Massive rambling of time & work, city and countryside; and family...

I need to ramble again:

I miss my second cousins..and my little cousin. All in one of the Central-South provinces in Vietnam. Quite rural, quite close to simplicity. Many people being poor due to government sweeping away all the donation money by Bill Gates and other large figures. A sick monopoly.

Saying that, the people in the countryside may not have that much land, but they use what they have regardless. Lots of rice growing, etc etc. Work schedules are flexible (simply work and do whatever is needed, especially if it's on call), unlike in city settings where all your paychecks are known to the government and worst yet...HAVING TO "COME ON TIME!" AHHHHHH! (I hate schedules...yet 'tis one of the curses of being in the city).

I dunno, "work work work..." Load of BS. I mean...I am a social person, but I don't take many social interests of city folks. Hence I am...quite quiet and solitary almost. When I was with my family back in the country......that "void" I had since childhood felt like it was not there.

That "void" that occurs when you seal your childhood simplicity and be told "EDUCATION EDUCATION MORE MONEY MORE MONEY!" and your emotional well-being ends up being ignored, because we all are numbers, maybe with a UPC on each of our foreheads.

Regardless, where my extended family are, everytime folks come home from school or farm labour, etc.....there is family there to be with.

I hope someday...that I will be fluent in Vietnamese (hoping to be fluent in all accents and dialects..if it ever comes. I DEFINETLY wish to be fluent with the North and South accents, Central-South; and my favourite, the Huế accent [Central]) so that I will tell them:

That "North America" [US or Canada, whatever they think is the "promised land"] isn't all perfect. Sadness and anguish exists beyond. That even the system has it's corruption here. Not directly like in the so called "communist" countries.

We get a slave-wage system where people work minimal wage, forced into a deadlock where they cannot spend time doing volunteer-related things that would be good for the heart (animal shelters, helping homeless, socializing with REAL friends and discussing how much BS there is in society; at the same time, sharing the good stuff). Not to mention how work here strips away most of one's free time to spend with friends and family...that it becomes "scheduled" due to location of work and home too.

The only plus side I would mention about North America....despite all the pushyness from politics and anti-vegan crack-[insert_whatever_you_want_here], anti-peace figures.....we still have the right to parody or insult or slander or say whatever we want to release that anger or annoyance...even if for the sake of having sick and twisted fun. =) [Do that in any of the so called "communist countries," you are SO screwed...]

*sigh* I want to tell them more, my extended family, even the children who swarm at me unconditionally. That all these material desires....are not needed. They only occur because of curiosity. And this curiosity is like opening "Pandora's Box." You open it, all this crazy drama and commitment opens up. Mistakes happen, and the pain of fixing those mistakes take longer, almost like having a child with someone you have trouble putting your trust and heart into.

I dunno...I've had my material indulgence and curiosity. I've had my "sniffing and seeing into auras" of various emotional moods of every moment I live, whether I indulge in material things, eat like a pig, or live and love. Almost all of it. So I would say for certain, when having a simple personality, I only want to live such a simple and "boring" life where I'd enjoy every moment of boredom.

"Enjoying boredom" is true liberation. Curiosity alters us even internally when we decide to go outside the safe boundries of being simple. It's like we are in a battlefield now.

Now it's time to return home, because of all the crazy things and the inefficient food distribution of the food system and the berserk direction of big corporations and how the system ends up benefitting city folk (you know,..CURRENCY!! AND IMPORTS MADE IN CHINA, BANGLEDESH, ETC!).

The anguish and energy behind all those "products"...is this why city folks are so complicating? Complications are not a good thing, and people act like that's "enlightment." Yeah right. No wonder I have so much trouble being myself around people.

"In the third level we live in the intellect, in the physical mind, which is, I am sorry to say, only a computer, an excellent one that can record everything and sort it without any intelligence and judgement. But without the intelligence of the soul, the mind is only an automatic machine. People on this level become generally closed in on themselves and bury themselves  in any type of ideal. They are stuck in a way, not caring for what is happening in the world, without a real desire to improve it or to change themselves. They think that they are perfect the way they are, and many mistake this as being enlightened." - I took this quote from Supreme Master Ching Hai.

At the end............

 Regardless if it's the city or the country. I will teach the little ones....

Stay simple and don't EVER become tainted by the "city folks'" ideals.

I remember the freedom of wearing almost whatever simple clothes I want, without being discriminated, even anywhere in Vietnam. You do that in the city here in the West where people make a big deal of big brands and the ILLUSIONAL style, some people get offended by such a harmless thing. This applies really harshly for teenagers in public high schools.

True love is without discrimination of harmless appearances. I never wanted to alter myself for anyone, not even my "slim appearances" to impress anyone. I fight with what I have, and with this battle morale passed down to me; don't even think of taking me lightly. The fight that is fought...is snapping people out of it. Wake them up, from their stubbornness, thinking such corrupted ideals is part of life and is "love."

I accept me as I am, I never will want to suicide just because i don't fit in any social SNOB circle or don't have this and that. In fact, anyone who implies that I must be punished for being so harmless; come and have a duel with me, in a controlled duel where swords clash. =)

Anyways, I don't want to teach the kids to have such friendly twisted ways of handling discrimination or anything like that.

I just want my family and folks to realize........they should be happy with what they got. And understand that health is priority. And that vegan cuisine is good too, for Vietnamese food is quite heavily popular, even when veganized. That if they [family] ever get curious of what goes on outside their town, just travel outside and be safe. There are many treasures in the country, the culture, the history and everything around.......even spiritual practices......that leads back to simple happiness. That no matter whether it's country or city; true compassion is what is needed. It's harder work when going by the ego that is built up intensely in the city though, even when one has to find out "how am I suppose to do EVERY LITTLE THING I DO when I live."