another day, more to learn

Okay, for those of you who wondered if I stopped emailing you here’s what I’m up to. I am staying in touch with family with email but because it’s easier, I am blogging the rest of the time. I do love it if you email me though and I will answer back. Now as for the blog, you can do this RSS feed…look for it on the blog page towards the right of the screen. You sign up and then you get instant notification when I post a new tale. If you want to write a comment, you need a google email. Too much bother. Just email me as usual so I can stay in touch!. So there you have it…as technical as I can get. I am still hoping to find the time to get the photos posted.

For those of you who want to volunteer in Ubud, Bali, you can …at the midwifery place even if you don’t have a background there, at the dog rescue place, teaching English or the clothing shop that gives money to SMILE that operates on cleft palates or with us. There are probably many more opportunities here and in other parts of the island but those I have heard about so far.

I’ve got a lot of ground to cover tonight. Just had an stir fry noodle dish with chicken, beans, lemon grass, carrots, cauliflower, mushrooms and I added way more hot sauce than I have before. Tasted great! Now contrast that with the fact that I wasn’t hot today! Oh my gosh, am I acclimating finally? I was even cold…oh,how I loved that feeling.On the short walk home from the restaurant, I gave a bit of money…like I do every night…to the young mothers who beg right near the restaurant. They look about 16, have babies usually nursing and look like they haven’t bathed in a year. Bali version of homeless. Perhaps an NGO needs to be started to house and feed them?

At the office, we had a report of a caged orangutan in Sumatra that the owner is trying to sell. This is his third attempt. We contacted the group that rehabilitates illegally captured orangutans and they said the man must have connections with the police because they aren’t doing anything. It is illegal. He has given me a name of an official in Jakarta to write to and ask what’s up. So I’ve got letters to two officials going out and hopefully something will happen soon. The oil plantations have made it easier for people to capture orangutans to sell as pets. It will be good when he is rescued out of the cage and into rehab. I’ll let you know when he is out of the cage.

And I have travel news. I am going on a short trek with a group of 7 Indonesians from Jakarta and Pol, our Canadian volunteer. We will drive through the oil palm plantations to actually get a feel for what is going on there and then spend the evening in a village getting to know the people. Next day we ride elephants (they are used to patrol the illegal logging business) through the jungle to …well, I guess look at the jungle from up high which beats being on the ground with leeches. Yuk!. I’m glad I rode an elephant in Thailand so it’s not totally new. From there we take inner tubes down the river to our next stop where we’ll stay at an ecolodge and listen to a lecture from one of the top conservationists in the area. I’m a late comer to this group. They have all written papers on different aspects of the problem facing the orangutans and over the trip I imagine we’ll discuss those. They all belong to the Indonesian Heritage Society and it should be a great education. Okay after the rafting the next day we see the orangutans. Woohoo!!! Some of them still return to their feeding platform from their rehab days and we can be right near them. We have a choice to swim or go hike to a waterfall or stay with the orangutans. You know what I want to do! So next week I’ll be out of touch.

And today, today in the office, I had one of those magical times that I just love. An Indonesian man who is helping SOS in many ways with the NGO status, another woman and an official all met in the office today to discuss something about the status. Paperwork. All in Indonesian, so who knows. But before they all arrived I had time to spend with the man and we talked in English. He instantly moved our conversation to philosophy. I don’t know why that happens but I love that.
He was raised from 4-12 yr old by his grandmother who was both clairvoyant and a naturopath and she painted batiks as well. He told me that she is responsible for how he sees the world, his profession,,,he is a naturopath too and his devotion to conservation.
He explained his idea of wealth. I wish I could convey this just as he said it. He told it like a story, which is such a good way to communicate. He told me many people are confused by wealth. They limit their definition to money. And here they are wrong. He said that wealth has many different aspects. It is not just financial and it is important to remember that when living life. Because it is important to be wealthy but in all the areas of your life. (Me, I’m just a sponge enthralled with his stories and listening to his words) He goes on to explain the different aspects of being wealthy. There is the wealth of relationships. To have friends, to have people we love, to have relationships with our families. (He gave me lots of stories while he was explaining all of this to illustrate his point.) Then there is the wealth of education and wisdom. But it doesn’t take a fancy degree or school. There is wisdom in many a person not formally educated and it is important to see this a part of your wealth. To always gather wisdom. Next, spiritual wealth. ..to maintain a connection with spiritual beliefs and nurture them. To know that this is as important as the other parts. And finally physical wealth. To take care of the body, to love the body and to nourish it. To have physical wealth that you encourage each day.
So that when you think you are wealthy you must take a look at all 5 aspects and to grow each one. A pentagon on wealth (my addition). As he philosophized I couldn’t help but wonder how I was so lucky to be hearing something in such an easy form to understand. Just sitting here at the office. We were just heading into how his grandmother explained love, when the others came in. His grandma who taught him all of this lived to be 125 years old!
So, there is some Bali wisdom from a grandma who was very wise.
I have noticed that when I talk to Balinese people about what I am doing, they always put their hands to their hearts. …and give me this approving look.