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EIRE
There are two principal problemswith Ireland, and I found bothto be utterly insurrmountable. Every town, even Galway Cityat any time of day or nightlooked like it should be a postcard. Add to that the horror that inevery pub I visited it was assumedthat if asked I would sing a song or, realizing I have no…
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THIS LAND (IS) WAS MY LAND
I would very much liketo look down from above,unseen by those below,in my country, see the turmoilroiling so many, the linesformed at borders, a queuefor those deemed less valuable,and I wonder where in the linemy ancestors would bewere they still alive.I wonder what lifewould be like if Iwas born in Lithuaniaor if my parents never…
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WHERE
If you desire to getfrom here to there,it helps to knowthere is, andfor that matterwhere here is,for if you do notknow where here is,you cannot getfrom here to therefor with one stephere has moved.And if you do notknow where there iseverywhere you gois there even if itis not the thereyou wanted to go.
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Santa Cruz Wharf, September
The quieter you becomethe more you can hear.— Baba Ram Dass Orion lies over the wharfstaring at the moon, danglinglike an unyielding eye, barring sleepwhile below the waves washonto the shore, licking the pilingsand tasting the sand, a calming roarbroken only by the barkingof the harbor seals.It is not a night for huntingthe bear has…
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GUIDEBOOK HELL
When did we decide we neededa manual for everything, a field guideto living, tour books piled highbefore we leave on a trip,having meant to read themand dragging one or two alongto study when we get there? Ask yourself what you mighthave seen in some foreign citywith the time you spenthead buried in a tour guidelearning…
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PERSPECTIVE
It will soon enough be time again,I am an old clockface on a towerat which no one but the truly boredbother to look, tucked in a cornerof a village half empty, its lifemoved away to places cooler,less stormy. So I sit and watchwhat life remains around me,the few children wishing theycould be elsewhere, some parentswishing…
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NESSLESS
There are no monstersin this lake I tellmy granddaughter, answeringher unasked question.There are bears in the woodsaround here and thereused to be an owl which madean afternoon visit.There are deer, certainlyand there could be a coyoteor two. If you don’tbelieve me, ask the crows,everyone knows that theycan never keep a secret. First published in From…
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THE CLIMB
Life should be a like a mountainalthough truth be told, weprefer it more like a prairieor at best a gentle, rolling hill. There is a challenge to climbing,hell maintaining a grip halfwayup most mountains, andthere are no maps, nowell worn paths, you justgo up until you cannotgo up higher then youfigure out how to come…
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SENSO-JI
They crowd the stalls, searchingamid what the Japanese would have to calltchotchkes if they were Jewish. Few bother to see the great Buddhapeereing out of the Buddha hallquestioning their judgment. They could buy their fortunesfor a mere hundred yen coin, but theybelieve it better spent here, This the marketplace formsa phalanx that makes a visitto…
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MUSING TOKYO
1 In Asakusaamid the stallsof trinkets and swordswhy do the gaijinall speak German,Italian, Spanish and Swedishand English is reservedto a couple if Nisei. 2 In a small laundromatin Akasakaan old womanclucks and shuffleson wooden sandalspulling kimonosfrom the dryer.My t-shirtsare still damp. 3 In Shibuyathere is a smallstorefront pet shop,its windows fullof cat ryokansome with bedsothers…
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an old writer and his words 