Uncle Iroh in 'The Avatar: the Last Airbender' and His Deep Wisdom

One of my favourite animation shows of all time is the Avatar: The Last Airbender series. It tells of an "Avatar" who can bend (manipulate) the four elements of water, earth, fire, and air and who is the only one that can maintain balance in this world. I like it so much because not only is it very entertaining, it also illustrates in a marvelous way the perennial Hero's Journey while imparting very deep life lessons in the process. If you haven't seen it, check it out!

In the series itself there are many awesomely portrayed characters but one of my favourites is the character of Uncle (General) Iroh, a plump, jolly old man who accompanies his nephew, Zuko as the
latter searches for the Avatar. Besides, Iroh is a man of profound moral integrity and deep wisdom.

My daughter and I were re-watching the Avatar series sometime ago and in a scene in which Uncle Iroh was giving Zuko words of deep wisdom, I exclaimed, "Wow, Uncle Iroh is so deep!"

To that, she replied, "He's like you, Daddy."

At another time I said: I like the Sokka and Bo-Lin characters because they're jolly. My daughter then said: You're like Sokka and Bo-Lin, combined with Uncle Iroh.

Come to think of that, that's the second time our daughter identified me with Uncle Iroh! Wow ... upon reflection I realize that this is just a touching and wonderful compliment and affirmation from my own daughter! I'm a proud father to be compared to Avatar's Uncle Iroh!


Check out also this site which contains many wisdom sayings from Uncle/General Iroh
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ2ue2zA2ck

Here are some that I found really meaningful for me:

1. Aang to Iroh: Toph says you give pretty good advice and great tea. Iroh: the key to both is proper aging.
2. *[My favourite Uncle iroh teaching!] (Talking with Zuko his nephew) It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If you take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale. Understanding others, the other elements (air, water, earth, fire), and the other nations will help you become whole.
3. Zuko: This city is like a prison. I don't want to make a life here. / Iroh: Life happens wherever you are, whether you make it or not.
4. Iroh to Aang: Perfection and power are overrated; I think you are very wise to choose happiness and love.
5. Iroh to person about to mug him: What are you doing? / Mugger: I'm mugging you. / Iroh: With that stance? / Mugger: What are you talking about? Just give me your money, old man! / Iroh: With a poor stance, you are unbalanced and you can easily be knocked over.
6. Iroh to Zuko: You must let go of your feelings of shame, if you want your anger to go away. / Zuko: But I'm not ashamed; I'm as proud as ever. / I: Prince Zuko, pride is not the opposite of shame but it's source. True humility is the only antidote to shame.
7. (to Zuko) I: You're fishing for an octopus, my nephew. You need a tightly-woven net or he will squeeze through the tiniest hole and escape.
8. Sharing tea with a fascinating stranger is one of life's true delights. 
9. The stomach is the source of energy in your body. It is called the sea of chi (ki 気). Only in my case it is more like a vast ocean.
10. Iroh: There is nothing wrong with a life of peace and prosperity. I suggest that you think about what it is that you want from life and why. Zuko: I want my destiny /  I: What that means is up to you.
11. Iroh (talking with Aang): Sometimes life is like this dark tunnel. You can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel. But if you just keep moving, you will come to a better place.

Stranger Things S3 - Hopper's Letter to El: What a Loving Dad Fears …

At the end of Stranger Things Season 3, we see that Eleven (“El”) is with Joyce’s family because Hopper, her adoptive father, is presumably dead (incinerated in the Russian-run facility). (OK, I strongly believe he’s not dead though…)  Earlier in the season, Hopper wrote a letter to El in order to express his concern that she is spending way too much time with Mike, her boyfriend, in an unwholesome, exclusive way but he never got to speak with her about the contents of that letter because he took it all out on Mike and sternly prohibited him from continuing his and El’s relationship. At the end of the season though, El finds that never-communicated letter from her dad and reads it.

This is what the letter said:

There's something I've been wanting to talk to you both about. I know this is a difficult conversation, but I care about you both very much. And I know that you care about each other very much, and that's why it's important that we set these boundaries moving forward so we can build an environment where we all feel comfortable, trusted, and open to sharing our feelings. 

Feelings.Feelings.Jesus. The truth is, for so long I'd forgotten what those even were. I've been stuck in one place. In a cave, you might say. A deep, dark cave. And then I left some Eggos out in the woods and you came into my life. For the first time in a long time, I started to feel things again. I started to feel happy. But lately, I guess I've been feeling distant from you. Like you're pulling away from me or something. I miss playing board games every night, making triple decker Eggo extravaganzas at sunrise, watching Westerns together before we doze off. 

But I know you're getting older, growing, changing. I guess, if I'm being really honest, that's what scares me. I don't want things to change. So I think maybe that's why I came in here, to try and make [us] stop that change. To turn back the clock. To make things go back to how they were. But I know that's naive. It's just not how life works. It's moving, always moving, whether you like it or not. And yeah, sometimes it's painful. Sometimes it's sad. And sometimes, it's surprising. Happy. So you know what? Keep on growing up kid. Don't let me stop you. Make mistakes, learn from 'em. When life hurts you, because it will, remember the hurt. The hurt is good. It means you're out of that cave. But, please, if you don't mind, for the sake of your poor old dad, keep the door open three inches.  

(Source: https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a28338013/stranger-things-hopper-eleven-letter-full-text/ )

Some of My Thoughts and Reflections

A Loving Father’s Fears … particularly, of Letting Go

This letter of Hopper to El touched me in a profound way. I’m asking myself why. I guess, it’s because over the last year and a half, our daughter KH seemed to have grown a lot—from a kid to a young woman!—(at least it seems) almost overnight! (Now I’m writing here from the perspective of a daddy who has a very close relationship with his only daughter … just like Hopper with El.) I can understandably relate a lot with Hopper’s sentiments in this letter. Up until now, KH (our daughter) has been our darling baby-girl, very close to us/to me; KH and I have spent a lot of time together: as a whole (small) family (with D my wife-her mom) to be sure, but we’ve also had so many very special exclusive daddy-daughter times, such as hiking, camping, watching movies, church, or even just talking in the car while going to or from school, etc. etc., things I (and hopefully she) will always savour and cherish all throughout life!

When D and I got married and we planned to have a child, I clearly wanted a daughter; D was more “neutral.” So when we did have a daughter, I was ecstatic since she was a wonderful answer to my prayers. Looking back at the eleven years we’ve spent together so far … I can only sigh in contentment and happiness – it’s really been a great first eleven years together as a family, and also as a daddy-daughter team!

But when I see her now growing rapidly into a young woman, I kind of feel that the time when she and I are inseparable (like up until now) might soon come to an end … because …well… that’s life. Your child has to move out into the big, wide world and not remain tied to her parents. And … as Hopper expressed it so eloquently in his letter, I’m scared … I dread it… Going back to the letter, Hopper says

But I know you're getting older, growing, changing. I guess, if I'm being really honest, that's what scares me. I don't want things to change. So I think maybe that's why I came in here, to try and make [us] stop that change. To turn back the clock. To make things go back to how they were. But I know that's naive. It's just not how life works. It's moving, always moving, whether you like it or not. And yeah, sometimes it's painful. Sometimes it's sad. And sometimes, it's surprising. Happy

Upon closer reflection, this fear I have as a dad is actually an infallible and clear sign of the profound love I have for my daughter and, as far as I can tell, the profound love she has for me. I don’t know what the near future will bring but I hope and pray that that love which binds us all together as a family stays intact and continue to flourish as KH moves on to become an adolescent and a grown-up …

Feelings, even hurt feelings: a Clear Sign of Life and Love

Hopper relates in the letter that, for a while, he could not even “feel” anything. Life had so hurt him that he became numb … in short, unfeeling. It’s said that the opposite of love is not hate; it’s apathy—that uncaring attitude which is a sure sign that you are no longer interested in something, that you’ve died to something … or someone…

Life is tough; it can hurt us in many ways. When we get hurt to such an extent that we lose all interest in life and cease to have any feeling for anything, then that’s really the end. As long as we feel something, even hurt or anger, then it’s a sign that we’re alive.

The last part of Hopper’s letter is a gem. He says, “remember the hurt” because, as I said above, it’s a sign that you’re alive, that you’re not insensitive and numb.

For some years now, I’ve been advocating the spirituality of “Savour & Cherish” as two very important traits of a way of life that puts an accent on living to the full the NOW of one’s life. SAVOUR! What? Anything and everything in life, be they good or bad. The good is to be savoured because, among other things, it will encourage us during the tough times in life. But the negative, annoying, dark and ugly things in life (such as hurt feelings) as well are also equally to be “savoured.” Why? Because they can teach us precious lessons that we will never learn if everything is good and smooth-sailing… And the rule in life I know is THERE IS NO GROWTH AND DEEPENING WITHOUT PAIN!

I also noted that Hopper’s letter gives us a rare glimpse into one man’s (male) inner feelings of vulnerability. We men usually have a lot of difficulty acknowledging and honouring our feelings. Women are generally better in this than us. But it is a necessary task in life, even for men. Our feelings teach us a lot about ourselves, about who are the important people in our lives, about life itself. Let’s not be afraid to work with our feelings! (That’s a note to myself more than anything!)

Those are the things I thought about when thinking about Hopper’s touching letter.

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.

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.

My Thoughts on ‘Solo – A Star Wars Story' - Imago Dei Allusion?

My daughter and I watched this movie recently before Father's Day. I think a daddy-daughter Father's Day date is fast becoming a tradition (I'm delighted!). We watched Wonder Woman last year, as my journal says. 

Good background story. It didn't impress me as "super awesome" though.

Things that stood out for me:

** Qira is the only one that knows who Han really is - that he is, deep within himself, a good guy. This ties in with the character of Padme knowing that "there is still good in him (in Anakin after he turns into Darth Vadar).”

Isn't that the Buddha-nature or the Imago Dei (Image of God in Gen 1:27)? "Buddha-nature", "Imago Dei" --- those are examples of religious jargon (language) that religions have used in history to convey a deep truth that, for example, Solo: A Star Wars Story conveys in more simple, easier-to-understand (for this generation) language. In the words of Qira

"I might be the only person who knows who you really are" (despite Han proclaiming that he's a "bad outlaw"). And then, as I remember, she whispers to someone later, "He's a good guy."

** We finally see how Han wins the Millennium Falcon from Lando Calrissan

** We finally know the origins of the deep friendship between Chewbacca and Han

Things that intrigued me:

What's with Darth Maul's reappearance?

What happens to Qira after?