Wednesday, April 28, 2010

SSDD

Happy Birthday to me,
I never did see,
Why there can't be

Peace the Earth
On the day of my Birth.


Thro' the day I am wishing,
For the birds to sing,

The Peace Song of the Dove,
For nothing should be above,
Hope, faith, and love.

But as long as man,
Live as if he can
Rule with a han'

A han' that does not heed,
Or show pity to those in need.

On my day I shall say,
Same Shit Different Day






Monday, April 19, 2010

Buddhist Temple


One sunny Sunday afternoon, an average American family drove down to the Buddhist Temple in Hacienda Heights California. The father was telling the rest of the family that the last time he had seen the temple it was still under construction, but even in its unfinished state it had been extraordinary to see. As the family pulled up to the parking lot entry, the mother expressed concern that perhaps the general public could only go inside on certain days, or on an appointed tour. But the father point to the clearly written WELCOME sign past the entrance at the gate. He said, since there was a greeting in English, he thought it would be alright. Once the family secured a parking space, the family stood in awe of the intricate detail and beauty of the temple. Once they walked into the looming entrance, they looked at the huge alter immediately inside the door. The entire family felt deeply embarrassed and self-conscious, for they had not thought to bring anything. They all briefly admired the inside of the entrance building, then went along a hallway to the left of the entrance doors. They went out into the sunshine and again, the family lost their breath at the sight of a second temple across the courtyard.
The family had not expected to see so much. So there was not enough time to truly admire the gardens, or to visit the museum, or to spend much time in the gift shop. So, the family left that afternoon, having seen more than they had expected, however not fully satisfied with their rather rushed and choppy self-tour. But they all left with the conviction that it would not be the last time they laid eyes on the Buddhist Temple.
(The writer acknowledges that she is not familiar with the terminology of the Buddhist Temple in Hacienda Heights. She begs the readers to forgive her ignorance, she meant no offence. She just wished to share the beauty and the experience of visiting the temple with others.)

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Sweet16

As I approach my seventeenth birthday, I am reminded of my last birthday: my Sweet16.

A few weeks before my Sweet16 my Mama asked what I wanted as far as cake, party, a special dinner, or outing, whatever. I said, just a cake and presents, like every year, would be fine with me. My Mama was....concerned. She knows most girls have something special on their Sweet16 and I didn't seem to care. And, like always, whenever I do something that excludes people from outside my family, when it's customary to have someone from the outside become involved, she wondered if she was doing something wrong with me; she wasn't worried about what other people would think of her bringing me up, she was concerned that later I might regret not having some memories of an average Sweet16 party, making me have even fewer things in common with most girls of my generation.
I assured her (several times) that I really didn't care, "Even if I wanted to invite someone, who would I invite?? I don't have any close friends." Now that just opened a whole other can of worms inside my Mama's head. So I quickly added, "Having no friends isn't a bad thing....it just means that I don't have anybody that can stab me in the back." Once Mama stopped laughing, she had stopped worrying.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

California

The sun shines down

As bright as my aura crown



The flowers of May

I wish them to stay



The birds sing sweet

They don't miss a beat



The children run

Beneath the sun



The Dogs in the shade they sleep

Easy is the life they keep



As the sun shines down

Bright as my aura crown