Early mornings in June are delightful moments to be standing outside. The sun rises directly following 6:30 am. This time of day is just perfect for a walk because the air is filled with the music of the birds and the wind is gentle. It is even possible to walk in the rain this time of the morning.
I enjoy first walking down to the lake's edge to watch the sunrise. I walk for about an hour either before or after I do 20 minutes of Qi Gong meditative exercise which balances emotions, calming thoughts.
I have been walking with two women who live in the neighborhood. One went north for a couple of weeks and the other is gone for the summer. So, walking alone, I broke the routine walk route that we had been taking and ventured to the other side of town to the other lake, Lake Stella. There, I ran into an elderly Chinese couple doing exercises. The first day we simply greeted each other. The second day I joined them for exercise. Their gestures let me know I was welcome to do so. We met for exercise for three weeks. They speak no English.
Figuring out how to have a conversation took many days. My smartphone translator was primitive. We tried sign language, but charades is not our strong suit. Finally, I typed out questions on my computer translator and brought the printed copy for them to read. They brought back the answers the next day - written in Chinese. Long story short, I asked every Oriental person I ran into if they were literate in Mandarin. (I was able to discern from what they said that they were from Hunan Province).
A salesperson at a store in Palatka, twenty-five miles up the road, told me she teaches Chinese to children and agreed to translate via email and eventually on the phone. The Oriental restaurant in Crescent City is managed by the couple's grandson With these two sources, I learned names, length of stay, origins, ages, grandchildredn (!!), etc.
When I worked at a training school in a village in Kenya, I talked with the local women by our hand gestures. I also became aware of strong telepathic images which facilitated our ability to communicate. Remembering this, I was mindful of the images evoked when Mr. or Mrs. Xiang talked to me. I am sure I got the gist of most of it. This, I would like to point out, is an ancient ability recovered and am grateful to be able to access.
Each day we arrived at the pavilion by the lake for an hour of physical exercise. Mr. and Mrs. Xiang are also, like myself, age appropriately agile. They had a tape recorder and cassette and I'm pretty sure the exercise is a form of Tai Chi and/or Qi Gong. The cardiac/aerobic is gentle and no muscle, joint, or pressure point is ignored. The hour passed gently like a flowing brook. The name on the cassette box is
Ahma and the rest is in Chinese. I have not been able to find anything just like it. Each day they would reveal more about the healing qualities of one or other exercise in the routine.
On the morning we were finally able to communicate with our translator on the phone, I learned that was their last day of exercise and would be heading back to Las Vegas where they lived with one of their children and family. We shared our gratitude for having met and sharing this exercise time. As we parted they said we would meet again next year this time. We smiled as friends, and waved as we walkedt on in separate directions.
Now I am walking alone again in the morning before or after twenty minutes of Qi Gong. Doing exercises each morning with this lovely couple was a very important event of this summer in Crescent City. The best part was the venture into communicating with each other.
I am deeply addressed by the difficulty in communication among cultures. To follow through requires a willingness and a willing to communicate in order to become acquainted as well as to really respect each other. Effort is required and lots of patience. I could have just showed up every day. We could have smiled and exercised and waved good-bye. I could have avoided any other interaction and life would have gone on. But, life is so much richer by these deeper connections.
I can not help but wonder how in the world the many cultures and perspectives on this planet are ever going to really achieve any understanding, respect, tolerance and empathy in order to peacefully co-exist.
What does our future require of us?
