As I walk toward the train station, I see the clock flash, 10:08 and then the thermometer tells me it is thirty-eight degrees. Whew...it's hot. But, there's a nice breeze blowing, and the sky is this magnificent color of blue. I don't think I've ever seen a color like this. Are the skies this blue in Toronto? I'm sure they probably are.....I just never took the time to notice before. It's nice to notice now.

It amazes me how many people are at the market. My town is so small, but it seems there is a never-ending supply of people. Each one picking out the perfect piece of fruit for this hot summer day. The shoppers all carry umbrella's to shield themselves from the strong sunrays. Elderly women sit in their corn-husk hats, selling their goods, and I know that when I return so many hours later they will still be there. They are there every day.

I wait for the train....

Ten thirty-one, right on time. I love riding the train. There are so many different people....although, now that I think about it, I'm the only foreigner today. I sit, and do the crossword, drink my coffee, watch the scenery go by. I know all the stops now. I have them memorized....thirteen from Hu-Kou to Taipei. One hour and eleven minutes, on a good day. The closer we get to the city, the more I forget that it's hot out, the air-conditioner must be on high, and I've actually got goosebumps.

Once I reach Taipei, I walk outside in the sun. In the air. Under the brilliant blue sky. I know people must think I'm crazy.... I have a smile on my face that I just can't seem to get rid of. Honestly, though, I'm not trying too hard. I head off in the right direction, a path I have walked a dozen times now. I am enticed by all the street vendors, and their products. Shirts, earrings, hats, incense, medallions.... a million things that I don't need, but can't seem to resist. But then I arrive.

Police Headquarters, and my final visa extension. My last one. It starts to hit me.... I'm leaving soon.

Posted by Kate at 11:35 AM |

Today is hot and I am sweaty. All the kids keep telling me it's hot, because apparently I haven't noticed. There isn't enough water in the world to quench my thirst. The trees aren't moving, even though I am willing them with all my might. The minutes won't go quickly enough for me.

I just want to be at home, in my air conditioned apartment, drinking water and eating mangoes. I want to be watching CSI, because lately I have been dreaming of dating Warrick......hmmmm....maybe I should start watching LL Cool J videos.

Posted by Kate at 6:29 AM |

Lija and I drag ourselves out of her coccoon. This is the name I have given to her most warm and comfortable bed. We grab a coffee, (Starbucks is everywhere) and we hit the road. I have no concept of direction in Japan. They drive on the left and I certainly can't read the signs. So I just relax. Lija and I laugh, and talk and laugh and not only is her company amazing, but the scenery is incredible. I ask where we are going, and I get nothing. No hints, no nothing... so I just stay relaxed. I don't actually care if we ever get anywhere. The sun is beating in the car and it feels like it could be an August afternoon, until you roll down the window. The thin layer of snow is quickly melting, but the air is still cold. The coldest I've felt since I left Canada a year ago, but it's nice.

Finally we arrive and before me stands the most incredible temple I've ever seen. I must say that Taiwan has gorgeous temples, but I've seen a kabillion of them. And although it's a shame, it's like anything good, after too much, it starts to lose it's wonder. This Japanese temple puts the wonder back in me.

Standing amidst these enormously tall and straight trees are all the small wooden structures. The bright clear blue sky providing the most breathtaking of backdrops. The smell of the sandalwood incense makes your whole body feel cleansed of everything. When you imagine anything Japanese in your head, this is what you are thinking about. The bonsai trees, the pointed roofs, the serenity, the tranquility.

This is the temple that people come to pray for babies, and the health of their babies. Here's the part that was the best for me.... not only do people come to ask for these things, but they are sure to come back to give thanks when they recieve them. If only all the world worked like that.

Lija pays a monk a hundred yen and she tells me to climb down the stairs. Is she joking? Climb down the stairs that lead into a dark cellar in a temple in Japan? Has this girl lost her mind? She laughs at me, at my cowardness, and tells me to climb. So I do. She stays right behind me, but I think mostly because I am hanging onto her for dear life. It is so dark. The kind of dark that your eyes just never adjust to. I close my eyes, open them, close them...no difference. It is black. The only thing I can do is feel the wall, and that guides me. I keep asking if someone is going to jump out and grab me. I guess I've done too many Haunted Houses in Niagara Falls. Lija keeps laughing, and telling me to pay attention to the wall. I do. I pay attention to the fact that it's the smoothest wood I've ever felt, that it seems to lead me before I even need to turn. I let go of Lija... and then I get it. It's not a trick, it's not a joke. It's just about you. About being in nothing, with only yourself, and trusting yourself enough to find your way through.

And then I climbed out.

Posted by Kate at 12:50 PM |

Imagination...once it is stretched it can never regain it's original form

That's the inscription on a card my Mom sent me. It's her way of telling me that, no matter what I decide to do about going to school, or not going to school, she loves me and supports my choices. And that made me cry.

It seems so silly that at 24 years old, I'd be crying about my Mom being okay with whatever I do, but it means a lot. Maybe because I spent my teenage years being an awful child, and doing things specifically to spite her and my Dad, but I want them to be proud of me. It makes making choices easier knowing that they aren't rooting for one choice or another. It makes asking for help easier. It makes making mistakes easier. It makes life easier knowing they are on my side.

I am so grateful for them. For their understanding, their forgiveness, their sacrifices, their unending love, their support, and their patience. Not only that, I am proud of them. I am inspired by them. I am inspired that they are willing to try, willing to risk making mistakes, to learn from them, to grow, and to change.

They amaze me every single day.

Posted by Kate at 2:59 PM |