The Shadow of Empire and Our Travel Experiences

The Egypt section at the British Museum

This summer, our family was able to visit England, Belgium, and France a few weeks ago. It was a fantastic trip, occasioned by KH’s (Amabile) choir’s participation in the Canterbury Festival and its England tour. We just took advantage of the occasion and stayed on in Europe to see more sites and bond as a family while doing so.

Aside from the truly unforgettable experience of visiting and enjoying some of the most well-known sites in these lands such as Trafalgar Square, the Westminster Palace, the Grand Place, Bruges, the Champs-Élysées, etc., one thought that kept coming back to me during this European trip was that there is an intimate link between travelling-seeing places and the spectre of empire. The places we visited—England, Belgium, and France—have been some of the most powerful empires of the past. And an empire can create and control ways of seeing the world (worldviews) and impose them on others.

Just think of many of the "famous" and "popular" places that we like to visit and see. If you analyze why these sites became so famous and popular, chances are the reason is because "empire" made them so. Empire was able to define what “beautiful” or “good” or “worth preserving” was and, hence, we continue to think of many things empire promoted in the past as beautiful, good, or worth it!

Yes, I saw the long shadow of empire in that. Years after these empires have peaked, their mark is still deeply etched in our psyches. I felt this most at the British Museum. The British empire has been really strong and vast at its peak and it was able to do what it wanted such as carting off various national treasures from their original locations back home to merry ol’ England in order to showcase the glory of the British empire. Many of these treasures are now found in places such as the British Museum. Imagine, the British Museum has an Egyptology section that is even better than the Cairo Museum in Egypt itself!

That is a dark thought. But it is a necessary reminder and warning for us to be aware of imperialism and not let empire continue its unjust and oppressive ways.

Notes from My Readings: Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

(finished reading 2019-05-21)

Our daughter bought and read this book for youth sometime ago because the teacher of her gifted cluster sessions recommended it to her. She really enjoyed it and recommended it in turn to me. As part of my unwinding and relaxation after an intense school year, I began reading it and finished quickly because it was so engaging.

I recommend it wholeheartedly to parents to suggest it as summer reading to the kids!

Overview
This is a story about Brian, a 13-year-old boy with a personal and family crisis (parents' divorce), who is on his way in a small plane to visit his dad in the Canadian oilfields. The plane's pilot suffers a heart attack during the flight and so the plane crashes in the middle of the Canadian wilderness. There Brian learns to survive and even flourish with the help of a hatchet that his mother gave him before he left. He learns precious lessons about life while trying to live in the wilderness, lessons that leave their indelible mark on him and radically change his outlook on life. In his words, the experience changes him and makes him like a new being so much so that he distinguishes his "old" self from the "new" self (p. 117) that was born as a result of his wilderness adventures (e.g., p. 115). 

My Takeaways

1. Adversities and difficulties are some of the best ways to yank one out of one's comfort zone where one takes everything for granted. They force you to appreciate each and every thing you have mindlessly enjoyed up to now. We see this in Brian as he tackles one difficulty at a time because his very life and survival depend on it. We see him going through one hoop at a time in order to ensure his survival - food, shelter, fire, self-defense (against mosquitoes and other animals in the wild). This is an example of the spirit of "ippo-ippo" (step by step). His experience in the wilderness is an instance of a modern person going back to the primitive and primordial level of human beings when they were at the mercy of nature in order to eke out an existence for themselves. His experience, as mentioned, enables him to appreciate every little thing he has taken for granted such as the ready availability of food in modern life (e.g., 179) because he had to struggle tremendously to provide those very basic needs for himself with great labour in the woods.
2. The story illustrates a state in which one is stripped down radically to one's bare essentials - just the most necessary things to survive with all the non-essentials just eliminated from your existence. It is only in such a state that you can be attentive to some otherwise very important things you never paid attention to before. It is only in such a state when you can develop abilities that otherwise would lie dormant in you. We can see this, for example, in Brian as his senses become sharper to detect presences or elements in nature through intuition, smell, sound, etc (e.g. p. 100)
3. "... later he looked back on this time of crying in the corner of the dark cave and thought of it as when he learned the most important rule of survival, which was that feeling sorry for yourself didn't work." (p. 77)

Back to Life
In this age when many kids (and not only kids) are glued to screens, the "outdoor" experience retains its crucially important role in teaching kids (and the rest of us) valuable lessons about life. Some of my best experiences in life were those spent outdoors: camping, mountain-climbing, hiking, etc. I try to convey those experiences to our daughter by providing her with chances to enjoy the great outdoors, especially here in Canada where there are so many excellent places to enjoy nature! These are my "back to life" reflections on Hatchet.

Savour and Cherish: A Daddy-Daughter Moment to Cherish

I have to remind myself every now and then of the purpose of this blog which is expressed in its name "Ippo-ippo" (step-by-step): We have to take every step in life with deliberation and mindfulness because, as the Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us, "Mindfulness is a source of happiness."

Related with this is a wonderful passage from Franciscan spiritual teacher Richard Rohr: 

Fearful, negative, hateful thoughts are like velcro; the neurons just grab around them and solidify. (My comment: That's why it's hard to let go of a grudge.) Positive, grateful and loving thoughts are like Teflon. They just slide off unless you savor them consciously (me: this is a major component of contemplation) for at least 15 seconds

For the full passage, see: Rohr on turning toward the good

***

With that, let me resume this practice in this blog more regularly (since I'm on sabbatical!) and share something, a life "ippo" (Japnese, one step) today about one of my favorite topics - dad-daughter moments.

Our dear daughter KH is 10 years old. She's grown up to be a fine 10-year-old so far - respectful, having a fine sense of right and wrong, smart, athletic, musical ... She has far surpassed what I dreamed of in an ideal daughter. One thing that I really treasure and cherish though is our unique bond as dad and daughter. At this point in time, I can say, that KH and I are in a wonderful dad-daughter relationship - easy, friendly, affectionate, respectful. She can joke with me, tease me even, but I know that deep within she respects and loves me. When I am annoyed, hurt or even angry with her, she perceives that and seeks to address it swiftly for the better. The same is true of myself toward her, with her different moods. We can readily apologize to each other.

The other day, when I picked her up after her second choir concert (of that day), we were walking toward where the car was parked. She was in a happy mood and she was chatting away merrily as we walked. As we turned onto the street where the car was (it was a side street and at that time of the night [after nine], there were practically no other people around), she just naturally twirled her hand and arm into mine as she was chatting happily. 

KH doesn't really like public displays of affection but when we are by ourselves as a family, she is the sweetest young lady there could be! I don't exactly remember what she was saying but that moment of daughter-dad walking hand-in-hand, sharing the happy experiences of the day is something that really gave me such a deep and immense joy. My heart was just full to the brim. When your child is affectionate this way, doesn't it just melt your heart? 

I savour and cherish this "ippo" (one step)!

The Sublime and the Mundane - Planting lettuce and writing poetry

This is a delightful vignette from Buddhist master Thich Nhat Hanh that shows how life is connected with poetry, that the mundane and the sublime are like yin and yang, inseparable and necessary in order to live a life of depth that is squarely rooted in everyday realities.

One day in New York City, I met a Buddhist scholar and I told her about my practice of mindfulness in the vegetable garden. I enjoy growing lettuce, tomatoes, and other vegetables, and I like to spend time gardening every day. 

She said, "You shouldn't spend your time growing vegetables. You should spend more time writing poems. Your poems are so beautiful. Everyone can grow lettuce, but not everyone can write poems like you do."

I told her, "If I don't grow lettuce, I can't write poems."

(From Your True Home #103)

Of course, the quote in the image from the Sufi master Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan is also noteworthy.
I savor and cherish this teaching. A beautiful mosaic is composed of so many little yet uniquely wonderful pieces. Let's take care to make those little pieces count!

My Initial Thoughts on 'The Handmaid’s Tale', Season Two

I completed viewing Season Two recently. This season is significant because it is a creative departure from the novel by Margaret Atwood which closely guided Season One. The novel and season one end about the same point – the capture of the protagonist, June/Offred.

One thing that stands out for me is that the Republic of Gilead (the fictional dystopic society that has replaced the USA) is supposed to be a theonomic (divine-law) state that stands on biblical principles and laws. The result of this, however, is the spectre of a country that is in fact so terribly unethical and oppressive that it could very well be described simply as "evil" because it condones and actively performs things such as systemic rape, flagrant disrespect of various human rights, murderous suppression of dissidents, random killings and so on and so forth.

Gilead and the Bible
I walked away from Season 2 just flabbergasted at how the Republic of Gilead (and all what it stands for) really reflects badly on the kind of entity the Bible is. This leads me also to ask the very troubling question: what type of person or group does the Bible, when taken and read in a serious yet very misguided way, actually produce? Is the Bible, as the Christian tradition claims, the words (or "the Word”) of God? Hmmm… Didn’t Jesus say, “By their fruits you shall know them” (Mt 7:20)? Or is the Bible just, on the whole, a product of a very malignantly ethnocentric and savagely primitive level of culture that has to be transcended and corrected by the advances that have happened in human history?

Gilead and “Pro-Life”?
Another disturbing aspect of the story is that the Republic of Gilead (i.e., the elites in power therein) exhibits an obsessive concern for the production of "precious" new life (in the form of babies - hence, the creation of the class of "handmaids") but systemically tramples on and destroys life in other areas because of its hypocritical disregard for life (taken in a more holistic sense) and the quality of life of many of its people, as well as the rights of many in its realm. Talk about a warped tunnel-vision or fixation! This aspect reminds me a great deal of some unbalanced attitudes of some Catholic pro-life elements.

A quote I saw on FB from Barbara Brown Taylor (priest, theologian, professor) eloquently summarizes my strong feelings after my viewing:
"Jesus was not killed by atheism and anarchy. He was brought down by law and order allied with religion-which is always a deadly mix. Beware those who claim to know the mind of God and are prepared to use force, if necessary, to make others conform. Beware those who cannot tell God's will - from their own."

The Theme of Hybridity in "Aquaman" and "The Legend of Mowgli"

     I saw a few noteworthy references to the promise and power of hybridity in two films I saw recently. First, there was Aquaman. My daughter and I really enjoyed this movie and its telling of the origins and growth of Aquaman as a hero. I was particularly struck with the prominence of the theme of hybridity. Arthur Curry (Aquaman) is constantly called a "half-breed". There is a constant tension between "land" and "sea." He is not accepted in Atlantis and particularly by his brother, Orm, because he is a "half-breed mongrel." But only when Arthur learns to accept, embrace and live in two worlds is the harmony achieved. Only then does his hero's journey go into full throttle.

Some particularly noteworthy quotes that touch on this theme:

Mera: [speaking to Aquaman] You think you’re unworthy to lead because you have two different worlds. That is exactly why you are worthy.
[Queen Atlanna speaks to baby Arthur]
Queen Atlanna: You could unite our worlds one day.
Queen Atlanna (to her son Orm): You have been misguided. There are not two worlds;  the sea and the land are one!

Mera tells Arthur: Atlantis has always had a king. Now it needs something more.

Arthur: “What could be greater than a king?  

Mera: A hero.  A king fights for his nation.  A hero fights for everyone.

***

The Legend of Mowgli also has a significant message about hybridity.

Mowgli is raised by wolves after his family is killed by Sheer Khan, the tiger. However, since he is not a real wolf but a man-cub, he cannot run as fast as the wolves. More significantly, he is always torn between his "different" status in the pack although his mother tells him that he is not a freak but "special."

He eventually makes peace in some measure with his hybrid identity as "neither wolf not man" and in that hybrid capacity, he is able to secure peace for the jungle.

My Thoughts on 'Wonder Woman' (the movie): Hero Journeys

(Original piece written on June 17, 2017)

My thoughts on the movie Wonder Woman starring Gal Gadot.

My daughter and I went to see Wonder Woman today June 17th (2017) as a Father's Day weekend daddy-daughter date. We both agreed that it was an awesome film.

Some of my reasons: First of all, almost all the elements of the hero's journey (Joseph Campbell, Diane Pearson) could be observed clearly in the film. Particularly poignant for me was the farewell scene between Diana's mother and her when she leaves the island. Diana is convinced that she has a mission to fulfill. Her mother holds her back out of fear for Diana's safety and that she may never come back. Despite that, the lure of the hero's journey eventually makes Diana leave her mother and her island. 

On that occasion, her mother says, 
"You have been my greatest love. Today you become my greatest sorrow. Be careful, Diana. They do not deserve you."

Of course, along the journey Diana grows and matures in stages from a very naïve girl to a more mature superhero who now knows what one can and ought to do, what the limitations are and what the most important things in life are.

I was particularly impressed at the anthropology that was expressed here and there in the movie particularly by WW and was clearly seen in the contrast between Ares, the god of war, and Diana. Ares's view of humankind was very negative: humans are just so messed up because they are filled with hate and rancor that they would just ultimately destroy themselves by mutual fighting and war.

As she matured, Diana, on the other hand, comes to know both the lights and shadows present in humans: Yes, there are lots of shadows in humans - hate, war, mutual destruction, etc. 

However,  there are also lights - that is, humans have the touching and powerful capabilities for self-transcendence and love as well. This Diana experienced through her relationship with Steve in the movie and how he sacrificed himself to save others. That was, therefore,  the basis for her to commit herself to continue to help human beings to choose love, to choose the light (and not darkness) in order to save themselves and make this world a better place.

In this way, Diana redefines the role of the superhero: The superhero isn't really the one who saves humanity. The superhero is just there to help others choose the right path - the path of love, because humans have that innate capacity already present in themselves (Imago Dei, the Buddha nature)! And so, in the end, it is humans themselves who can save themselves by choosing the right path.