| From Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance:
"What I would like to do is use the time that is coming now to talk about some things that have come to mind. We're in such a hurry most of the time we never get much chance to talk. The result is a kind of endless day-to-day shallowness, a monotony that leaves a person wondering years later where all the time went and sorry that it's all gone. Now that we do have some time, and know it, I would like to use the time to talk in some depth about things that seem important."
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| This is one of the jewels in Cavafy's poetic crown, or at least one of a handful of his best known poems. It is No 32 in the canon.
32. ITHAKA
If, like Odysseus, you try to get home to Ithaka,
be lucky in your journey - let it be a long one
packed with fascination.
Don't be aghast at giants or fear the one-eyed man
or the angry sea-god:
these are only fables.
Your mind exalted,
your spirit and body purified through thought,
you need not witness these monsters
unless you carry them with you
locked in imagination.
This wonderful Ithacan journey -
pray it may be long
full of happy summer mornings
when you enter new harbours never seen before
tense with excitement, your heart thudding heavily.
Do not omit to visit those trading stations
set up by peripatetic Phoenicians
who in their wanderings to fabulous regions
amass the most beautiful pearl and coral
heaped up with amber and ebony
in dark shops redolent with sensuous perfumes.
Do not forget to study at great Egyptian
centres of learning, to extend your wisdom
by the words of the wise.
Your destination, Ithaka, keep always in mind:
that's where you're heading; that's your purpose.
But better that your journey is not hurried
(Ithaka is always waiting)
better if it takes you years to get there;
better if you're old when you reach the island
enriched beyond expectation with experience
- then Ithaka, your goal, on coming home
will not disappoint you.
It was for this you wandered,
for this you came.
Having seen so many wonders,
you accept her: this is your home, your island.
You come with full hands; and you were not fooled,
wise with experience, into thinking
Ithaka other than she is. |
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| wow, you are something
i have loved you since yesterday
today i'm filled with certainty
that you will be here waiting for
tomorrow to see me
then we will be something
we will be clouds.
over ice water by hang mai and chau nguyen
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| there is an appeal to Vulcan thinking. use rationale to lessen the effects of irrational thinking. to understand fears, i would have to deconstruct the fear, so I can act.
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| Hi Xangers!
This summer I will be teaching in China through Manos Internacional.
Each year Manos Internacional holds an annual support campaign to maintain and expand our programs for children across the globe called Manos Dreams. This year’s campaign will run from March 15th to May 15th, 2009 with a goal of raising $6,000. Manos is completely volunteer-run, and all of our programs are free of charge to children worldwide.
Please help support Manos Dreams today. Your support of the Manos Dream Campaign will greatly help in our mission to unite the world through the sharing of cultures, ideas, and education.
If you would like to make your own contribution to Manos Dreams, you can click on this link: http://www.manosinternacional.org/asc2009.html
Thank you!
Dream big,
Chau |
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