imprisoned.... Every genious who has
known something of the inner is bound to be a little difficult to be
absorbed; he is going to be an upsetting force. The masses don't
want to be disturbed, even though they may be in misery; they are in
misery, but they are accustomed to the misery. And anybody who is not
miserable looks like a stranger to them. The enlightened man is the
greatest stranger in the world; he does not seem to belong to
anybody. No organization confines him; no community, no society, no
nation.
The Zen Manifesto: Freedom from Oneself by Osho (chapt.9)
Posted by Tom Bodhi at 05:45 AM | Comments (1)
January 09, 2005
The Island Life
The islands will relax you to the point you think they're stealing your energy...it'll drain you till you have no energy left to leave. Is that a bad thing? No way. Koh Chang is beautiful. Many a lazy day spent on the porch of the bungalow, strumming a tune on the guitar, eating a fresh watermelon, a pomello, pineapples, coconut shakes...a quick dip in the aqua blue water that is the Khlong Prao Cove, swimming through the crowded schools of fish that hop out of the water in unison like swarms of insects across the surface.
News of the tsunami is unending, as is the sorrow but also unity of all affected. The newspaper and the television, undiluted and raw unlike those in America, are showing the truth of the suffering and death in it's truely brutal form. Those involved, families and friends from around the world, are making a choice either to return to their homes or test their fate and continue their holidays on other islands, Koh Chang included. The tourism industry is already encouraging people to come back to Phuket. Who knows what you might find in your sandcastle? It's going to take a long time for things to return to normal.
The v-day deadline is approaching. Visa Day. Every 30 days I have to cross an international border and return to Thailand with a new stamp in my passport and 10,000 baht to show means of travel. 10,000 keeps the bums out and the business men, pickpockets included, happy. Cambodia is just a 45 minute bus ride from the mainland near Koh Chang. How far should I go? The legendary Angkor Wat, massive temple ruins from many years past, lays in the jungle waiting. How do you decide when to leave paradise, even when you're headed for another?
Posted by Tom Bodhi at 10:56 PM | Comments (3)