Knit Together With Red Thread

For me, this is a piece of art.  My blind Mother knit this. Since her blindness settled in for good, she has not been able to complete a single knitting project.  It's been five or six years now. She took up knitting again 10 months ago but she has not successfully knitted more than three rows.  Her fingers would feel some small hole or mistake and she would rip it all out and re cast to begin over.  She could not sit and speak with you without picking up her needles and a few minutes later unraveling what she had done.  It was as if her own thoughts were unraveling. Her days were unwinding.  Her life was becoming a big knot. Knitting  symbolized her current life. 

I have been taking care of my mother for almost a month  marching steadily towards decline, ill health, and all kinds of trials and tribulations that make her blindness in comparison seem a small and trite thing. I have been pushing her to finish more than three rows and it was with great ceremony that last night we cast off this knitting.   This piece has much symbolism for me. Sure, there are holes.  At places, it is inside out.  It grows. It has many flaws.  Isn't this true of us all? I know it is of me.  But this is knit by my mother and so am I,  knit together with her hands and all her hopes. 

After I took a photo of this and told her I was about to share it with my scattered brothers in Asia, she lifted her head away from my voice and asked, "Do you have any thicker yarn in brighter colors?"

We cast a new piece tonight.

A Quick Bite

Li Li was very busy taking care of her Ah Ma.  Granny was blind and bedridden so all she could afford was a quick bite.

A Visit to Reconsider

Lee Yu Ming had been working in the big city for several years when word reached her that her mother was weak and cried out to see her daughter every night.  Reluctantly she rushed home, pulling her only son out of school. It would be her duty to step in and take over the care of her  mother and the management of her old courtyards. As soon as Yu-Ming stepped over the threshold the same confidence that had driven her from it doors ten years ago now flooded back. It dawned on her in that moment that she had only been a mediocre business woman while in the city and that her son had not thrived as she had imagined he would. Some small glimmer of hope came over her.

Dao's Daughter

Dao's daughter had many dreams for her future.  First, all cabbages needed to be cleaned and wrapped for market.  Then her brother's bicycle needed to be repaired. Finally, she must help her mother clean the Farang's house.  After that she might dream about school.

Washing Up The New Year

After Dao was certain that the family she now worked for had departed for their long journey home, the newly hired maid sighed with relief, happy to be alone in the house once again. She looked forward to the long and sunny days ahead where she would wash all the linens and clean up after the Blue Moon New Year. By the time her mistress returned, it would be time for the Chinese Lunar New Year. Dao wondered how many new years a family needed.

Blue Moon Over Pong Yaeng

Happy New Year!

Red Lanterns

It rained during Jia Li's wedding.  But her old uncle told her this was a good omen and that her married life would be lucky.  Her mother, certainly hoped this was true.


~posting from Chiang Mai where the newly weds have joined us. They are radiant.

My Daughter Weds

My daughter Leigh and her honey Scott the night before they wed. 

We are sending off our best wishes.

Koh Samui, Thailand

Dec. 19, 2009

My dear friends,

I have been so busy for the last few weeks getting ready for my daughter's wedding.  Friends and Family from all over the world have assembled here in Thailand to celebrate her marriage to Scott Powrie.  Today we are lounging around lazily and beginning to share photos.  My two sister in laws provided some of these. Tomorrow we head north to Chiang Mai where I hope to get my hands into some plaster and paint quickly.

                             Jeanne-ming

Gods and Generals At The Door

Li Li thought she had very good fortune to work at a residence where mighty gods and legendary generals stood at attention guarding her courtyard.  Even though they were painted on red paper and and then glued on with yesterday's left over rice paste, she felt protected.  She felt safe, even from Merchant Huang, who had made his intentions for her quite obvious.

A Full Moon and A Red Thread

Dear Friends,
I fear I concluded the story of my boy with the red ball too abruptly. My last night in Pong Yaeng came quickly and I was in a hurry to notify my family of a discovery.

Red Ball III

The boy, Little Red, traded in his ball for a broom. His ball had been recycled many times transforming itself into a helmet, then a bucket, a slingshot and finally a bicycle's tire patch. It was the eye shaped patch, the unmistakable color of a faded red rubber ball, glued to the back tire of his mother's bicycle, that quickened my heart and made me realise that I had hired his mother to be my parttime house keeper.

~my last night in Pong Yaeng

The Red Ball II

A Giant Leap Forward

When Little Qui stepped over the threshold of her new home she had no idea what a grand adventure she had begun.


Red Ball II
~ I saw him! I was at the bicycle shop across the street from the Primary school when it let out at 2:45. I feared I might not recognize him. But in the time it took to blink, There he was. You cannot miss him. But I must continue first....

The Red Ball I

Shiao Lu Buys Rice

Granny sent Shiao Lu to the market to buy rice. She gave him four kwai and told him there was no extra for a red bean icy.



~~Dear Fiends,
I am posting from Northern Thailand where I have a second home. Tonight I went to the Post Office for dinner. In our town the Post Master also runs a small restaurant and bar to the side of the stamp counter. Thus, his establishment is called, The Post Bar. As is my habit each time I come here, I stop to see Kuhn Aong and to pick up any mail that has come for me. There has never been a letter, not one in three years, but it is an excuse to say hello and to catch up on what is happening in town. He is also witness to a relationship I have with a small boy in this village. No one knows much about him as he is most likely the child of an undocumented Burmese refugee. There are a large number here, but he also may be from the hill tribes of Hmong and Karen. No one knows.

She Grows Paprika

This painting has no story and yet many tales. It isn't finished. I returned to my home in Northern Thailand two days ago and was pleased to find this on my easel. I started it a year ago and completely forgot about it. It is of a girl who lives across the valley. She carries her brother on her back to and from the fields where she and her mother tend Paprika plants. I have watched this trio for three years now and have many stories about their comings and goings. I watch them from my studio. They cannot see me.

~~from the hills of Pong Yaeng, Mae Rim, Chiang Mai~~~Northern Thailand

Going Home

Deng Zi Mei was pleased she had sold everyone of her Granny’s cabbages. Her last one went to Lao Bao for dumplings.

~~Dear Ones,
I have been in Zhong Shan and Hong Kong this past week working. While in China, it is hard for me to blog and this trip, the weather was freezing cold and seemed more so because in Southern China the buildings aren't heated. I woke up in the morning and could see my breath while still in bed!

Tonight though, I am in Taiwan. As soon as I step off the plane my pores fill up with the musty humidity of home mixed with a tinge of sesame oil. It is the aroma of home(some would call it stinky) but to me it is the most wonderful smell.
After a good bowl of Taiwan Noodles, I powered up to see what you have all been up to. Tonight I travel on to Thailand.

Jeanne-ming

Shiao Li and Bao Bao

Bao Bao, the youngest of all the Wu children, loved his Ah Yi more than anyone in the world. In fact he adored Shiao Li. This feeling, he described to his wife many years later, was more urgent than love. He went on to declare that the years he had spent tied to his nanny's back were the happiest of his whole life.


~posting from Taiwan. Sigh. Home again.

Su Ling Sits Still

When Mr. Ma arrived for his appointment with the Han’s of Tai Nan in order to finalize the purchase of their 50 hectors of terraced land, he could not help but notice the surprising presence of their youngest daughter. She sat very still next to her father and this made Mr. Ma feel uneasy. He thought Miss Han might lurch faster than a grasshopper to stop her father from reaching for his chop.

A Late Night Return

A Late Night Return

It was only at major festivals that the Huang’s baby was brought home to join his family. Otherwise he lived with his Ah Ma. After The Autumn Festival, his elder brother’s usual chore was to take Bao Bao back to Granny.


~from New York. Returning home tonight. My husband Peter's Mother, Satia Hayes passed away yesterday at the good age of 95. She has returned home.

Clear Direction

Mei Mei had been waiting in the bamboo grove at the end of the lane for some time. She was waiting for a good omen, hoping that the way the bamboo leaves fell at her feet would indicate to her how she would begin her trip. All she needed was some clear direction.

~from New York

Evening

Ah Ma had a terrible time staying awake past dinner time.



~for QQ

A Quiet Chat

A Quiet Chat

Jade and Moon had a quiet chat over tea. They talked about calligraphy and growing vegetables. It seems they also had a few things to say about their daughters.

Warriors of Exceeding Joy

Warriors of Exceeding Joy

~I have been quite busy since I returned from China and have had little time for "quiet chats" myself. I had a show that opened Saturday night at the OPEN DOOR Gallery and have been consumed with getting all my Wu Fung Road portraits ready in time. This show was for my dear friend Shaista who bravely fights, but with Exceeding Joy.

Fly Home

Miss Bao had been here and there and everywhere. She was glad to be back from her long trip and to see that Exceeding Joy was waiting to welcome her home.

~From Whidbey Island

A Late Night Song

After everyone in the household had used up all the hot water for baths and gone to bed, it was finally Ah Hwa's chance to do laundry. Perhaps it was the sound of water that drew Exceeding Joy, now a free bird, to stop by for a visit.

"So, what are you doing here?" The old servant inquired.

~from Hong Kong's Lamma Island

Returning Home

Ah Ying had many important things on her mind as she herded her flock from Third Uncle’s pond. She could not remember if she had tethered up the water buffalo earlier this morning or if she had fed the chickens at dawn. She was confused about the chilies she had laid out in the courtyard and still was not clear if she was suppose to take her brother to Granny Chen's or go to the market. She was not sure how she would manage all her chores.

~from Zhong Shan, China