Eli Cohen -- Written first week in February
Playful Monks (A song written in and inspired by Songtsen Library)
Sunlight ribbons break the mood and it never felt so good,
While the dogs outside still search for truth and you don’t know if they should.
And golden angels sit sovereignly while the pigeons all take wing,
And the holy men who walk around say, “living ain’t the whole thing.
And just when you think that the world can’t offer any more fruit,
Comes a friendly conversation where childhood dreams take root.
But it’s not hard to show that the world isn’t what it used to be.
The sinners have no vision while the blind still can’t see,
And it’s getting hard to stay positive with all that’s going on,
But the playful monks that run about show not all is truly wrong.
It’s hard to feel brave when it seems that you’re alone,
Surrounded by strangers, isolated from your home.
But the brightly colored hand of friendship can span across the seven seas,
Saying: “take me into your heart, you’ve got a friend now and it’s me.”
And just when you think that the world can’t offer any more fruit,
Comes a friendly conversation where childhood dreams take root.
But it’s not hard to show that the world isn’t what it used to be.
The joyless have no sight while the blind still can’t see,
And it’s getting hard to stay positive with all that’s going on,
But the playful monks that run around show there’s always room for song.
And life is young.
There is still so much to impart,
But bind your tongue,
‘Cause truth flows straight from the mind to the heart,
And with a little help,
It won’t feel quite so hard to start.
And just when you think that the world can’t offer you any more,
Comes a holy conversation where your dreams have the floor.
But it’s not hard to show that the world ain’t what it used to be.
The selfish have eyes for no one else while the blind still can’t see,
And it’s getting hard to stay positive with all that’s going wrong,
But the playful monks that run around show it won’t be bad for long.
And the pressures of society can stifle you like a glove,
But the wise monks’ meditations show there is so much room for love.
And even when I’m loneliest, I can still feel loved.
Exploring different parts of India throughout my trip has been so unforgettable and life changing. Trekking through the Sham region from one village to the next, taking an overly crowed bus into Leh or driving over the highest motor able pass in the world with ten people crammed in a car fit for six. Where-ever this trip takes me it always comes back to Secmol, before this trip my only home was a house tucked away in the trees of Vermont, now I have two. Days at Secmol seem to fly by, playing soccer and volley ball, drinking tea and eating meals with a group of smiling people, having fights with shaving cream left from a former volunteer, dancing for hours after dinner and playing games or having a relaxing camp fire down by the Indus. Each day something worth writing about happens, but writing seems useless because I feel no matter how long I spend describing it or how many pictures I take it doesn’t come close to the experience. After a couple weeks, Secmol engrained its self into me and now I will forever hold and remember my second home tucked away in the mountains of Ladakh.
-Lydia Wood
Yesterday we drove through painted mountains. The stones were lavender and burgundy. There were sage green deposits of shale and ochre shards were interspersed amongst dove grey rocks. We descended from Kardung-la, the highest motorable pass in the world, by way of winding road marked along the sides by whitewashed stone markers. I saw crevices and precipices and the multi colored silt had trickled in and around them. The rocks were all the colors of Ladakh. The burgundy ones were the robes worn by the kind eyed, elders. The yellow-tan was the rough coats of the wild dogs. The lavender and blue grey were the distant mountains. And the soft green was the shabby carpet of new grass growing in the valley.
We hit the bottom of Nubra valley where the Shyok River was meandering in a riverbed that looked too wide. The suede sand spread from its water’s out and out, until the wind whipped it into dunes. In some places, where the river deepened or an outcropping of rock threw shade, the water turned the most penetrating shade of blue. It was a liquid mix of lapis and turquoise. That blue.
And we sped by, leaving behind a long plume of that suede sand. We got to the village and the road narrowed. Mauve colored seabuck thorn squealed against our tinted windows. I saw a dark skinned child with jet hair who smiled back out of luminous green eyes.
There we were, in front of an iron gate. And Tashi sprang out and opened it and we pulled in. I got out and stumbled on my dozing legs and drew in my first breath of Nubra. Mmmm. I sucked in the shadow of the mountains and the billowing streams and the pale, high mists. --Libbie Pattison
Trekking in The Sham Region (early March):
There’s something very disconcerting about hiking through these expansive valleys and then coming across a road, or having your meditative trance jolted by the bright yellow blast of a backhoe perched behind some boulder. I try not to be phased by these interruptions. I focus on my pace: an equation of stride and breath. An intense calm drifts in after a day of walking. It’s introspective, a collection of swirling thoughts accumulated over the course of the experience met with the bluntness of being exhausted. -- Breton Schwarzenbach
Man time sure does fly when your having fun, it seems like just yesterday we were all sitting in the Burlington air port trying to get every ones name down, now look at us. We only have about a month and a half left before we are back in Burlington greeting our families and saying our good bys to one another.
I feel really conflicted right now, part of me wants to get home and see my friends and family. But, at the same time I know I’m going to miss SECMOL. No amount of regular food is going to cure that. If I could make one wish it would be to bring my family to hear and have the best of both worlds. I know I will come back hear some day. ---Matthew Harry
Through out this trip I have been writing about my deep, serious thoughts. It has been quite easy given the location and the amazing opportunities we’ve had. Today is the day I’m mixing it up. It is April 2, 2009, the day after April Fools day.
I was expecting the holiday to be celebrated but not like it was. Wow do those Ladakhis get into it… Their first prank of the day was before breakfast. All of the VISmas woke up, did our morning routines and then we all went downstairs to go to breakfast. We reached the bottom of the stairs and all of our shoes were missing. At the time I didn’t even think about it. It is not at all unusual to find your shoes missing. We were walking to the dinning hall when I realized no one else had his or her shoes. The VISpas were either barefoot or wearing someone else’s shoes. Prank one- not too successful.
The second prank was at breakfast. The SECMOLpas removed the supporting boards from a bench. All that was left was the cushion and the fame. I couldn’t tell the difference so I sat down and went straight through to the floor. Everyone, including myself was laughing hysterically. I must have been the fifth person to fall for it. As I settled myself on a different bench (with support underneath) I watched about ten more people fall for the prank. Every time, it was still just as amusing to the Ladakhis as it had been the first time. Prank two- very successful.
At about the time of the third prank, the VISpas began thinking of our own jokes. (The third was a bucket full of water placed right in front of the lower dinning hall door. Who ever walked through would step right down into it. I’m not sure if this was very successful…) After a few moments of thinking, Morgan, Lui and I decided to act. We went over to the boys’ dormitory and snuck into one of the rooms. We stole about five mattresses and a few pairs of sneakers. The sneakers were hung from the ceiling in the upper dinning hall and the mattresses were stored in an extra room. I felt like a ninja, running quietly from room to room. It was exhilarating. The Ladakhi boys were so confused. They had no idea who had taken their beds. –Pretty successful.
Our second joke involved only a bucket of water. We placed the bucket above a door in hopes that it would fall on someone. Unfortunately, the bucket filled with water was seen before it could fall on anyone. Bummer. –Not successful in the least.
There were also large amounts of shaving cream being smushed into faces through out the afternoon. Funny stuff.
And that was my first Ladakhi April Fools day. --Devan
Time in Ladakh:
I haven’t been keeping track of the passage of time and now that I think about it, the trip is going at lightning speed. Our trip trough the Burlington airport, to Newark, and the Holiday Inn, and then the 14 hours flight to Delhi seem so long ago, and yet it seems as though I haven’t spent much time in India at all. It seems hard to imagine that we have less than two months left in Ladakh. I hate that. I guess I understand why people say that no one comes to Ladakh only once. I wonder if all the VISpas will return to Ladakh at some point in their lives. I get the feeling that I will be back here at least one more time after we leave.
Right now, I just don’t want to leave. We are sitting in the kitchen of our host family in Nubra. We are crowded around a piping hot stove drinking tea and eating biscuits. I love it here. The little boy is playing the Big Amy. Everyone is smiling; everyone seems content and happy to be where they are.
As much as I love it here at the homestays I find myself homesick for SECMOL every now and then. SECMOL has truly become our home. IT is where we can all rest and relax and be ourselves. It’s where we all eat and laugh and hang out with the Ladakhis. It will be strange to have to leave home in a few months. I don’t even want to think about leaving this amazing place and the incredible people we have become so close with. Focus on now. Live in the moment, and love every moment possible. This sort of thing doesn’t come around everyday.
February, 25, 09
Today I decided to come back to my rock. As the sun gets warmer the protective layer of ice begins to melt away leaving naked, unstable rocks for me to walk across. The vanishing sheet of winter reveals the rushing water between the rocks and leaves behind a layer of slick mud that coats the already algae covered path. The rocks are embedded in a squishy brown soil that is covered with a few inches of icy water. As I jump from rock to rock they moan as they shift in the sand under the pressure of my feet. Out of fear of falling in I hop from one to the other, but only after carefully testing each one. When my heel slips in and my socks absorb the ice water, I wonder “why do I go through all of this for one silly rock?” but as I reach the large stable rock and I feel the sun gently kiss my pale skin, I allow the wind to carry my worries away. I relax and think “this is why” this is where I can be myself. Where there is no judgement from others and I can just think. Even after a horrible day, one minute at my rock will drown all of my thoughts until my mind is left blank except for the sounds of the rushing river rapids. --Jessika
March 13, 2009
Today was a beautiful, perfect Friday the 13th. Sunny and calm. I want to take a page and just say how much I appriciate, not only the SECMOL kids but also the VIS kids. If I could say one thing about everyone without giving away my secret identity I would. Instead I will talk about them as the group/team that they are. Tonight was really great. Trekking down to the fire pit and making fire roasted chipati and listening to the guitar playing, sometimes just taking in a deep breath and looking up at the stars. I felt really relaxed and carefree, as cliché as that sounds. I felt a sense of forever in the hour spent huddled around the smoke and stars. -Lui
March 18, 2009
Ladakh is great, wonderful, spectacular, magical, perfect as ever. As the warm weather fills each day, I find myself in a totally un-Buddhist way becoming more and more attached to this place.
Last night I was talking to Norbu about how Laura is leaving soon. I asked him if they were friends and if he was going to be sad when she left. He said they are friends but he shrugged when I asked if he’d be sad. Then I asked if he will be sad when we leave. I consider myself pretty close to Norbu; not only is his English so good that he understands American humor, he also genuinely wants to learn so I have had lots of good long conversations with him, during which I thought we have gotten really close. So his reaction of a shrug and a laugh took me aback. “Maybe we won’t meet again in this life, but next generation, we will.” I couldn’t believe that this boy, the most Americanized of all the Ladakhis, holds these pure Buddhist beliefs in everyday life. I don’t know why, but that moment hit me really hard. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it. --Morgan
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