Hi families and friends, significant others and random readers!
Sorry for the delay with the blog. Each moment in McLeod Ganj ends up being too precious to find the time to sit in an internet café. I post from Delhi but wrote from McLeod (for the most past):
Our group arrived in McLeod Ganj, home of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government over a week ago, and our days have flown by. Our time here has been truly amazing. McLeod Ganj is a haven of comfort to tourists, with the many western cafés and little shops, clean sidewalks and smiling faces, and an ocean of opportunity in volunteer and service, education and personal growth.
As a group, we’ve watched documentaries on Tibet, been blessed by the 17thKarmapa, and had a personal discussion with Lhasang Tsering, an extremely active and passionate Tibetan man who has dedicated his life to a hope that Tibet might one day be free. One day we went to see the Lion Man Show, a few us for a second time. This Lion Man gave us a brief history of where he comes from (Tibet) danced to traditional Tibetan Music, then turned on some electric-type music… we were swung around, Ben’s shirt was pulled up over his head, halfway off, Mariah was on Lion Man’s shoulders, Simone took lead in some Salsa, Kat laughed– really hard, Cobie complimented his dance quite nicely and I encourage her to take some of this home with her, and I had my face licked. Jake, Erin and Ole watched from the window, giggling at what they had created.(They went to Lion Man’s previous show days earlier, and talked us into going. “You’ll see,” they told us. Oh we saw.)
As individuals, we might have visited the Tibetan Museum , Tsuglagkhang (the Dalai Lama’s temple), attended a public discussion on human rights, gone on a hike, volunteered to speak English with Tibetan refugees and/or ex-political prisoners, met some locals/friends, and/or simply explored the lovely McLeod Ganj.
As for our sleeping arrangements! Each one of us stayed with a different Tibetan family. And I PROMISE, each one of us loves our families, so much. To give you an idea of what it’s like, I wake up with my family at around 6:40 in the morning and watch their morning routine. “Good morning!” my Pala (father) always says. My Ama (mother) first cooks breakfast for my Pala, who shortly after leaves for temple (sometimes I go) and from there, opens up shop.
(Bri Hornsby’s Pala once left at 1:00 in the morning for temple.
“Why?” she asked.
“For temple.”
“Yea, but why?”
“For temple!”
There are some things Westerners may never understand.)
While my Pala gets ready, he softly chants mantras with his mala (Buddhist prayer beads) in his hand. If you’re lucky, you can hear the monks walking around outside, wherever they are going, chanting not so softly. And if you’re really really lucky, you might just have the use the bathroom, which calls for going outside. The morning light is just coming from behind the mountains. And if you’re really really really lucky, a monk may be passing your door as you step outside. Back in the apartment, my sister entertains me with Tibetan singing/dancing, books, drawings, laughs and kisses. My Ama will serve me lemon tea and my sister warm milk, and shortly thereafter I may be given a Tibetan pancake (over an inch thick, best pancake I ever had), Tibetan bread (closest thing I can compare it to is a very large English muffin) with butter, and/or friend eggs. I watch as my Ama gets her daughter ready, chants her mantra and lights the incense below the large picture of the Dalai Lama. When my sister’s hair is perfected and lunch packed, my Ama walks my sister to school, and then from their joins my Pala at the shop, where she sells jewelery, sweaters and the leggings she hand knits during the day. (she also talks to the local women. Work is a big social scene!) We, the foreign students/tourists/adopted-children, have the day ahead of us to do as we like, and then return home for dinner with our families.
Attn: You are now on a side note. Let me explain this ‘chanting the mantra’ a little better. My Tibetan family will chant their mantras throughout their morning routine. Pala may be chanting and once he sees I’m awake he will say “Good morning!” ask me how I slept, have a little conversation, the go back to his mantra. While poking his daughter to wake up, he is chanting the mantra. My Pala thinks about rights for Tibet and a long life for the Dalai Lama, as well as happiness for everyone/everything. The most common mantra is ” Om mani padme hum.” From what a 27 year old local boy told me, this is basically sending out ‘good life” to all living beings… meaning every living “thing” on this earth. (It means MUCH more than ‘good life’. And from what books and internet tells me, it sends out compassion to the world, every living being. I am just a tourist, so I really have no idea the true meaning of this mantra.
Each day in McLeod Ganj can provide lessons for your life, whether it lie in the Tibetan Peoples’ never ending struggle for freedom– which includes the purpose and true meaning of a nonviolent approach against oppression, about the ‘self,’ or maybe to take it easy. As the locals tell us, ”slowly, slowly.”
As for our internships in McLeod Ganj:
Ms. Briana Hornsby, Ms. Mariah and I were in a Tibetan cooking internship. We have made Tibetan soups, breads, MOMOS and a farmers breakfast. Delicious and delicious.
Jake, Simone, Erin and Ole wake up nice and early to attend their Tibetan massage lessons. They will be certificated by the end, so expect a nice long massage (if you’re one of the lucky ones) from Erin or Jake come December 9th. (They’ll need a day of rest.) And for Simone and Ole’s massage recievers, you’ll have to wait a bit longer. Anticipation always makes it that much greater, though. (Unless you’re not expecting anything!) And I hear their massage teacher is hilarious!!! (*HAPPY BIRTHDAY MRS. ERIN!!!)
Cobie is learning Thangka Painting. She actually just finished it and it is beautiful. (Google Thangka Paintings- they are alllllll over McLeod Ganj and decorate the Monastery’s walls)
Ben should be playing guitar…but…well… he got a wee bit sick… He’s well now! You can relax Mrs. Ben. He’s eating (the most delicious) Yak Cheese Cake everyday now and loving every moment. (*HAPPY BIRTHDAY BENJAMIN!!!!)
And finally, Kat is learning the Tibetan language, and I hear from her instructor that she is good… “very good.”
In conclusion, my words give neither McLeod Ganj nor the Tibetan People justice. I encourage readers to do some background information on the Tibetan/Chinese conflict. One documentary our group just watched is Tibet Undercover. Before your research, ask yourself what freedom is. Does one have the right to be free? Who decides who is free? And should a person hold that right?
Don’t forget, we are all just people.
“Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom.”
– Martin Luther King Junior
“I don’t believe that nonviolence has lost its relevance and just remained a concept. It’s we who have chosen not to utilize it.”
-Martin Luther King III
Come on ya’ll. Let’s defend our people and work towards a nonviolent future. Tibet is the next chapter.
See ya’ll in a few days! (I MISS EL GROUPO ALREADY!!!)
Bri Rensington (just kidding family, Ranieri) &&&&&&AND Shanti