Ordination

My month as a monk was amazing. I find it hard to put in words how much I enjoyed and learned while I was a monk. The best I can do is to say I have never been more comfortable with silence or inactivity than when I was a monk. I did not feel the need to have to do something.

Here are some pictures from my ordination ceremony. I have to thank P Nid and here family for doing so much for me in order to make this happen. I hope her family and my own receive all of the merit that they deserve. 

I will post more pictures soon.

I'm back in the states

Hey everyone I'm back in Sacramento. I will update my blog with monk pictures in the next couple of days. It feels great to be back home with family, friends and native English speakers!

First Night at the Temple

So I moved into the temple last night. I slept great. Living conditions at the temple are simple, but very more than enough. I will be very comfortable.

Today was my last day at school. The kids here are pretty amazing. This morning at the assembly the kids took up a collection of money to help pay for my ordination. They wanted to make merit and to be involved. I really appreciated this gesture.

I won't be able to write again until April. I'll talk to everyone in April and I'll be heading back to Sacramento on April 9th.

It's getting closer...

I'm getting more and more nervous about becoming a monk. I'm excited, but nervous. Sometimes I think, "What am I doing? A monk? Really?" But just a few nerves. I've been practicing my chanting and am getting all of the words right now, but I have to work on controlling my breathing. It is amazing to watch how long a monk can chant while only taking one breathe. Everything else is going well. I will try to update my blog at least one more time before I ordain. When I become a monk no more computers.

25 Things I've Learned in Thailand

I've been inspired by a person from my cohort in graduate school, Sabrina, to make a list of 25 Things I've Learned (or have spent a considerable amount of time thinking about) in Thailand. She recently sent me a 25 Random Things List.

1. I love Thai food. I eat Thai food every meal. I can count the number of non-Thai meals I've had on one hand since I've been in Tak.

2. Traveling is underrated. If it weren't more people would travel.

3. Giving is better than receiving. I feel more fulfilled when I am helping someone else as opposed to receiving. Simply, good karma. I am so glad I am going to be entering the helping profession. But...

4. Helping yourself is just as if not more important than helping others. I am learning and will continue to learn how to take care of myself. The better I take care of myself the greater capacity I have to help people.

5. I am more satisfied or content when I read instead of watching movies or television

6. Smell the roses. I have made a concerted effort to slow down and try to enjoy life instead of rushing from one thing to another. I have only begun to understand how to slow down and the quality of my life has already increased.

7. No matter how far I go or where I go the same problems and insecurities will follow me because I myself create the negative thoughts not my environment. Therefore...

8. I believe the answers to the greatest challenges in my life thus far are all found within myself.

9. Happiness and contentment are not the same. Happiness is fleeting. It comes and goes like the weather. Contentment can last much longer. I believe I always new this, but never spent enough time thinking about it to make a distinction. When I make decisions based contentment instead of immediate happiness I am more content and as a result happier. I am finding instant gratification is overrated.

10. From now on whenever I get to a new country I am going to plan on being overcharged the first few days I am there. I am going to give myself a grace period. When I first got to Thailand I paid $25 for a two-hour taxi ride. That is roughly 850 baht. For 850 baht I could take a bus from one end of Thailand to other and still have enough left for a hotel room.

11. The first step in personal growth for me has been awareness. Being aware of my feelings, the consequences of my actions, and the consequences of my thoughts. The second step...

12. Forgiveness. Forgiveness centers on the person who want to forgive not the person receiving the forgiveness. If I want to forgive someone that takes place inside of me not in the external world.

13. I spend too much time thinking about things (like a DSLR camera) that do not lead me any closer to contentment or my Quality World (Reality Therapy from my theories class in graduate school. One of the most useful classes I've ever taken).

14. My two years of graduate school has had a profound affect on my life. Going to graduate school was one of the best decisions of my life. I will always treasure those last two years at Cal Poly. I am very grateful for the opportunity that I was afforded.

15. Self-reflection takes practice. Was tired of self-reflection in graduated school. I felt that every class I was writing a paper or doing a project about myself. I am glad I was forced to do this. I was forced to start acknowledging things that I did not like about myself. I believe people usually get what they really want one way or another. Therefore, my life is a reflection of my wants and desires. All of it. The good and the bad.

16. Come to Thailand during the "cool" season. The hot season is awful.

17. Dr. Kane was right! Keeping a journal is very satisfying.

18. Materialism is not the way for contentment. I've tried hard not to acquire too much stuff while I am here and I find myself not wanting as much.

19. I want to move back to Sacramento. I have not been able to say this since I left for college eight years ago. I have always said someday I want to move back to Sacramento. I want to go back to Sacramento and discover the place I grew up as an adult. I want to coach high school baseball with my brother. I want to go backpacking with my Dad. I want to watch chick flicks with my Mom.

20. Chanting is hard. Buddhist chanting is in the Pali language. Pali is similar to Sanskrit. I have to memorize three pages of chanting for the ordination ceremony and it is a challenge.

21. The bus system in Thailand is amazing! Tak to Chiangmai, 4 1/2 hour bus ride, 175 baht! That is $5.50. If buses in the states were this cheap, more people would take the bus.

22. I don't sleep well in Thailand. Too many dogs, roosters and other animals at all times throughout the night.

23. I have learned to enjoy time spent alone a lot more since I've been in Thailand. But...

24. At times I really wish I could be sharing this experience with someone else, particularly everyday life in Tak.

25. I will keep traveling to new places abroad and domestically. I am going to make a point to go camping/backpacking at new places and explore the states including California. I want to drive up Highway 1 to Oregon and Washington. As soon as I get a job I will begin to save money to travel. Traveling will be an important part of my life.

Recommened Reading

I've been reading a lot sense I've been in Thailand. I've decided to put together a book list in no particular order. I have enjoyed reading all of these books. I hope you will too.

1. Illusions & Johnathan Livingston Seagull both by Richard Bach
2. 3 Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
3. Mutant Message Down Under by Marlo Morgan
4. Man Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl
5. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
6. Tales of a Female Nomad by Rita Golden Gelman
7. The Sociopath Next Door by Martha Stout
8. In a Sunburned Country, A Short History of Nearly Everything, Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe and Shakespeare by Bill Bryson
9. Born On a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet
10. The Valkyries, The Devil and Miss Prym, The Alchemist by Paul Coelho

I can't believe I almost forgot this book:

11. THE LAST LECTURE by Randy Pausch

Definitely read this book or watch it on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo
Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon. He died of cancer and this is literally his last lecture. The video is a hour long and it is well worth watching. Just make sure you have some tissue withing reaching distance.

Last Weekend in Chiangmai

This last weekend I went to Chiangmai with P Nid, the head of the English department that has really helped me out in Thailand, and we stayed with two of her former students Eve and Jane. I am amazed by how close many Thai teachers and their students are. They make a concerted effort to stay intouch with one another. Maybe this is due to the fact that Tak is such a small community. I don't think I've gone anywhere with P Nid (or her sisters P Dang and P Noon) in Tak and not ran into one of her former students. I need help with my cell phone, there is a former student, and we go to Chiangmai with stay with former students.

I had a great time hanging out with Eve and Jane. They both just graduated from Chiangmai University and work in the tourism industry. Eve sells trekking packages and other adventure trips and Jane is a travel agent at a guesthouse. They have two small dogs, but I forgot to take a picture of them.

We did a lot of shopping. We went to the Saturday Walking Street and the Sunday Walking Street Market. The Sunday Walking Street is one of the most famous in Thailand. It is about four miles of stuff. The Saturday Walking Street is similar, but about half of the size. What really sets the walking streets apart from other markets is how enjoyable it is to stroll through the market. A person doesn’t stroll at the Night Bizarre in Chiangmai and the big markets in Bangkok. People are shoulder to shoulder haggling over prices, carrying their purchases and watching their wallet all at the same time.

On Saturday evening we went to the Royal Flora. The Royal Flora was built in 2006 in honor of the King. The grand opening was during the Flower Festival that year. Representatives of many countries and over 3.7 million people showed up for the event. The Royal Flora "Park" is interesting. About twenty or thirty nations from around the world has a garden. There is a Japanese rock garden, a Holland garden, etc.

I had some of the best Thai food I've ever had at a little garden restaurant. This is panang curry with a fried egg. It was amazing. Much spicier and bolder flavors than the Thai food in America.

This was a well earned rest after a long day of shopping. I actually fell asleep in the car on the way to the Sunday Night Walking Street.

Yoga

I started taking yoga classes about two months ago, but I've only really committed myself the past three weeks. Before I was going once or twice a week. The past three weeks I've been going four times a week and really trying to focus on breathing and listening to my body. In other words I really started to do yoga. I am trying not to think of yoga as only a workout. I put it in a category closer to meditation.

Yesterday at yoga was a breakthrough for me. I was able to put heels down during the downward dog pose. Actually, that wasn't the real breakthrough it was only the result. The real breakthrough was me being able to control my breathing and relaxing into the pose. Since I was able to relax my muscles I was able to put my heals on the ground.

By the way, one of the best parts of yoga is that it is dirt cheap. ONLY 5 baht a session. That is roughly 15 cents. There are three ladies that rotate throughout the week that lead the yoga sessions. The group meets at a local temple. The money is given to the temple and it is a way for the yoga teachers to make merit.

My favorite teacher is a lady of whose nickname is Apple. She is one of P Nid's former students. Apple has a very soothing voice and it is easy to feel relax and get into the "yoga mindset." The yoga group is very kind. Apple's Mom even made me a meditation pad to help me during yoga, great tool for newbies like me, and so I could use it next month while being a monk. Apple's Mom made it from small cloth scrapes she gets from a local sempstress. Making me a meditation pillow was a very kind gester and I feel very loved.

My Favorite Class

I love my M.3 / 4 girls. M.3 is the same age as high school freshmen. I am one of their homeroom advisers. All that means is that during school wide events, when class is canceled I usually go hangout with them. They may not be able to speak English very well, but they are really good kids. These girls made me this shirt. It definitely made my day!

Teaching

It's been awhile sense I've mentioned teaching. I really do spend a lot of my time teaching.

Teaching is getting better. I'm learning how to manage a class much better. How to get the students attention, most of the time. I two biggest factors I've learned to help me in the classroom are realistic expectations and games. I have a much better feel for my classes. I can design the content of the lesson at the level of each class. Games are so important. The more games, useful games the incorporate primarily listening and speaking are key. Writing is also important, but the students do enough writing and grammar in their other English classes. Many of the older students know more about grammar than I do. I couldn't tell you what a reflexive pronoun is or the what the perfect present tense is. I avoid grammar and stick to what I know.

Teaching is getting easier and more enjoyable. I'm glad I only have a month more of teaching, but I'm confident the last month will be a lot smoother than the first.

My Free Time in Tak

My life in Tak is pretty simple. I don't have TV (actually I have a TV, but get 5 Thai stations, not that entertaining) and I don't have internet at my place. The are tons of internet cafes, but I usually only use the internet when I'm at school. There's a small fitness center that I go to everyday. I spend most of my free time reading or walking around the town. I walk up and down the streets and say hi to people. I speak the little Thai I know and locals speak the little English they know. When I tell people about what I do it sounds really boring, but I'm not bored. I'm less bored here then I was back in the states. I usually travel on the weekends and go see a new town. I've settled into a nice routine. Which is a good thing, but not entirely. It was exciting when everything from getting laundry done to buying food seemed like an adventure.

Last Weekend: Lopburi and Ayutthaya

This last weekend I went to Lopburi (the monkey city) and Ayutthaya, which is the old capital of Thailand. I was able to see Patrick and Vanessa on this trip. I met them while I was in Phuket when I first got to Thailand. These are by far two of my favorite people I've met sense I've been here. They both really easy going and fun to spend time with. I always find myself having great conversations with them about life and nothing all at the same time.

Patrick is a talented photographer and he is the one who gets the credit for these pictures. We went to the historical park in Ayutthaya and saw the ruins. I am done seeing ruins. If I happen to see some that's great, but they are all starting to look the same to me.

At the park we came across a family of stray dogs. There were 8 or 9 puppies that were adorable. I wish I they weren't so dirty so I would have felt alright to play with them. I can't bring myself to petting street animals. I feel like I can see the ticks and flees on them. On the other hand Vanessa was playing with the dogs and she didn't have any problems with the bugs.



Everyone should checkout Patrick's blog: http://patricknobles.blogspot.com/. He has some more pictures about this last weekend and that tells a better story than I do. Hope you enjoy.

Climbing in Lopburi

This last weekend I went climbing in Lopburi with my friends Vanessa and Patrick (See pictures of them on previous post). This is my second time rock climbing and it was just as amazing as the first. Climbing is such an intense physical challenge. I love it, the challenge part at least. I could imagine climbing Half-Dome or anything like that, but I get such a rush from finishing a climb.

The climbs were much harder this time compared to my first time. I definitely had to cheat to finish one climb, use a metal loop as a foot hold and I did grab a branch, but I finished the climb.

Repelling is by far scary than climbing. That first step is the hardest.

A well deserved rest.

English Camp at Taksin National Park

I never thought I'd say this, but I got really cold in Thailand. This last weekend we had English Camp at Taksin National Park, which is a little more than an hour west of Tak. I was told it would be cold, but I thought the Thai teachers were over-exaggerating. I shivered the whole night. I wore everything I brought, but the wind was going right through my jacket.

The camp was only 36 hours, but it felt a lot longer. The camp went really well. I was the MC (master of ceremony) and sang and danced more then I really wanted to. It took so much energy for me to get up and entertain the students. I had a really good time. The students and all of the teachers had a good time too. I'm really happy that it is over and that it is only once a year.

New Years in Chiangmai

I had a great time in Chiangmai for New Years. There was a huge group of "farang" (foreign) teachers meeting in Chiangmai, 15 or more. I have only seen a few of them sense Phuket. I felt like I was seeing old childhood friends even though I have know them for less than three months. I had a great New Years, but my battery in my camera died and I don't have many pictures that night. All I know is by the end of the night I had a too much Thai whiskey and had a great conversation with a French couple at a roof top bar.

So I played in my first softball game. I swore I would never play softball in the states. Eric, Kelly, Porsh and I were driving through Chianmai University and we came across a softball tournement. My friend Eric and I were so excited. This was the first time I've seen anything close to baseball. I asked one of the teams that was eating lunch if Eric and I could play catch and the next thing I knew they wanted us to play a game the next day. I was so happy to hold a bat and throw a ball. The team we played on was a team for a university from Lompburi. It is a city about 8 hours south of Chiangmai. The team was already good without the two farangs and we beat the other team 15-0. I did well. I hit a homerun. I had such a good time. This was one of the highlights of Thailand. I'm going to saying remember that time I played softball in Thailand...

The team asked us play the rest of the tournement, but Eric and I didn't think it was right sense there were guys sitting on the bench because we were playing. The rest of the trip was great, but I had such a good time playing softball. Just putting on a glove and playing catch was a thrill.


This is a picture of new years dinner. It was at one of the most beautiful resturants I've ever been to. Eric is sitting next to me, then Aaron (not sure, Eric and Kelly's friend from their town), Porsh and Kelly. The prawns were amazing. The prawns were more like lobsters intead of prawns. This dish and the green curry were the highlights of the meal. The last picture is me on at a mountain temple in Lampun.