============================================================== To reach ALL SJD members, please send to sjd@satjadham.net ... Do NOT include any other addresses when sending to the list... Include as LITTLE of the original messages as possible........ Message sent by: Anola Boutah *** Announcement: *** Please send your member fee to Victor if you haven't done so. ============================================================== Hi all, Just dropping off my January Posting. Hope everyone is doing well. Take care! ----------------------------------------------------------------- HOMEBOUND I come from a far and mysterious place that is unknown to most people. This humble and almost unreachable place bears my childhood belongings and memories. Unfortunately, I had to leave this place at a tender age. Over the extended horizons, I often wonder where the two sides of the world intersect because I want to catch the slightest glimpse of its gentle beauty and friendly people. Although I left thirteen years ago, I've never forgotten this land. The farther I am from this place, the fonder I am of it. Even though faded, there are myriad images that help me relive many of the happiest moments in my life. I didn't realize that when I left Laos, I also left behind a piece of myself. Often in my dreams I would visit and revisit this familiar playground in the back on my house. This playground is not the same as the ones you see in America. It is surrounded by tamarind, mango, and goya trees. I would spend countless of hours in the afternoon with my friends at this wonderland. We would climb up those trees for sweet and sour fruits. I was always scared of height so I've never had the nerve to climb on the way to the top of the tree as my friends. But it was just as fun staying on the ground and waiting to catch the fruits from my friends, who easily mastered the art of picking fruits. Fortunately, there were not any serious cases of accident from falling off those quite large trees. Beside the tree climbing, there were a variety of games we would play depending on the day and how many people we had at the moment. I remembered how easily it was to lose track of time playing under those trees. It was only when my mom called for dinner that I knew the day was over. It was this magical playground that gave me the freedom to be a child. Unfortunately, I've not seen this playground since I left. I don't know whether or not this playground is still there. All I know is that it firmly and permanently holds a special place in my heart. After all these years, I still feel a strong attachment to it in dreams and reality. Even though I am living in a different world and at different time, my feelings toward this place have not and will never changed. The older I am the more I think about this place. I only regret that I didn't keep in touch with my childhood friends. The last time I heard they were already married with children. Sometimes I wonder if they take their children to this same playground. I promised myself that one day I will quietly return to this playground, for it was part of my past and had made me who I am today, and will remain with me through the end of time. I really missed this place I called my home. -------END------- ! ! ! ! ! _ ***************************************************************** Visit SatJaDham Homepage at: http://www.satjadham.org (or .net) *****************************************************************