The garden in heaven

“…第一次迎接秋天的感覺如何？…” CA問。我的第一個念頭覺得是… 很冷！前幾晚低温度约40F（4C）。

我是很怕冷的，在未到美國前，我认為需要面對冬季是很大的挑戰。我還不知道冬天的感覺如何…

現在再想，第一次迎接秋天的感覺如何？大地自然界進入秋天，似乎像一天中的夕陽時刻，會让人感怀…夕陽無限好，只是近黃昏。一行樹各有不同顏色的樹葉，五顏六色，秋天的樹確實很美，看着它們，會令人感覺心曠神怡…

“生活在美國的感覺如何？” 有人問。記得有幾位朋友去了印度旅遊，回馬來西亞后的感覺是﹕馬來西亞是天堂！美國中部的人和、地理環境安宁悠靜，我想住在這里的感覺应该是…天堂里的花園吧！對我來说，馬來西亞可能只是天堂里的厨房（食物）！啊...我現在能理解為何很多馬來西亞人到外國讀書、工作后，就不想回國報國恩…

“…How do you feel welcoming the first fall?...” CA asked. My first thought was… Very cold! The last few nights the low temperature was around 40F (4C).

I am afraid of the cold. Before I moved to the USA, I knew winter would be a big challenge for me. I still don’t know about the feeling in winter yet…

Now I think again, how do you feel welcoming the first fall? Nature going into fall is like a day around the setting sun. It makes you feel…the setting sun is wonderful, however it is dusk. The trees with various colors of leaves are beautiful in the fall. Viewing them, they bring you a feeling of being completely relaxed, free mind and joyful…

“How do you feel living in the USA?” someone asked. I remember a couple of friends who have traveled to India, and after they came back home to Malaysia their thought was: Malaysia is a heaven! In the central part of the USA there are gentle and kind people, with a quiet and safe environment. I think living here should be like… the garden in heaven! For me, Malaysia might only be like the kitchen (food) in heaven! Ah…now I can understand why those Malaysians who studied and worked overseas don’t want to come back and contribute or return to their mother country…

Fall

我觀看自然景象時，我會欣賞樹…就像在欣賞一個人。他們都是獨一無二的，你永遠找不到一模一樣的樹！
“如果每一顆樹就等於一個人，你認為这世界，人多還是樹多？” 我問 Steve。“樹！”
秋意漸濃，樹葉有些已變红、橙、黃…落了滿地… 是葉子無情离樹？還是樹不挽留葉子？
葉子可能會很在乎樹，因為离开樹后，葉子就失去生命的光彩！擁有眾多葉子的樹…
樹呀！你會在意一片小葉子的离去嗎？

When I am watching nature, I enjoy seeing trees…the same as I enjoy seeing a person. They all are unique and you never find two trees the same!

“If a tree is equal to a person, which do you think there are more of in the world, people or trees?” I asked Steve. “Trees!”

The scent of autumn getting heavy, some of the leaves are changing to red or orange or yellow… Falling on the ground… Did the leaf want to leave the tree? Or the tree didn’t want to keep the leaf?

The leaf might need the tree because it will lose its glorious life after leaving its tree! The tree with its many leaves… Ah, tree! Do you care when one of your leaves falls?

Fu

這里常會看到有人在自家的空地，銷售家里或個人已不須要或不想要的東西… 我很好奇他們會賣些什么東西也覺得有趣，但就是没有機會去看。至到佛光山 temple 收集眾人的東西，昨天做銷售為 temple 筹款。我要求 Steve 帶我去看看… 可能我們很遲才到，我想好東西已被人買了。想想再看一次所擺的東西，就買了這個有＇福＇字的花瓶，希望它帶福给我們！

Sometimes I would see people have their things which they don’t need or want in a yard sale… I am curious and interested to know what the things are, but I never had a chance to go for one, until Fo Guang Shan temple collected things people donated and had a sale yesterday. The sale is a fund collection activity for the temple. I asked Steve to go and have a look… Maybe we were too late; I think most good things were bought by the early comers. We had one more look at what was left and finally we bought a vase with the Chinese word 福 (‘fu’ - it can mean blessing or happiness or good luck or good fortune). We hope it will bring blessing, happiness, good luck and good fortune to us!

Adjustments

Sometimes I think about my current stage in life… During this period, I need to face a few big adjustments in one shot: From many years of living a single life, going swiftly to married life and living with another person. Leaving a job, where I had already worked many years, to become a fulltime housewife. Living in an Asian country for many years, then moving to a strange western country in North America. Growing up in a tropical area without four seasons, and then facing an area that gets below freezing in winter…

Becoming a housewife and relaxing was my dream in the days I was an employee with annoying work: ‘Such a great life if I married a person that I don’t need to go out to work. Then I could do what I like to do!’ I needed income to survive and did not dare to resign from work at that time. Do you understand? I felt so released on the last day in that company; I didn’t miss it at all.

A few days ago, when Steve mentioned about needing to pay a large bill this month… It suddenly triggered in me an uncomfortable feeling… After I got through the emotions process, I think it was because I felt guilty spending his money! I controlled my finances well since I was a kid, because my parents gave me pocket money (or allowance) to buy food for myself in school. From once a day it changed to once a week, and I used it carefully and controlled my spending. After using it for a meal, a little snack and some exercise books, normally I still could save a little money. After I graduated and got a job, I never took another cent from my family. I was very independent, including my finances (except I did not dare travel alone to places that were strange to me). Now, I am not productive and don’t have any income, but spend others’ money. It seems very unlike me…

I said to Steve, “Can I depend on your finance forever?” “Whatever you like; you can go to work or not go to work, as long as you feel happy.” I felt released after I heard him say that.

It was also an item of adjustment. Ahh! I still don’t know…what issues I still haven’t realized yet…

Heart shaped

我發覺我原來很喜歡心形的東西…想想看看我去旅遊或在店内所買的其中有些是心形物的﹕

泰国的貝売風玲、貝売髮夾、銀戒指。

馬六甲（馬來西亞州）的陶器花瓶。

St. Louis 的瓷盤、瓷飾盒、項鏈垂、吊飾物。

Maui 的石盤、水晶石、手腕鏈、香精燃器。

I realized that I like things that are heart shaped…I looked at some of the things I bought from stores or while traveling that are heart shapes:

A shell wind chime, shell hair clip and silver ring in Thailand.

A ceramic vase in Malacca (Malaysia).

A porcelain plate, porcelain jewel box, pendants with necklace and hanging decor in St. Louis.

A stone plate, crystal, bracelet and fragrance burner in Maui.

Gift from nature

After we had our candlelight dinner in a restaurant on my birthday, we strolled along the Kaanapali beach (Hawaii)… I saw a few small piles of coral beside my feet while we were strolling. I picked up one of them to look at it…I was surprised to see it was heart shaped…I love it. I said to it, “I bring you home with me!” It didn’t refuse. I thought that is my birthday gift given by nature.

Hawaii trip

Yeah…我們回來囉！

Hawaii 好玩嗎？山明水秀、遊山玩水，當然好玩啦… Hawaii 浪漫嗎？有人特地選擇在此结婚、拍照，當然浪漫啦…

Hawaii 由幾個小島组成，被美国佔領后成為第50州。它還有一些土族，不過已有很多其它美国州人及其它亞洲人到那里生活，所以已有很多混血人。

經 Steve 的朋友介绍去 Maui（Hawaii 的其中一個島），我們八晚都住在 Maui 的 Kaanapali Beach Hotel。沙灘很美，又可在细沙上漫步、在海灣游泳看魚及珊瑚、看日落… 你看過月落嗎？有一晚，傍晚六点左右太陽還没下山，眉月已出現，八点左右我們看着它慢慢從日落的方向落下不見了，是不是月落呢？月光不見時，滿天星星开始燦爛閃爍…

我們参加四個旅遊配套﹕

1. 两小時乘小型飛機，空中觀看 Maui 的風景及“Big Island”（Hawaii 最大的島）的 活火山。摇摇晃晃的飛行令 Steve 差点須要吐袋…

2. 六小時乘船，如眉月的死火山 Molokini

浮潛看珊瑚、魚… 及到 Turtle Town 浮潛，不僅有魚、珊瑚，還有一些很大隻的海龜和我們一起游泳…

3. 十一小時乘旅行巴士，到Hana Town，觀看 Maui 的海岸、雨林、瀑布、黑沙灘、吃蛇鼠的 mongoose，Kipahulu 的 Ohe’o 池。可能是美丽的風景令人陶醉，600個弯弯曲曲的30哩山路却没令人暈睡…

4. 八小時乘旅行巴士，上到10,023呎的 Haleakala 火山頂峯，稀有的花草，如銀葉開花的Silversword。看到稀有的鳥類 nene（Hawaiian鵝）。及到 Iao Valley的 Needle 石…

我們選擇有包括租汽車的旅店房配套，所以我們自行駕車去 水族館，購物市场及Lahaina、 Kihei、Wailea、Makena 的海岸。不一样的沙灘有不一样的水上活動…

最后一天早上，我們又到旅店的海灣游泳，我習泳所以游到较深的地方，我很喜歡看魚及珊瑚…突然一件大物體游近我只幾吋的距离，我驚吓不知是何物，等牠游开一点之后，在水中從泳鏡看到牠…原來是海龜。前天到此游泳時都没見這里有海龜。牠到水面抬起頭看了我一會，又游向深處不見踪影了。Steve 說牠是來向我們说再見的。

再見了，Hawaii！多么豐富的婚后的第一次生日禮物！感謝我的丈夫！

謝謝媽和 Terri 寄给我生日賀卡，及Gong，TaiLing，CA，CY，MX，Wilson的賀语，以及其他人的無聲無語祝賀！

Yeah…we are back home!

Was the Hawaii trip wonderful? Sure it was wonderful, with a lot of picturesque scenery and enjoyed the beauties of nature… Is Hawaii romantic? Sure it is. It’s the place selected by some couples to get married or taking photograph…

Hawaii became the 50^th state after it was conquered by the US. Hawaii has a few islands with only a few native Polynesians left. Nowadays most people are from other states in the US and also other Asians living there, so there are many people of mixed races.

Since Steve’s friends recommended we go to Maui (one of the islands in Hawaii), we stayed eight nights at Ka’anapali Beach Hotel in Maui. The beach is beautiful; we strolled and swam at a small bay with fishes and coral, and watched the sunsets… Have you ever seen a moonset? One night at around 6pm, the crescent moon was in the sky before the sunset. We were watching the crescent moon slowly going down until it was gone in the direction of sunset. Is it moonset? In the sky without moonlight all of the stars are twinkling beautifully…

We joined four tour packages:

1. Two hours by small aircraft to see the scenery of Maui and an active volcano on the “Big Island” (the biggest island in Hawaii) from the air. The tumultuous flight almost made Steve airsick – he had the airsick bag ready in his hand…

2. Six hours by boat to snorkel and see coral and fishes at Molokini, an eroded tuff cone shaped like a crescent, and to Turtle Town. Turtle Town not only has fishes and coral, but also has a few huge sea turtles swimming together with us…

3. Eleven hours by van to the town of Hana to see the coast of Maui, the rainforest, waterfalls, black sand beach, mongooses (which eat snakes and rats), and the Ohe’o pools in Kipahulu. Perhaps the scenery was too beautiful – no one fell asleep or had motion sickness even though the road has 600 curves in 30 miles…

4. Eight hours by van to see the rare native plant Silversword, a plant with silver leaves and flowering at 10,023 feet on the Haleakala volcano summit. We also saw a rare bird, the nene (Hawaiian goose). Then on to the Iao Valley to see the Iao Needle…

Our hotel room package included car rental, so we could drive to the aquarium, shopping malls and the coastal towns of Lahaina, Kihei, Wailea and Makena. We saw different water activities at the different beaches…

The last morning, we were swimming behind the hotel in the bay again. I could swim at the deep area and I like to see fishes and coral…suddenly, a large guy swam beside me, just a couple of inches away. I was surprised and didn’t know what it was. After it swam a little farther away from me I saw it thru my goggles in the water…it was a sea turtle. I didn’t see any sea turtles when I swam there two days earlier. Its head came to the surface and it looked at me a little while; then it swam back to the deeper area and disappeared. Steve thought it came to say goodbye to us.

Goodbye, Hawaii! Such abundant presents for my first birthday since being married! I am so appreciative to my husband!

Thanks to mom and Terri who sent me birthday cards, and the birthday wishes by Gong, TaiLing, CA, CY, MX and Wilson! Thanks for those silent wishes by anyone!

19.10.07