Happy Year of the Doggy!

Here's something to feel optmistic about:
if, in the dog years, we do not feel perfectly confident that our
future will be bright, there is compensation to be taken in the form of
a general sentiment of good will and generosity. politicking will reach an all-time high of liberal idealism. those who have felt themselves oppressed will have a chance to speak out. socialism may rear its little pink nose. everyone is imbued with giving. taking is on the decline.

Thanks to Scott for passing that on to me. Travelling as I've been (where I'm waking up somewhere different every third day or so) has been destabilizing if fun, and suffering a little from that, along with my meditation practice, art practice, and English fluency, has been my update of the stars (astrology, not celebrities, mind you!) But luckily I still get wonderful bits of wisdom, poetry, positive vibes and other goods from friends. (I loved the piece on dreams, RW). Thank you for that. I miss you and I appreciate your encouragement & guidance.

Apart from feeling a bit travel-weary, I'm feeling generally optimistic. A few of the things I'm feeling good about:

+ Seeing Ajai get married in Trivandrum (Kerala), and to a really wonderful woman. (For those of you who don't know, Ajai is one of these people who inspire me and feed my soul!). The ceremony was intimate and sweet, and it was such a joy to meet his family and friends.

+ Receiving darshan (blessing) from Amma at Amritapuri

+ Being in Kerala, where you alost take for granted the sun, warm nights, fresh juice, and palms galore, and where there is an interesting political climate, what with the frequent marches of the the communist revolutionaries, the conversations with students on the beach (ah, you're from the Great Vietnam, one guy said to me), the realizations of things read in The God of Small Things, the strange new brand of classism (or is it old?), the coexistence of different religious temples and practices here (one guy we met who hosted us for a day brought us to a Hindu Temple, even though he was Christian and couldn't go in).

+ The wonderful experience of being in the rainforests at the foot of the Western Ghats near Madikeri, Karnatika. Stayed on the coffee plantation of a very sweet Coorg family who ran a small, simple lodging operation to tide them through while their honey business slowly recovers from a bee disease that was introduced to the area some years back.

+ Being next to the ocean again (Varkala) and eating fresh fish.

Anyway, things have been moving quickly, and lots has been happening in a short time. Hence the lack of updates from Sylvia. Travelling, especially this way, is a good challenge for me, especially being such a cancer and homebody. It's been teaching me to keep moving, to let go of your baggage, assumptions, useles plans really quickly, and keep seeing life for what it is, in its dynamically changing present. And then it's fun.