Category Archives: impediments

Intensity

2
Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Family, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

October 30, 2024-I dreamed of Manila, and of Kathy, most of the night. Maybe those are just residuals from the visit just ended, or maybe they’re a harbinger. When I got up, it was time to focus on getting back into the swing of things here at Home Base, so I walked, happily, downtown and sat for a while in Wild Iris, then came back and briefly discussed a few matters with my landlord. I have told him my time here is getting shorter, and he thinks I need to follow my heart. At dinner this evening, with another long-time friend, I got the same message.

I’ve been in Prescott for 13.5 years, continuously, and 15 years all told, more than any place other than Saugus (20 years, all told). I could easily call this Home Base for the rest of my life; the Southwest is a place of endless beauty and opportunities. There are two other factors, however-My little family, now in Texas, who will be the prime foci of my time in the U.S., should they bring forth children of their own and the second great love of my life, who, as I keep saying lately, is the prime focus of my time and energy, overall.

I’ve sometimes been told that I am far too intense for my own good-and perhaps that is true. I love deeply, which won’t change, for the simple reason is that I don’t see enough love in the world. My friends and family understand this. Kathy is coming to understand it more, just as I am coming to understand her need to show her love in subtle, sometimes opaque, ways. Intense love, however, is needed to deflect and counteract intense hate. Subtlety, on the other hand, is a soothing balm for those times when intensity rubs things raw-and a healing period of rest is needed. It also helps ward off dementia-(just an aside).

On a greater scale, we will need intensity-of thought, of energy, of commitment and of meaningful action. I will say more on what I think is needed for the country to thrive, over the next few days.

Running on Empty

6
Posted by on in Community, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

October 28, 2024- The van driver called out what was music to my ears: “Who’s getting off at Yavapai College?” I had designated a stop at Hassayampa Inn, downtown, as my debarkation point,but YC is so much closer, so when the student got off there, so did I. It was a seven-minute walk to Home Base, instead of ten-fifteen.

Between the long wait on the tarmac, leaving Manila and a shorter, but still nettlesome wait on the tarmac in Seattle (One, a ‘technical issue’ on our plane; the second, a ‘technical issue’ on a plane that was sitting in our plane’s designated gate), and having to wander a bit at Sea Tac, to find an escalator that worked (All elevators and one escalator were down, this morning) and the general effects of jet lag, I was beat.

I did push myself, once back at Home Base, to plow through the two boxes of mail that greeted me. I managed to fill out my ballot and prepare it for placement in the drop box tomorrow. Landlord came by and lit the pilot on my furnace. I noticed a new ceiling fan had been installed in the living room and a nice hand-made wooden bench now sits in front of HB.

It was, overall, an enjoyable visit to the Philippines and a change in Home Base, around May of next year, is still a strong possibility. For now, I am focused on getting back on track, with several matters that need attention here, and in Carson City and Grapevine (TX), later in November.

I will be back to full, in a few days.

Technical Difficulties

4
Posted by on in collaborating, Community, impediments, Inner Struggles, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

October 27, 2024, Seattle- “In 30 minutes, we should have a resolution to this technical problem.” So said the captain of the jumbo jet that was taking us to T’aipei, from Manila. Four hours later, we took off and had a smooth flight.

The day was pretty much like that, all along. I had a warm send-off from Ola! Hostel, the staff saying they hoped to see me again, next time. I joined a group at the Baha’i Center a bit later than they had wanted me to be there. The laundry service’s schedule and process kept me waiting and then, I had to pack. This was lost on a few of the Baha’i friends, and the last session there seemed a bit cold. They did help me get a ride to the airport, and the driver showed up minutes later. I had no time to really tell a certain person verbally, how deeply I feel about her. It was all rush-rush.

The ride to the airport was smooth. Once there, I waited at the EVA Air section, the line moving fairly swiftly and no problems exiting through immigration or security check. We were checked in and seated on the plane, with minimal difficulty. Then, the wait started and went on and on.

Fortunately, once at T’aipei, the authorities had held our Seattle-bound plane for the same length of time that it took EVA to resolve the technical issues on our plane in Manila. The Taiwanese processed us with lightning speed and we were seated on the second plane, which took off in short order.

I slept for about four hours, on board the aircraft crossing the Pacific Ocean, otherwise watching a forgettable Hong Kong police drama and a heartwarming film about a minister and his wife, who adopted several children, and encouraged members of his congregation to follow suit.

By 8:30 p.m., we were on the ground here. By 9:30, I had passed through immigration and customs. Now, at 10:15, I am in my room at Days Inn, ready for a few more hours of sleep, before my phone alarm goes off, at 3:30 a.m,, and I catch the motel shuttle back to SeaTac.

Another chapter in the Seeker Saga is drawing to a close.

A Tanay Excursion-Part I

4
Posted by on in collaborating, Hiking and Nature, impediments, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

October 26, 2024, Manila- The ants came marching, ten by ten, and the little one did NOT stop to do it again. The little black sugar ants were all over a piece of bamboo fence. When I rested my hand on the fence, they were all over me-and my camera. They don’t bite, but I brushed them off anyway. I warned Kathy about them, as she was about to put her hand on the same area. She wasn’t concerned, as they are not biters; but she also didn’t put her hand on the fence.

This was our introduction to Daranak Falls, which was officially closed, due to the effects of Typhoon Kristine. The caretaker let us take a few photos from the overlook and from just inside the walkway to the shuttered tourist huts. As you will see, there was no waterfall today. That is what severe typhoons do to rivers.

Tanay River, where the Falls usually hold forth. (above and below)
Four friends on a bouncing bridge (We didn’t jump around)

Next, we headed to a nearby cave attraction.

We all wore plastic hard hats, during the tour. That didn’t faze my favourite lady.
or the rest of us, for that matter.

Now, here are some views from inside the cave.

Near the entrance
Stalactite time
Into a crevice
In the Great Room
A goblin hangs out
A pillar has formed(Fusing of a stalactite and a stalagmite)
One last scene in the cave,
and one at the far entrance. We could not exit the cave here, as there was waste-high water in the final cavern room. So, we went back the way we came, and circled around on the surface. You can see how disappointed we all were.

Going back into Tanay City was its own little adventure. Being told by villagers that the short-cut to the main road was washed out, it took the four of us going to the back of the van, in order for the driver, Arjun, to back it up a hill and turn around at the small store.

In the next post, we look at the in-town delights of a church that was built in 1563 and a small park, on Manila Bay, that is centered on a lighthouse.

After Effects

9
Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

October 25, 2024, Manila- Today produces a short and sweet note. The lingering effects of Typhoon Kristine have left museums shuttered, due to staff being asked not to travel and parks closed for maintenance, due to debris everywhere and fallen trees. So, I got to hang out and catalogue my photographs from Ayala Museum and Dumaguete.

Kathy has organized one last outing for this visit, to a town northeast of here, in a mountainous region. That will happen tomorrow, and four other ladies will join us. Group outings have long been a Filipino tradition and I have seen only joy and laughter coming from groups that travel in this way. We’ve had some great times together, both last year and this. I will do whatever I can to make sure this continues.

The after effects of love and kindness are more love and kindness. Those of hardness and distancing are either more hardness and distancing, or a mature soul saying “Enough” and showing the way to a kinder, gentler way of dealing with each other. The after effects of a persistent, but humble way of generosity and caring are a gradual softening of the resistance put up by someone who has suffered much in the past.

These are just some of the thoughts that run through my mind, on this lazy day after the latest typhoon.

Typhoon

2
Posted by on in Assistance, Community, impediments, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

October 24, 2024, Manila- I rode the Light Rail to United Nations Station and walked over to the museum complex, thinking I would visit those floors at the Natural History and nearby Fine Arts, that I had missed last time. A tricycle driver told me everything was closed. This made sense-more sense than this one heading out in the rain, even though my umbrella did its job. The national government took care of its workers and sent all non-essential staff home early.

Typhoon Kristine is here, and is dumping heavy rain, so that the streets are rivers, for the second time this visit. I have checked in with the residents of the Baha’i Center and advised them to shelter upstairs. Here at Ola! Hostel, we are all on the second floor or above, and even the staff are on a mezzanine level, safe from flooding. Kathy and her sons are on an upper floor of their building, so no worries about them. Somehow, the street people will also survive. This is de rigueur for them and most will take to fire escapes or hunker in lobbies of large buildings, including car parks-or in one of the 7-11s or Lawton’s Convenience Marts, which are open 24 hours a day.

Severe weather is just part of experiencing a place, and if I follow my current plan, typhoons will be a routine part of my life, in a year or so, just as hurricanes, monsoonal rains, blizzards and dust storms have all been, elsewhere. By 11 p.m., the rain is expected to subside and tomorrow will come, gray and damp, but without the flooding. We are all okay.

Sky Way

2
Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

October 23, 2024, Manila- The area between the entrance to Terminal 3 and the taxi stands, at Ninoy Aquino International Airport, is rife with touts, every one of whom wants to charge double or triple the fare charged by metered taxis, or even GRAB (Uber-type) vehicles. I have learned to walk straight ahead, saying “Excuse me!”, in a firm tone. The lady who mocked, saying “Get out of way!”, was a GRAB imposter, who still wanted twice the fare. I told her no, and went over to the meter booth.

The driver took me to Ola! Hostel, via the Skyway, for which the passenger (rightfully, in my view) pays the toll of 35 PhP (Philippine pesos) on top of the fare. It is a much nicer drive, with little slow downs and, at lunch time anyway, no gridlock. I arrived at Ola! seventeen minutes after leaving NAIA.

It has just been that sort of day. I was very warmly welcomed back to the hostel, and to the Baha’i Center, in late afternoon. My darling had news of her own: She has landed the job that she had sought, before last week’s loss of a dear Baha’i community member and this past weekend’s art gallery opening ( by K’s good friend), which I missed for the sake of connecting with an old friend from Mesa, AZ, who now lives in Dumaguete, Negros Oriental.

She will be busy for several months, and that’s a good thing. I will also be busy, once I get back to Home Base I. There is a lot going on, just before the election and immediately afterward. November and December promise to pass with lightning speed. Through all of it, I will be encouraging Kathy, every day. I will see her again in February, during a short visit here, that will focus on a few important tasks.

Picking up on the ways to navigate this sometimes chaotic, but vibrant, society is coming to me organically. There are aspects that will also be very useful in the months to come, back in the United States.

Compressed

4
Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Family, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

October 21, 2024, Valencia, Negros- The word came early this morning: What had been a carefully-planned, manageable schedule of product deliveries and shipment, over a four-day period, was now to be done locally today, with the deliveries to the next island over to be done tomorrow.

I was given the choice, by my hosts, who are the company owners, to relax and maybe visit a few natural attractions nearby, or to go along with them for the day’s local deliveries. I chose the latter. I was raised with a work ethic, and spirit of service. If something in front of me needed doing, I was as good as anyone to do it.

We went first to the company’s production center and warehouse, where a bustling crew had packed over 100 boxes of product, and carefully labeled each box. There were six different places to which the product had to be delivered today, so correct labeling was essential. The crew did very well, in all aspects.

There were a few snags, owing to the suddenness of the changes in schedule, and to issues at the receiving venues themselves. By and large, however, it was a successful day. I got in a fine amount of exercise, the delivery man drove like a madman, and everything that was on the list to be done was accomplished. Point of information: This is a company that produces healing drink mix powders, with ginger and turmeric in several of the compounds. It is good for the products to be distributed with dispatch.

I am staying at the home of the owners, one of whom I have known for several years now. They are doing quite well, but I daresay they have earned every bit of good fortune.

View of Tanon Strait, from Valencia.
Rooftop view towards Cebu
View of Siquijor Island
Haka master, Ali, and his big family (Above and below)
So, with this nice dinner of chicken and “black” rice (it’s actually red), a very fruitful day came to a close.

Love, to the Moon and Back

6
Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, distraction issues, impediments, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

October 11, 2024, Manila- “If you love something, let it go. If it comes back, it’s yours.If not, it was never meant to be.” I’ve paid lip service to this, especially since Penny left for a better level. I have never felt she has been far away-and I have even felt that, when I fell for someone last year, this new love had Penny’s blessing.

I have no way of knowing in what direction my current friendship is going to head. Someone dear to me said, before I left for the Philippines this time, “You could love her to the moon and back, but if the feeling is not reciprocal, it can’t be faked.” I would be willing to make the life change and move here, but if it’s not a welcome move, it’s hardly a wise one. I have safe haven at Home Base I, and no one there who sees me through apprehensive eyes.

So, I will do what is prudent, in the time I have left here. I will visit Baha’i friends in another part of the country and pay further homage to those who died in World War II Another friend said, “No one needs to get married a second time”, and she is right. I know that I love my friend here, as deeply as I loved my wife. That is a rarity, and will not change. Still, there are twists and turns that she needs to navigate-and my presence would, for the time being, only be in the way. I have left the ball strictly in her court; she knows where she stands with me.

I am well, emotionally, with the caveat: “I am learning this, too: ‘We must not only be patient with others, infinitely patient!, but also with our own poor selves, remembering that even the Prophets of God sometimes got tired and cried out in despair!’ (Shoghi Effendi) And while I am deeply sure that ‘the Prophets of God’ had far more to despair about than I do or will, this quote gives me hope that I am not wallowing in my grief, but learning the lessons it will teach me.” (Borrowed, in gratitude, from a recently departed member of my spiritual family).

NOTE: Shoghi Effendi, the eldest surviving grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, served as Guardian of the Baha’i Faith from ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s death, (1921), until his own passing (1957). He provided a wealth of translation, explanation and elucidation of the Writings of al-Bab, Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Baha, as well as offering timeless insights into the growth and development of the Faith.

Camia Garlands and A Filipino Banquet

6
Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, impediments, Matters of Faith, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

October 10, 2024, Manila- The little entrepreneur was down to his last few hand-strung garlands of sweet-smelling camia blossoms. As we sat in a group and discussed various aspects of life in Manila and the urban U.S., one of our group members purchased the rest of the garlands. One was given to each of the women in our group, and I kept one for K, in case she was able to join us later.

Koi The’ Bubble Tea Shop, One Ayala Mall, Makati

Our host, Nelson (seated to my right, with ball cap), then brought us to MESA, a Filipino restaurant, where we enjoyed a full range of regional and national culinary treats: Pork belly (Binaggongan baboy), baked scallops in shell, suahe (large shrimp, barbecued in shell), sisig (fried rice with minced pork), various chicken dishes and a flounder-like baked fish, along with various side dishes whose names I did not quite catch.

It was a fitting celebration of both Nelson’s return here (he lives in the U.S. ) and that of a revered Baha’i elder, who lives primarily in the U.K. The rest of us were honoured just to be along for the gathering.

Part of me would not mind relocating here. There is more of the universal way of thinking, a collective mindset, to which I long ago became hard-wired. It will depend on how things go in a certain friendship, so we’ll see. Nevertheless, I have bonds here, for the rest of my life-much like in Home Base I, and in a number of other places across North America, in South Korea and in Europe. I can’t ever look at life through a dark glass again.