Mrs. Ma's Houseboy

                                                      Ma Tai Tai's houseboy was very clever,
                                                      but it was clear to everyone, except Mrs. Ma, 
                                                      that her kitchen cleaner was capable of so much more.


                                                     ~for Ranjan

Shiao Jen Decides

Little Jen visited her NiNi, a days journey by foot from home.  Her granny kept chickens and lived alone.  On the morning Shiao Jen was to return home, she thought long and hard and decided to stay and live with Granny until time to go to high school.

~these days I am in Chiang Mai, Thailand trying to relax and paint.  It is raining hard here in Mae Rim.  I have been traveling all over Asia since the beginning of September for work, and I am not done.  I return to Japan next week.  Hopefully I will get back to my mountain top retreat soon to finish what I have started.

Ah Hwa’s Helping Hand

Ah Hwa had a bad time.  She had endured a period of several years where she had dropped out of school in order to help her family on the farm. She had nearly given up on any kind of future when news came of a scholarship.  “I will miss you little ducklings.”

Ben and Leigh, my children.

~posting from Sydney Australia

Shaken

Following the great Chayi earthquake of 1963, the Chen family arrived on Wu Fung Road to help with the rebuilding of Uncle Tu’ s house which had been shaken and tossed like tiles on a  mahjong table.
Mr. Chen was an expert in tile work.  This migrant family were in for many surprises when they took up residence in a small store room at the back of Uncle’s ancestral courtyards while they repaired the roof.  None of Uncle Tu’s  unusual  habits delighted them as much as the daily release of Exceeding Joy, a much beloved and love sick song bird.

Lyrics To Fly By

No one knew, except for her close neighbor Mrs. Hao, that Miss T’ang wrote poetry deep into the night.  Mrs. Hao could hear the faintest musical murmur drifting to her open window.  She would stand straining to hear the beautifully crafted phrases and her heart soared each and every time she heard her young neighbor reading her poetry aloud to herself.  

Frequently, Hao Tai Tai stole across the alley bearing a pot of Jasmine tea.  “Dear friend,” she would whisper, as she let herself in to T’ang Shiao Jye’s study, “would you mind to read me that last poem again; the one about flying free?”

For Shaista~ a poet who makes my heart soar.
Fly to her poetry here Lupus In Flight

A Cure

When An Ni Da Jie saw the return of her flock before the sun had set, she wondered, “Wa! I wonder  if anything is wrong? I hope my chickens are not sick!" 


 She took this same care with her garden.  If any vegetable looked unhealthy or if any her her livestock seemed faint, she administered a  handy cure.  

A Red Lantern

Miss Wu thought it lucky that her master’s home had not flooded during the great Typhoon Gloria. There were many small inconveniences that she dared not to complain of in light of the many neighbors who suffered from leaky roofs, drenched courtyards and saturated fields.  In her case, her employer’s home was plunged into darkness when the electricity failed. It seemed a small matter to everyone but to Shaio Wu who had to make her nightly rounds to prepare the bedrooms with a single lantern.  As quickly as it takes a mighty wind to pass overhead, her master  discovered that his heart was flooded with a new raging passion for Miss Wu.

Brother and Sister

Jia Li was twelve years older than her little brother. They adored each other and were a great comfort to their Mother.


~My son graduated from high school this past week and his sister Leigh was home to celebrate.  All is well in my household when she comes home.

Reconsidering

Third Brother had a terrible arguement with his older brother over  feeding Granny's chickens. Afterwards, he considered running away from home.

But the smell of Granny's dumplings made him reconsider.

A Quick Peck

Little Li felt sorry that as soon as he had gobbled down his last bite of rice, his granny's old song bird showed up hungry.

A Sweet Thought

On his way to the Double Lucky Candy Store, Di Di came across Granny Huang’s chicks far from home. Little Brother wondered if escorting them safely back to his grandmother’s courtyard would soften her heart towards him and make her feel inclined to give him some  more pocket money. Lately his orneriness had hardened her heart and Di Di thought this helpful sweet gesture might make her feelings toward him melt .

Monks in the Sun

This post, as well as the last one, Sister's in Law are not  new work.  Before I came to the US to live some 15 years ago, I lived in Thailand. I never go anywhere, even now, without my little traveling studio-essential supplies for capturing what I see. I started this when I lived in Chiang Mai because I couldn't walk five feet and not see something I felt desperate to paint.    I would set up my portable studio at a tea stall on the side of the road and paint whatever passed my view.

I had a boy friend in my Taiwanese youth who broke up with me and  became a monk. So the sight of young monks anywhere in Asia fills me with odd feelings. I could not resist these young novices when they passed by. . And I wondered what lovers they were forsaking.

The Painting below-Sisters In Law, was painted when I was 16 living in the Pescadore Islands, part of a Taiwanese archipelago where I worked one summer in a clinic treating Leprosy. After a long day carrying boxes of meds to outlying villages on remote islands, I painted these two ladies waiting for the daily ferry that would take us all back to the main town of Ma Kung.

Sisters In Law

Li Mama and Mrs. Wu were sister's in law.  They were also best friends and shared many secrets. Both often confided to other relatives and friends that had they not had each other when first marrying onto their new  families, they would have died of broken hearts. 

~heading home

On The Threshold of Something New

Mei En

Beautiful Grace sat in the doorway of the Door of Hope Girl’s Home waiting for something to happen. She had made a careful list of all the wonderful small blessings that might follow her to this threshold. By night fall, when she was called to come in for dinner, Mei En was convinced that none of her dreams would hatch, at least not tonight.  But tomorrow was a new day. 

Ah Bei's Little Sister

Ah Bei had a problem. He loved his little sister very much. They were very similar in all the ways that counted. They shared all their secrets.  They both loved birds, brush painting, and high mountain tea. They look at everything between people and situations with the same point of view.  But what he couldn’t overlook any longer was the staggering amount of money his little sister owed him. 
“Wah!” the old man thought to himself, “She has wiped me out.”

 For several months it has been almost impossible for me to get into my studio and work. I have been traveling and working, so there has been hardly a moment for myself.   But tonight, I couldn’t help but throw myself against my boards, plaster and tools. I sought refuge in my studio.   This painting, started and carved tonight  is for my friends.

Friends I have never met but whom I love.

Shaista, my brave little sister who battles Lupus. I listened to her on the radio tonight and can’t stop crying. Her voice is so beautiful .  She is as articulate in sound as her poetry. Thinking about her has unleashed a torrent of emotion.

Maia, the passionate mother of Qui Qui and artist extraordinaire whose art and dolls sit on my window sill.  Qui, about to undergo medical tests…...  I hold my breath.  Not for Q, but Maia
.

Yoli-my steady friend, protector, and treasure hunter.   She constantly offers words of encouragement and just when I think I am alone, she reminds me I am not.  She is mother to three beautiful warriors. The header of my blog is Yoli and her babies.

Shokoofeh  -the young, talented and the totally FREE spirit living  in Iran..I lay awake in bed and worry about her every night. There is nothing Simple  about her.

Alliot, the brilliant designer and photographer who is mother to the talented Iza living in Hong Kong. Alliot's journal of her daughter  remind me how quickly my own grew up. Her writings of the competitive nature of being Chinese brings me to my knees.  I always feel Alliot and Iza's heart beat when I pass through their airport and lanes. ….so close, yet we haven’t seen each other...yet.

These women, unseen, are my friends and I would sacrifice much  if they asked me to.  Tonight I started this painting, two women sitting together chatting as friends.  Sharing secrets.

For all of you dear girls, tonight I am yours and you are here with me.

Thank you

A Great Leap Forward

Miss Bao wore her red envelope slippers the night she returned home for New Years. She had been on a long and fruitful trip. "Maybe," she thought, "This will be the year of my Great Leap Forward."

Ten Thousand Lamps

There had been little that Wan Liao’s mother had given the boy from the day he had been born. He had no talents that anyone would notice.  He seemed to have no physical attributes that would set him apart.  He was not all that clever either. His mother took all her desperate dreams for a better life out on the boy, for when she had a chance to join the Hsin Chu Opera Troupe, she vanished without notice when he was five.

But there was one thing she did for her son; one gift she gave him that he was forever grateful for; his name.  Ten Thousand Lamps is a splendid name for a boy who would eventually become a monk.  When he arrived at the temple atop Chi Shan Yuan for his induction, the Abbot read Wan Liao’s name aloud and then paused  to look over the lad closely.  

“Ten Thousand Lamps,” he said with conviction,  “You will shed light on challenging questions and illuminate the path ahead for many pilgrims. I believe you will live up to your name.”

What I have Been Waiting For

This is what I have been waiting for.  The birth of my nephew, the son of my youngest brother

Timothy and his wife Mariko.

 

Painting Names

Da Jie knew that any day now, her mother would give birth to a baby and this was a thought that filled her with Exceeding Joy. To have a sibling, fourteen years younger and most assuredly a girl, would be the one movement in the universe that would finally put right all that had so far gone wrong in Big Sister’s short teen life.

She practiced writing her soon to arrive  little sister’s name every night. She used reams of paper perfecting the the way the letters would lay above and below the line. With each stroke  her bond to this baby became as close as ink stained on paper.

Da Jie is now an old woman and the hoped for baby sister turned out to be a boy.  But this brother became like a son to her. She would later say that his birth saved her life. After he was born, she had purpose and a place to go.   She carried him around on her hip until he could run and he slept tucked under her arm until she went  to university.  

“So it is fitting”,Big Sister thought to herself, “That tonight I am again practicing calligraphy, trying out names that have yet to be spoken for a boy yet to be born.”

 This boy is the son of Da Jie’s little  brother.   He will arrive in the world at any hour now and she will never be the same. He, like his sister, will  bring exceeding joy to their old Gu Ma.  The name she practiced over and over was  Exceeding  Heaven.

~I am waiting in Shang Hai for news from Hong Kong and will fly with my reams of paper as soon as I am called.  The Vegetable Cleaning Brush purchased in Hang Zhou on New Year's eve, worked  perfectly.  A new modern kind of calligraphy! 

In Search of a Paint Brush

Mrs. Hau was in Hang Zhou desperately trying to buy a paint brush. It was late and New Year’s eve, and most of the cities traditional shops seemed to be closed. She walked endlessly looking for a simple Wen Ju Dian selling school supplies.

Exhausted with throbbing legs and an aching back, the visiting Mrs. Hau stopped at the New Goods Shop near the famous Western Lake district to inquire one last time if anyone knew of an open stationary store.  The shop keeper was in the back eating dinner with her parents and two little dogs, but she jumped up wiping  her mouth on her sleeve  and cheerfully came out to assist this strange customer who clearly was not going to buy vegetables this late at night.

“No, I don’t think there are any shops that sell stationary supplies or things  like that nearby.” She answered after a thoughtful pause.  “What do you need exactly?”

“I need a brush to paint with.” Mrs. Hau sighed.

“Mmm, I am sorry I don’t sell supplies like that but if you give me a minute and I will find something for you that may help.”

She rustled about and came back with a brush for cleaning vegetables and Mrs. Hau instantly liked the look of it. It was well made with a handsome wooden handle and a leather cord to hang it.  It had hard straight golden hog hair bristles. It was a quality vegetable cleaning brush the likes of which Mrs. Hau had never seen before. It would not work for painting any great works of art, but for touching up a spot of paint here and there it could work just fine.

 “It's beautiful. I'll take it". Mrs. Hau declared as she picked out half  a Yuan from her coin purse. "What’s your name?” 

“Yo Jen, and yours?”

“You are very pretty Yo Jen and speak excellent English.” Mrs. Hau told her truthfully. “And you have been so friendly and helpful. This brush will work splendidly.  Thank you.”

“Mei wen ti.  Please come again.  You are always welcome in my New Goods Shop. I like to stock things for my customers that are high quality but handmade,”  She said  pointing to the artfully arranged vegetables, cutlery and rice bowls.  Mrs. Hau  admired all the little treasures within, then clutching her  brush, she stepped out to the street zipping up her coat against the wind which had suddenly come up off the lake. She looked back one more time at New Goods Shop of the Westlake District in Hang Zhou to make sure she would remember how to get back to it someday.

“Hau Tai Tai!  Yo Jen called out as her customer was about to step into a taxi.  “I forgot to wish you a Happy New Year!”

“And may you have a Happy New Year too!” Mrs. Hau chirped back.

~And so, in case you haven’t guessed, I am posting from Hang Zhou, here to set up the very first  store for Bunnies By The Bay in China. The brush will work perfectly to touch up the knicks and dings sustained on our first day of business.

Jeanne-ming

Dim Sum and Tea

"A lot can change in an evening", thought Miss Han as she looked over at her lover. In one long dinner she had laid out on the table all her thoughts, desires, hopes and dreams, like hot steamy baskets of assorted dim sum to be sampled.  Her parents carefully tasted each juicy offering from her heart and offered advice and comments over each dumpling. In some cases the wrapper was too hard, and with some too soft, but always the filling was mouth-watering  delicious.

 But it was when her lover finally joined them that the meal suddenly turned spicy. Despite all her fears and doubts, everyone could see how Miss Han glowed when her lover took his seat at her family's table and when he too bravely offered all his thoughts, desires, hopes and dreams in front of her parents as if laying out an assortment of teas.

It was Miss Han’s Mother who saw clearly the feast that would lie before her daughter in the future.“My daughter,” she thought to herself as she poured tea, “is like a spicy dim sum dumpling; one bite and it bursts with flavor.  But this boy reminds me of these bitter shriveled tea leaves, swelling when you pour hot water over them, unfurling a gentle warm flavor, a comforting and soothing drink.”

A lot can change in one meal.

Miss Han's Lover

Miss Han sat cool as a cucumber all through her brother’s wedding feast never letting on that her heart raged like hot and sour soup.  She was waiting for her lover to arrive and present himself and yes, even claim her.  But by the time the table had been cleared and fruits passed around to all the guests, Miss Han did not need to bite into chilly pears to know her boyfriend had cold feet and there would be an empty chair at this dinner and perhaps, all dinners to come.

Love Come, At Last

 Da Jie had been troubled for some time.  Her Uncle Tu’s, beloved song bird, Exceeding Joy had flown away a year ago and it seemed that sightings of this free and cheeky bird had been far and few between. It had not flown so far away, say like to the southern provinces, as to be completely out of mind, but far enough away that the daily routine of cheerfulness was silent and this had left a sore spot deep in the heart of Da Jei’s  un-tuned heart. It was not until a brief alighting at her window sill made her realize that if Exceeding Joy made even a small peep; just one tiny sound to remind her that love was still fluttering around her, it was enough to make her rise again.

~My month long trip to Asia ends tonight.  I am on my way home to my waiting family who suffer much with my long weeks away.  I missed Thanksgiving, but I am thankful for them and free countries who allow you to blog.  Most of my time away, I have been unable to access Wu Fung Road and the visitors who join me there.  Some of you have tracked me down no matter where I am.  Thank you.  You have no idea how much that helps.

It has been a hard trip.  Mostly it has been mind numbing and constant work , but along the way,  at critical moments and always when I least expect it,  Exceeding Joy  would alight on my window sill too.

~For Tamara, my sister and champion

Traveling South

Ah Tzen had always admired the judgments of her husband, but recently she had begun to have her doubts.  Perhaps it was Fung’s lack of planning.  When they arrived in the south to begin their new jobs,  it was only then she  discovered that he had not thought about a nanny for Little Kite.

~and so I too, head South, home to Taiwan.