Yak Attack

SS: Celebrate

What have you got to celebrate?

Thoughts on returning to China First off, I returned to China after a 17 month absence, and 19 months after being attacked by a Tibetan mastiff. I had many fears – can I handle this country and the ruggedness of where my heart wants to live? Will I be able to get clean water? What if the pain comes back? Am I ready to return? etc., etc. 

My fears dissipated very quickly, as I was warmly received by my local and foreign friends. Walking down the streets I saw many familiar places, and was reminded of the smells of Asia (some good and some not so good). The main center of town, Da Shi Zi, used to have a huge circle of cement above the street intersection. This was a great central place to meet people, and a well-known landmark. But after the Sichuan earthquake of May 2008, they took it down, said it was not earthquake proof. Now, they have torn up the center of town and are building an underground circle, so pedestrians won't obstruct traffic. A little inconvenient for now, but will be nice when it is finished.

I love to walk, and am so thankful that I can walk again. It was in November 2008 when I could only stand for 4 minutes before I had to sit because of the pain. Now I go walking through the streets every day, and last week walked for 3 hours! As I take my walk about, I am reminded...

… of how the children love to say “Hello” to foreigners. I love this!
… of Asian throat clearing, like no other place on earth.
… of forgotten words, proverbs and local sayings.
… of how I am so used to seeing black hair every day, and the comfort in that consistency.
… of how horn honking is to tell someone else that you are there, not as an emergency.
… of how much I have missed living in another culture.
… of how much I have missed my Tibetan family.
… of how much I have to be thankful for, and can celebrate today that I am back.

It is great to be back in China. What have you got to celebrate?

SS: Grateful

I have much to be grateful for: 18 months ago, I was attacked by a Tibetan mastiff. The Tibetan mastiff is a very large dog, the most dangerous and aggressive dog in the world. They are bred for loyalty, and trained to kill. While trying to escape the mastiff attack, I fell on concrete. My injuries were mis-diagnosed in China, and after 2 months of pain and swelling, I returned to the USA. Since then, I have had 2 surgeries, more than 160 hours of physical therapy, not to mention the countless hours of people working on me at classes and seminars, 5 acupuncture sessions, and thousands of hours of stretching, strengthening, and circulation exercises. In addition, I have had 5 chelation injections, and dozens of chelation baths. And, I have shed more than my share of tears over the past year and a half. My injuries included: multiple fractures of my right arm and wrist (yes, I am right-handed), dislocation of my right wrist, multiple fractures of my spine and pelvis, spinal cord damage, two ruptured discs, fractured kidneys, and it was all complicated by toxic metals which were in my drinking water, including arsenic, copper, lead and cadmium. Two months ago, I could stand 4 minutes before I had to sit down. Last Sunday, I went on a hike and walked more than 4 miles! While I still have some pain, I am much more active and functional, and have had an enormous amount of return of function and use of my hand. I am so grateful to my friends, family, and colleagues who have helped me through this difficult time. And I am grateful to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who has shown me unending grace, and has healed me physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually during this time. While I don't think that I 'suffered well', I can stand and attest to His faithfulness... And I eagerly look forward to returning to China in January!!!

SS: Forbidden

Forbidden. Forbidden books. Forbidden (the movie). Forbidden fruit. Forbidden love. Forbidden City. Ah, that's what I want to write about. Forbidden City. Actually, Forbidden Cities.

I have been fortunate to visit two “Forbidden” cities – The Forbidden City within China's Capital, Beijing, and Lhasa, the Forbidden City, capital of Tibet. The Forbidden City in Beijing was the imperial home for the Emperor of China and his household for five centuries during the Ming and Qing dynasties, as well as the political center of the Chinese government. The architecture of this place is amazing. Built from 1406 to 1420, it is a World Heritage Site, and is listed by UNESCO as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. It is also the world's largest surviving palace complex, consisting of 980 buildings with 8,707 rooms, so it is hard to see it all in one day, though the public tours give you quite a bit in 3-4 hours.

The name, “the Forbidden City”, is a translation of the Chinese name Zijin Cheng (紫禁城 ),which literally means, “Purple Forbidden City”. In the Manchu language, it literally means “the Layered Inner City”. The Chinese like a lot of symbolism, and so the name Zijin Cheng is a name with significance on many levels. Zi, or “Purple” refers to the North Star, which in ancient China was called the Ziwei Star, and in traditional Chinese astrology was the abode of the Celestial Emperor. The surrounding celestial region, the Ziwei Enclosure was the realm of the Celestial Emperor and his family. The Forbidden City, as the residence of the terrestrial, or Earth Emperor, was its earthly counterpart. Jin, or “Forbidden”, referred to the fact that no-one could enter or leave the palace without the emperor's permission. Cheng, means a walled city. And, Chang Cheng means “Long Wall”, or “Great Wall”, as in THE Great Wall. Today, the Forbidden City is commonly called GuGong, which means “Former Palace” or “ancient palace”.

The other “Forbidden City” is Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, now part of China. It sits at an altitude of 11,800 feet (3,600 m) on the Yarlung River, which becomes the Brahmaputra River. Lhasa was known as the “Forbidden City” until the 20th century because it was closed to foreign visitors, and Tibet was “The Forbidden Land”, for the same reason. Lhasa was the home of Tibet's political and religious leader, the Dalai Lama, until 1959. Now, it is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China. The word “Lhasa”, in Tibetan means “place of the gods”. Until the early 7th century, there is some documentation that it was actually called “Rasa”, which means “goat's place”. The leader of the Tibetan empire, Songstan Gampo, moved from the Yarlung River Valley to Lhasa in the mid-7th century. At that time, he married two princesses, Princess Bhrikuti of Nepal, and Princess Wen Chen of China's Imperial Court. Both of these Princesses were Buddhist, and so Songstan Gampo also became Buddhist, and made all the people in the Tibetan empire become Buddhist. The Potala Palace was built in Lhasa from 1645 to 1648 (see photo), though parts of it actually date back to the 7th century. The Potala Palace was the home of the Dalai Lamas until 1959. Tibet has been referred to as 'Shangri La', 'The Forbidden Land', 'The Roof of the World' and the 'mysterious Buddhist Kingdom'. It remained closed to foreigners for centuries, exerting a strong hold on the imagination of the world, and fascinating mankind. Tibet, as the "forbidden land”, attracted explorers, scholars, pilgrims and adventure lovers, all in pursuit of "Real Shangri-la". It's not only the geographical and natural aspects which are attractive, but also its long historical culture and religion that appeal to foreigners to visit. And, just the fact that it was “forbidden”, that people want to visit – to see what is 'forbidden' and why. I consider myself fortunate to have been inside two “Forbidden Cities”, and have been able to work for many years in the “Forbidden Land”.

For other "forbidden" stories, go here.

SS: Observations

The first time I treated the lady with leprosy who lived in a cave, I found her crawling on her hands and knees, and I was supposed to do a dressing change on the humongous ulcers which covered both knees. I changed the dressings, and said that we had to get her off her knees. So we made a scooter board for her, wider than a skateboard, so that she could move around without damaging her knees further -- and the ulcers healed up! Then today, I saw the following story in the news. It was so much like what I would do, I am just sorry I can't take credit for it. In my line of work, I observe a situation, and figure out what I can do to improve it the easiest and most practical way possible.

This story comes out of Israel: Arava the disabled turtle is using her new set of wheels to get around in more ways than one. Officials at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo say the 10-year-old spurred tortoise has begun mating since being fitted with a custom skateboard to overcome paralysis of her hind legs. The 55-pound turtle is unable to move herself forward with her front legs alone. So the zoo's staff built her a metal board with two wheels that can be strapped to her stomach.

Arava arrived in Jerusalem a few months ago from a petting zoo in southern Israel with the unexplained handicap, and found no reptile romance. Zoo curator, Shmulik Yedvad, says it's not that Arava has come out of her shell with her unique new wheelchair, but that a particularly amorous 10-year-old male has been after her.

SS: Chance Encounters

Chance encounters?  Is it chance?  or is synchonicity a better term?  I rather think that 'chance' encounters were meant to be, synchronicity, and are not just 'chance'.   I have had a few of these – and they usually occur in different parts of the world than where I think they should.  For example, when I was in high school, my high school band went to Europe.  One day in Dublin, Ireland, some friends and I were walking along Mary's Street, browsing through antique stores.  In several of the shops, I kept looking at a particular man, and he at me.  We both seemed to recognized each other, but this was my first trip to Ireland, so who could this man be?  And, no one else I was with seemed to recognize him.  He probably just looked like someone I knew.  Maybe he thought I was flirting...  who knows?  So about a month later, I was back at my summer job working at the Dairy Queen on the University of Oregon campus.  That man walked in!  We both looked at each other and laughed!  Weren't you just in Dublin? we asked at the same time. 

Then, two or three years ago, I was in  the Denver airport, walking down the B concourse between flights, returning to Portland, Oregon from a class in Albuquerque.  And I saw this woman – 6'4” tall.  It couldn't be!  It had to be.  How many women are 6'4" tall?  But wait, where am I?  I looked around.  I had this brief, sudden panic of not knowing which country I was in, let alone which city or which airport.  This is one of my friends from China, Ann...  very distinguishable – who wouldn't be at 6'4”?   I thought I must be in China at Beijing International Airport – or somewhere, but Denver was all wrong.  My friend, Ann, and I had seen each other in China only six months previously.  So I walked up to Ann, and said, Are we still in China?  We laughed, had a good 15 minute catch up before we had to go to our respective planes, traveling to different cities, both in the Pacific Northwest.

For further Chance Encounters, go here.

SS: Guide

Earlier this week, I 'celebrated' the one-year anniversary of my accident.  A wide range of thoughts went through my head that day, and I experienced a variety of emotions.  I thought about the details of the accident.  My conclusion at the end of the day was, I am thankful that the dog didn't tear out my throat. 

As I thought about the details, I realized that there had to have been two angels present that day, not just the one that I knew was there.  When the dog charged, I ran backwards and then fell as he lunged at me.  My first thought was, “You can't pass out!”  Then there was that myriad of thoughts going through my head simultaneously, such as, “oh, my arm”, “oh, my back”, “where is the dog?”, “oh, my arm”, “oh, my back”, etc., etc.  And then I heard a voice say, “Pull up your feet”.  I never thought about who said it, I was just obedient.  As I pulled my feet up, I realized two things:  first, the dog couldn't reach me with my feet pulled up, and second, my legs weren't paralyzed even though I had felt that electric shock in my back when I fell. 

Thinking back on this, I knew that an angel had pulled me back when I fell, so that the dog couldn't reach me.  And it occurred to me later, that another angel had to have been holding the dog back, because when I looked to see where the dog was, if my legs had been out straight, the dog would have been having my legs for lunch and the bones to pick his teeth with!  And there was enough time on the ground after I fell, and before I pulled my feet towards my body for the dog to demolish my legs.  And I came away without the dog touching me.  OK, several bones broken in my arm, back and pelvis, but the dog didn't have a chance to devour me.

How fortunate am I that I had two guardian angels with me that day.

And now, bright and early tomorrow (Friday) morning I will have the metal plate and screws removed from my arm.  They have been with me for ten months now, and I just don't need them anymore.  Besides, my body just doesn't like hosting foreign invaders.

This has been a year like none other.  I am thankful that I have had good medial care in the States.  I am thankful that I had one hour today when my back didn't hurt.  May there be many more of these to come!  (this was the longest period of time without pain during the past year)  I am thankful that the Tibetan mastiff wasn't successful in guarding his territory.  And I am thankful for my two guardian angels!

For more 'Guided' stories, go here.

Inserted photo is of a folded paper card I made this week.

For further information on my accident, you can read these posts:

http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/07/adventures-and-.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/07/the-saga-contin.html

There have been other posts of updates through the past year:

http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/08/ss-decisions.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/08/surgery.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/08/recovery.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/09/ss-hello.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/10/ss-powerful.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/10/ss-my-dream-job.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2007/12/ss-walk.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2008/02/10-minutes.html
http://yakattack.typepad.com/yak_attack/2008/03/ss-the-experime.html

SS: Sore or Soar?

Sore AND Soar

My heart is sore today, as many of the people I love and care about are hurting and many, many of them have physical and emotional sores. China has been hit by a devastating earthquake. At the time of this writing...

20,000 dead

65,000 injured

45,000 trapped

130,000 rescue workers

... escalating death told may reach 50,000

My heart is soaring today, especially when I heard that many of my teammates are allowed to go in to the most affected areas to help the hurting people of China.

My heart is sore when...

...schools with hundreds of children have no survivors...

...a 7-story hospital collapses, and there are no survivors...

...most of the dead at this time are children.... in a country with a one-child policy...

My heart soars when...

...one child walks out of a school where 700 have died...

...China's media is so open as to the extent of this disaster...

...a rescue worker holds onto a grieving parent, with an embrace that can only mean, “I understand”...

For other Scribbles about Sore/Soar, go here.

SS: Family

Desmond Tutu said, “You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.” With my American family, my family of origin, this is true. It is also true about my Tibetan family, but not in the same way. They are a family that I chose, or they chose me, or God chose us for each other. Many years ago, a ran into a Tibetan woman on the street, walking with crutches, as she had broken her ankle. I told her that I lived in her same building and had heard about her. Then I asked her what kind of exercises she was doing. She didn't know that she should be doing exercises. So I told her that I was a physical therapist (physio, to my British friends), and could help her with exercises. This started the beginning of our friendship. Numerous visits, sharing about life in America and Tibet, visits to the hospital for her surgery to remove the badly-placed pins from her ankle, were all little ties that began to bind us. But it was my first visit to her home, not in the city, but in a small town 24 hours away by bus, that we became family. It was the summer of 2000. After a very long and tiring bus trip, a group of my friends and I arrived in the middle of the night. I had called from a town about 7 hours away, and told them not to wait up for us, as our bus had had trouble, and we would be coming in after midnight. When we got to their home, the entire family was up waiting for us, and had bread, meat, vegetables, rice and hot tea all prepared for us. What a special welcome to their home!

Later that week, I treated my Tibetan mother for her back pain. Turns out that a rib was stuck out of place. I had studied Chinese language (Mandarin) for only a year and thought I was doing really well. My Tibetan Mother had told me she didn't speak Chinese, only Tibetan, but I learned that week that she spoke a little Chinese. None of them spoke English, so this family was good for my language skills (or lack thereof). My Tibetan sister, Bamo, who had had the broken ankle, was my interpreter, as she seemed to understand my poor Chinese better than anyone else. So I explained to my Respected Mother that her rib was stuck and I could very easily unstick it, and proceded to explain what I was going to do, and what she should do. Bamo interpreted for me. The explanations on what to do seemed to go well, but explaining the problem seemed a bit difficult, especially with the entire family watching. I looked at all the family members, with their puzzled expressions, and tried again. This rib is not moving, and I will assist Respected Mother in moving her rib. Again, more puzzled expressions. Finally, on the third time, a little smirk came across Bamo's face. She understood what I was saying. Then she proceeded to tell me that I was saying was 'pig ribs', not 'people ribs'. The entire family burst out in laughter. I had to laugh with them, as “I am not here to do my job, but to entertain the local people with my language mistakes”.

Now, this language mistake is one of the ties that binds me with my Tibetan family. Every single year, especially during the summer at the horse festival when the entire family gets together, they tell this story. “Remember that time when Zhaxi Zhuoma (me) called Mother's ribs 'pig ribs'? That was so funny!” Every single summer I have to go through the humiliation again and again. Just like with my American family, they never forget a mistake that I have made. I have learned to laugh right along with them. Fortunately for me, it is only once a year that the entire family is together. They tell the story in Tibetan, except for using the Chinese words for 'pig ribs' and 'people ribs'. So I understand when the story is told. And one of these days, I will be able to understand it in the Tibetan language, as well. Family – you can't live with them, and you definitely can't live without them.

One of the greatest gifts
That life can give to anyone
Is the very special love that families share...
As years go by,
It's good to know that there will always be
Certain people in our lives who care.
For there are countless things
That only families have in common
And memories that no one else can make...
And these precious ties that bind a family together
Are bonds that time and distance cannot break.
How fortunate we are
When we have relatives to love us,
It makes the world a happy place to be...
Few gifts in life
Will last as long
Or touch the heart as deeply
As the very special gift
Of family.

-Craig S. Tunks

SS: Compose

There are a great many things I could have been in this world, this lifetime. A forest ranger in the wilds of Alaska, a clothes designer in New York or Paris, a beach bum searching out the remote pristine beaches of the world, or a music composer, to name a few. I actually wrote a piece while a music major at the University of Oregon School of Music. Not a great piece, but an assignment for a class. We were given odd assortments of instruments and voices and had to write music for them. One time, I had voice, flute, bass, and trumpet. I took the poem, “The Man in the Ocelot Suit” by Christopher Brookhouse, and wrote music for it, with the voice reading the poem, or rather, half-singing the poem. It was really weird. I am not sure I had a talent for composing music, but I sure enjoyed it. I think that we were all pretty patient with each other. Once in a while, a true composer sprang up from our class, but that was pretty rare. I think that it was just an exercise to see how creative we could be, and simply have fun.

I have designed clothes, but not in New York, and not for anyone outside of close friends and myself, I have bummed around on a few beaches in remote places, and I have traveled in the wilds of Alsaska, though wasn't a forest ranger. All in all, I think that it is important to find out what your dreams are, and go for it. Like in the movie, “City Slickers”, find that One Thing to do for your life. I have my ideal dream job. I know what my One Thing is. Now if I can just get back there to do it...

The image is from www.gutenberg.org/files/17782/17782-h/17782-h.htm

For other stories on "Compose", go here.

SS: Fearless

PINK FLOYD LYRICS

"Fearless"

You say the hill's too steep to climb,
Climbing!
You say you'd like to see me try,
Climbing!
You pick the place and I'll choose the time
And I'll climb
The hill in my own way
just wait a while, for the right day
And as I rise above the treeline and the clouds
I look down hear the sound of the things you said today

Fearlessly the idiot faced the crowd, smiling
Merciless, the magistrate turns 'round, frowning
and who's the fool who wears the crown
Go down in your own way
And everyday is the right day
And as you rise above the fearlines in his frown
You look down
Hear the sound of the faces in the crowd

You never walk alone, you never walk alone
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart
And you never walk alone, you never walk alone.