Important Note


I learned today that we will have class activities every single day until the course ends on March 3rd. The pace is exhausting to all of us, but we're certainly getting our money's worth. Even "the young people" in class are dragging!

I'm posting mostly class notes these days, and that's likely to be more true for the next ten days. I can't even keep up with those, much less take time to write about other experiences or thoughts. And as to getting a tan or any such thing, hah! When, exactly? 

I'm so glad that I made plans to fly back a full week after the end of class. I will have a week to myself, my own schedule, my own activities. I've given a lot of consideration to where I will stay and what I will do. What I thought would be important has dropped on my list of priorities, and what didn't even occur to me to be important has risen way up. So while the old "picture postcard" images of gorgeous beaches, infinity pools, stunning rice fields, jungles, volcanoes, and sweet little shops were what I visualized for my final week here, I don't think that will be my reality.

What has become important is a chance to rest, to take pictures, to write, to draw, and to speak Indonesian beyond just "Pagi!" as I race to and from breakfast. I want to have conversations with the beautiful people of this island, learn about who they are and the lives they live. I want to swim, get a little tan, sink into a hot tub, rest my weary legs, and digest the month I just had. What I want is a peaceful home with genuine Balinese people, good food, safe water, nice swimming pools and hot tubs, and a beautiful room to live in. And that's exactly where I will be. Right here for another week.

Yes, call me crazy, but after an awful lot of thinking about it, I've decided I'd most like to stay right here in Mimpi, this retreat/resort facility where I am now. It may be brutally hot and humid, but it's still a piece of heaven. And it's the people who make it this way most. They are the most amazing people I've ever met. I will write more about them eleven days from now.

I'll probably get someone to drive me around one day so I can, in fact, see more than what is right here. I'll take plenty of pictures if I do, and will share them here. Believe me, I am still curious and would still love to see and experience a whole lot more than I will. But with a finite amount of time, I've had to make the hard decision of how best to spend it. And it's right here at Mimpi. 

In the meantime, I hope you find my class notes interesting because that's about all you'll be finding here for another ten days or so. 

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