Ecstasy

Life is good.
It's beautiful and snowy in Shanghai.
My life in China is a world of wonder and mystery surrounding me, and it's morphing me into almost unrecognizable shapes.

Some more pics from the family gathering in Xinjiang in December

 
 

Family Gathering

The Habeggers came to Xinjiang and met the 李 and 朱 families. Lillian and I are inviting our families to build a bridge between the East and West.

One World, One Dream

It's so great to see how rich the culture here is, and how China has been orienting itself towards a world-embracing vision. The Olympic Games theme, "One World, One Dream" is being broad casted everywhere, and the message of peace echoes through the air. For the last few years, the principal word accompanying goals and statements has been harmony.

I've been hearing some public advertising, sneaking, even slaloming in between cosmetics and cars, encouraging "small improvements, day by day." In one of these ads, a mom talks about her son coming home worried from school, because he's not as good as some of the other kids for some reason or another. This mom explains how she encourages him to only worry about his own improvement, day by day, in stead of comparing himself to others. There are other cool ads with this theme.

On the train, as people sit for hours on end (in our case 44 between Shanghai and Urumqi), there's an audio program throughout the day. At times, they describe the history, population or economy of a city on its trajectory, at others, they encourage the passengers to take advantage of this time together to chat together and make new friends. In the morning, a very enthusiastic clerk may walk through and urge everyone to get up and follow the motions of the broad casted exercise routines - "Get up people! GET UP and move around! MOVE MOVE!"

There was a radio program this evening about a new law coming into effect in June, requiring stores to charge money for every single plastic bag! Ikea has been doing that in Shanghai since they opened here, and I love it!

The warm diplomatic relationships with other countries; the focus on a harmonious society; the research done about other countries, cultures and religions; the efforts made to tackle environmental problems - all of these are so encouraging to me! There are of course many areas with great shortcomings (like the Darfur controversy), but my prayers are with China and the Chinese people, and I'm so happy and proud to be here right now. Plus Lillian and I can proudly say that we've already been saving plastic bags by bring our own cloth bag when we go shopping. Most people have never witnessed this before, actually. Oh the stares! (We also bike to the market, only turn on the heat for 2-3 hours at night, take short showers together, recycle, etc. - habits that are very very new to most Chinese people! - although being resourceful and saving resources is something most have got down packed already)

One World, One Dream

2008

I think I can say I have had the best vacation, maybe the best time of my life. There's nothing like being in the middle of two families, one from the US, one from China, coming together in unity and joy to learn about each other and plan for a shared harmonious future.

Lillian and I are getting on the train tonight from Urumqi to Shanghai. Pictures soon to come.

Weblos

So I'm due for a post, and I'm giving full credit to Orion for these few words, to whom I said I'd post yesterday...


- One more week 'til vacation
- The whole family is preparing for what may be the biggest event of my life so far: Lillian and I will bring our families together for a celebration in Korla, Xing Jiang, China!
- Four of my classes performed shows completely in English (videos posted on my youtube page)
- My friend Shawn started working at the French school last week, so an old buddy will be my co-worker!
- I'm now coordinator for the English teaching team
- A friend's baby in Beijing is due for release this week
- Lillian and I will have to survive without NBC's "Heroes", but we'll soon be able to turn to ABC's "Lost"!
- I still love riding my bike to work each day
- Don't ask me to sing "Jingle Bells" again once this week is over

Pain & Nightmares

If I understand correctly, people are more likely to have nightmares in case of a fever. I've always considered nightmares as beneficial - an experience we learn from. I generally analyze a nightmare more closely than other dreams, since they are so powerful and memorable.

The world of dreams is a mysterious one, and challenges science to think beyond the superficial relationship between our daily life and our nighttime working mind. Some dreams are premonitory, they can help us make decisions, they give us glimpses of other lives, of other places. Some people can meet each other in their dream. It's a place where our spirit is connected to other souls, spirits and worlds.

After my nightmare last night, I've been thinking a lot. Fever is associated with pain. Through the physical experience of pain, is it not possible that our soul opens up to the spiritual world of pain? Do our nightmares at times of suffering teach us something specific? My nightmare was one of the holocaust, and upon awakening, I realized I might have witnessed an actual experience, perhaps shared by a soul or souls, who latched on to my receptivity. Isn't empathizing with the horrors of victims of the holocaust a precious gift? Isn't the strength that can come from it one that might help eradicate these events in the future of the world?



Treasure your nightmares.

Service & Family

I have entered entered a phase of my life where I am developing a new understanding of service, especially with respect to family. Lillian and I are really looking forward to meeting with all of the parents together in December. My parents are making a big effort and sacrificing a lot of resources to make it out to Xin Jiang.
My sister might come and stay at our apartment for a couple of months next year!
Down the road a little, Lillian and I are seriously considering (almost firmly decided on) inviting her parents to move in with us after they retire, and stay a few months every year in the meanwhile. They are really worried about being a burden, but I think it will be so good, especially for our children to always have their grandparents around. What a blessing! I remember when I was growing up in Martinique and my grandmother stayed with us for some two years. That was so special.

Parents

Some memories about my parents:

When I was two years old, I walked with my parents into the Mashriqu'l-Adhkar (Baha'i House of Worship) in Wilmette (near Chicago). As I looked up to the ceiling, my mother explained to me the meaning of "The Greatest Name" ("O Glory of the All-Glorious")

At four years old, I got sick one afternoon, and fell asleep after taking some medicine. I woke up crying in the middle of the night. My dad immediately came to me and gave me some dinner that my family had put aside for when I woke up. I was utterly comforted.

Around the same age, as I was walking with my mom near the Savane park in downtown Fort-de-France, I fell on the ground hurt my hand and got some gravel under my skin. I remember being completely reassured by my mother's love and care.

I have a handful of memories like this, of simple things that happened to me when I was a child. These events are proof of the love of my parents, and a source of strength to this day. No one can plan these moments. There were surely many others when they exerted much greater effort for my safety and happiness, but they can't choose which I remember. It's both empowering and daunting to know this: our smallest efforts can have the greatest effect; our slightest thoughtless act may truly let someone down.

Profile: Suzanne Allmart

Profile: Suzanne Allmart

Beauty & Strength:

Suzanne is a River. He spirit flows simultaneously in multiple realms of grandeur, a bird of light soaring through a sky of majesty. The world around her is colored with her glow. She evokes peace and understanding. She is a superb mother, dedicated to her family, and determined to play her role in (re)establishing the beauty and importance of pregnancy and motherhood in the world.


Connection:

She is a most simple person, actually, and simplicity is the feeling I had when I met her in the beginning of 2003, when I moved to Champaign-Urbana. She was one of a host of friends I made during my short stay there, and has over the years remained a most dear and beloved companion. She and her husband Husayn are a big inspiration for the marriage Lillian and I have begun, and their parenthood will likely help to guide ours. I love to look at their weblos, especially as they recount their adventures in raising Amia.


Service:

Suzanne has reached out through many talents to help this darkened world. She has been trained as a dula, she provides exemplary service to her family and community, and likes to dance (and play oboe still?)


Vision:

Suzanne will continue to give strength and vision to those around her through both her incredible insights into life, so eloquently and softly spoken, and her actions as a mother now, and in other venues later.


Token Couplet:

A river flows and feeds its blessed banks,
To her and to its Source they offer thanks.

Justice

Lillian and I faced some troubles during our travels. A sad thing about tourism spreading to the remoter areas of China is the impact it has on people's perception of money, business, and social structure.

Specifically, many people we meet seem to be completely focused on abusing any given situation for the sole purpose of making more money, to the detriment of travelers, who are perceived as being more affluent, wasteful, and perhaps undeserving of their wealth. One example is our forray down to a dock, where we were hoping to cross the river by ferry, to visit the famed and gorgeous Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. We walked a long time, and the picture on the right shows the plateau across the river, which was our destination. You might notice in the bottom-right and small building, where the people who man the ferry hang out when there aren't passengers.
We walked through some neat paths!
On the way to the ferry, a local guy told us that it costs 10RMB ($1.50 US)to get across, but when we got there, the two men said it was 15! We said the price we had been told, and they claimed it had gone up. We refused to pay it, and they refused to change their mind, claiming that if we still wanted to get across later, they would have to charge more still, because they'd come just for us - whereas at the moment, there were others traveling, who had probably paid 5 or less, since they're locals...

We tried to find another way across, but there was none - which is why they assumed they could charge whatever price they wanted to. We may be the first people that ever turned around because of their price, and as we made our way back up to the plateau, we saw the two men get on the boat and start it from the other side. There was no one else. They were coming for us. But we didn't look back.

I hope my readers will find opportunities in their lives to practice and demonstrate justice, by perhaps sacrificing a little to stand for the right thing. Lillian and I completely changed our travel itinerary. The journey to the ferry had taken several hours. The rest of the journey was of course magnificent (check out our picture site - link at the top). Life is good.

Babies!

Lillian and I have been harrassed a few times about making babies quickly. We have our mission laid out clearly.

Meanwhile, traveling in Yunnan, we saw how common it is for women there to use baby carriers. The one in the picture is the most common type, but others are popular too - including another back version and the side sling.

Here in Shanghai, babies are usually with their grandparents, as many (most?) people consider that young parents should focus on their careers and making money for the future of the family. So the babies stay with their grandparents, usually throughout the day until mommy and daddy get off tired from work, but often away from them in another city for upwards of 3-4 years. It was relieving to see that in this part of China, the normalcy of parents bringing up their own children has not been disturbed. In fact, I frequently saw fathers carrying their children, sometimes in baby carriers! Yay!

Lillian and I bought two baby carriers - we mailed one to the US for my sister Charlotte, and kept one for our firstborn.

The Civilized Sounds of Nature

In both her music and her lyrics, Bjork captures best the correspondences between the sounds of nature and those of modern (city) life. The Modern Things and the Overture for "Selmasongs: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack Dancer in the Dark" are some good examples.

Traveling in beautiful areas of Yunnan, somewhat removed from civilization, I discovered that water, wind and creatures created sounds that I had previously heard only through modern technology. The sound of water bouncing from a large rock sounded just like an airplane when I stepped on my tiptoes; that of the wind through the trees in one area like flicking a ruler; and that of one bug like a typewriter. (Okay, one of those is made up...)

It reminds me of the unity of all things in Creation.

Vacation

Plan A: Visit the US - no go no visa
Plan B: Visit family in Canada - no go no time for all the forms
Plan C: Trip to Tibet - no go because quota for number of foreign visitors already met for August
Plan D: Party in Xinjiang - no go because Lillian's parents are busy, no time to prepare a wedding party there, so we'll have to go back in Feb anyway
Plan E: vacation to Yunnan

AND WE LEAVE TONIGHT!

Normal Life Post

It's been the most fascinating year!

* April 29/May 1: danio and Lillian get married
This was the biggest single event of my life, eclipsing turning 15 in 1995, moving to the US in 1997, producing "The Peach" in 2002, and moving to China in 2006 (excluding maybe being conceived).

* June 1: Shanghai Wedding reception
Some 60+ family members and friends came and celebrated on a boat

Mark visited Lillian and I in Shanghai a couple weeks ago, and he and I had a great conversation about how getting married makes a man... As Shawn would say - "that'll put some hair on your chest!"

I spent whole school semester teaching Chinese primary school children through my work at NewBeat Jazz English Training Institute. I was the first teacher to hold a regular position teaching kids outside of kindergarten. It was a pioneering post, and the biggest job challenge of my life, even affecting my personality. I learned a lot really fast, through the sheer amount of mistakes I made. I am stronger for it, but this position, along with some other events, lead me to decide to leave NewBeat before the elapse of my second contract, which would have lasted until January 2008.

* August 2008: a new life
I got a dream job, teaching English at the Ecole Francaise de Shanghai (French School of Shanghai). Bonuses include:
- I can actually speak the children's mother tongue
- I will be given a curriculum - rather than having to make up everything myself
- The class size remain below 20 students
- The students are arranged in classes according to their level of English, with certain periods in the year where they learn other students of their own grade.
- Higher salary
- Free French/European lunch
- All weekends off
- Lots of vacation time
Lillian and I got a new apartment, into which we will move in some ten days. From this place, I can bike to EFS in 15 minutes, and Lillian will work four days per week instead of six, giving her more time to work on her degree (she got a three-year degree in tourism, and is working on acquiring the BA/four-year equivalent).

"WHY WAS THE VISA DENIED?!?"

Thanks for all the loving thoughts from our friends - Lillian and I are very moved by your support and encouragement. We will not visit the US this summer, and we're working on the next plan.

Some reasons the US Embassy officer mentioned for not granting the visa:

(Note: the main things they're trying to determine during the tourist visa application is whether or not the applicant is likely to overstay her visa.)

- Lillian was born in Xingjiang, studied in Guilin, and now works in Shanghai, respectively the far Northwest, the far South and the far East of China - so there's every reason to believe she would have any difficulty moving to yet another place, namely the US.

- Lillian and I have been married less than three months, which is the typical scenario of an American who wants to bring his Chinese wife back with him to the US.

- Lillian did not present an official letter of invitation from me. None out of all the websites through which I browsed mentioned that I was supposed to supply this.


Lillian and I send all our love our love to our family and friends, and remind you that we are always with you in spirit.

The Golden Rule Challenge

"Do unto others..." we always say. There are different versions, but in short, if I wish something for myself, I should also wish it for others. (This rule may exclude the weird things we wish for, like wishing for more awkward pauses, for spiders to welcome you home, or for Fantastic Four 3 to come out.)

How well do we really follow this rule? I challenge you, reader, to amp up your observance of the Golden rule!

A few years ago, when I played hours on end of combat video games (mostly Tekken and Capcom vs. SNK), I found myself only having fun half the time, while the other half was spent complaining that my controller didn't function properly. Then it dawned on me that it should be perpetually fun, so I started watching what attacks and move my opponent was performing. In general, if I lost, it was by virtue of good, commendable play on his part. So I would praise him, "Whoa! nice move! you got me good!" I was wishing for him what I wished for myself.

I was job-searching recently, when my friend's sister said to me that her friend in Britain was looking for a job here in Shanghai. I wished for her what I wished for myself, and gave her the contact information for the schools I was applying for, knowing that her degree in education gave her a better chance to get the position than I had. (Incidentally, I got a dream job starting next month, teaching English to French primary school students who reside in Shanghai!)

Imagine watching a soccer game, where you don't choose sides, but enjoy the game and cheer for both teams. Imagine playing on a team, and being as excited when the opposing team gets a goal as you would if you scored yourself!

Imagine if everyone started to understand the golden rule on a deeper level. What would this life be like?

Competition is a vicious beast, which is not necessary, as you may think. The world, or part of it, is moving towards becoming more civilized, more powerful, evolving. Be a part of the change - take the Golden Rule Challenge!

Four Long Days

For the first time since we've been married, Lillian and I had to be a long time away from each other: 4 grueling days :(

The good news is that I got to spend those days with nine kids, keep them safe, and help them practice some English



Lillian and I also had the immense pleasure of seeing Eric Jensen and Mark Eghrari, who both came through Shanghai around the same time - but somehow missed each other. It's so great to see good friends and share joy and news with them!

Your Potential

I have only made little steps here and there in terms of advancing my mission of saving the world through my unique understanding of the role performance must and will play in the advancement of world civilization: collaborations here and there that have ended in me teaching a class to some acting students in a university, setting up but never finishing a co-production of an original play, and a short original performance with a few friends in front of a small audience. These don't at all meet the hopes I had for what I might be doing by now in China.

So I was listening to some Saul Williams, and I just started going crazy, feeling so intensely that I need to make bigger steps in reaching my goals and liberating my dormant potential. This really worried Lillian, because when I came home that evening, I did a really poor job at explaining my state of mind, and she worried that I was getting depressed and feeling down - which was not the case! I just felt a greater sense of urgency.

Sometimes, this world and my life seem to redirect my steps in an unexpected direction, where it becomes harder to envision the correct path to service and greatness. But then I think of the lives of great people - particularly 'Abdu'l-Baha, Who spent most of His life in prison, aiding those who were near Him, and changing the lives of a few, whom He could directly assist and support (ok, maybe more than "a few"...). Not until later in life was He able to travel abroad and speak to large audiences of various countries and walks of life - until His loving words and encouragement deeply touched the hearts of millions!

So I just need to remember to try the best I can, and God will give me the appropriate opportunities, according to the most perfect path for my life. Trust. Peace. Contentment. Wonderment.

Fish with frog's eyes: creation is perfect.

Robbie and I love and frequently recall the above quote from an almost obscure poem. Upon recalling this quote, Robbie might look like this:

Smoothies, Tea and Coffee

I guess Lillian and I have it made now: bought a blender a few weeks ago, we've received plenty of great tea from friends, and just got a coffee maker a few days ago from a gift card we got at our wedding reception.

I adore all of those drinks, and so does my wife - specifically, we're both extreme fruit lovers.

Long Jing, or "Dragon Well", was my favorite tea since Jason and I had bought a can back during college winter vacation 2000. That was the time we got to wake up slow, peacefully walking around the woods of Alaska Pacific University... the time when he asked me mid-morning, in an unexplainable tortured voice, "Are we gonna eat today?"

Mr. Falconer said to me on the phone, in response to the news that we had bought a coffee maker, "Finally, someone with some sense!"

Otherwise, the wedding reception was great, although I barely got to visit with my friends... About 65 came, and our program included meeting people, listening to family speeches (including my parents' recorded voices), viewing our wedding pics from Guilin on a big screen, eating cake, singing, acting, etc. all on a big boat floating on the Huang Pu River in the middle of Shanghai's nighttime skyline.

You can check out the pictures from our trip to Hangzhou - my third time there! Lillian's parents will be in town until Monday, at which point we'll miss them a lot - especially mom's daily double-delicious drool-drawing delicacies (she's been cooking every meal for us, that is...)




PS: Cirque du Soleil is coming to Shanghai this month!

Family

Lillian's parents are visiting for a couple of weeks! They're staying with us in the apartment, we're having a great time, and they are helping with preparing the wedding party scheduled to take place on a boat on the Huangpu river on Children's Day - June 1 - also my mom's b-day!

It's suddenly pouring cats and dogs today, which is awesome! Less than a month into our marriage, Lillian and I have had a rollercoaster of a life together, and I can honestly say I've never been so happy. To think I found my eternal partner...

We did submit the visa application, but there's a 39-day wait to get an interview. It's gonna be a tight schedule to organize visiting the US. Please pencil in a wedding reception in Richmond, Virginia around mid-August.

Here are some pictures of some friends - I miss them so. Robbie and I were one crazy unique pair, Christian and Mishkin another, and the four of us were unstoppable!