I have been wrestling with how to even begin this, how to paint a picture in your mind and even more than that communicate thoughts deep within that even are hard for me to articulate most of time.
I want to let you see the scene laid before my eyes daily as I walk the streets here in Luang Prabang.
I want you to see the faces of the Lao people passing you by on a cracked, cement sidewalk.
I want you to see the children running across the streets with no parent in sight, just freely roaming in this world.
I want you to see the zooming trafficking of motorbikes constantly filling the streets.
I want you to see the three little monk boys that are smacking each other with their robes and bantering back and forth in Lao, unaware truly of the meaning of the lives they are living, just wanting to be kids.
I want you to see the old man sitting on the sidewalk, playing his instrument all day and all night just in hopes of making some amount of profit to support his family.
I want you to see the monks, dressed in their robes and sandals, not adorned in anything just plain and simple, coming down the streets returning to their temples for the evening.
I want you to see woman standing behind her food stand, laboring over smoke and fire all day and night to make ends meet.
I want you to see the dreams and hopes in the student’s eyes as they file out of their classroom, hoping to be an accountant, a teacher, a businessman.
There are people everywhere here in Luang Prabang that grip my heart with just one glance in their eyes.
What is love and how is it received or given?
Some would say love grows over time, that through memories and conversations had you come to love someone. But can it be felt in just one moment? And then even further than that, can it last and continue on even without ever seeing that person again?
My time here in Laos tells me, ‘yes it can last.’
I found this to be true when I looked an old monk in the eyes at a temple one day. In our exchange of few words I felt an unwavering love for him. Our words may have only been, “sabaidii” (hello in Lao) and “Khawp jai” (thank you) but the conversation carried in our eyes could stand the test of time.
Without hesitation he looked at the white skinned girl that was standing in front of him and extended his hand, offering a piece of his sweet potato. We smiled, we laughed, and we sat and looked at each other with no hidden shame. In that moment I felt so cared for and so loved by a complete stranger really but yet it felt like he was my Lao papaw.
We may not have had many conversations explaining who we were or what we were; we may not have spent countless hours in each others presence; and we may not have been able to communicate even the smallest things like our names to each other – but yet we were connected.
As I walked away, continually looking back to find him in the crowd and still seeing his warm smile and yet sad eyes, I could feel the hurt of his life, the pain and hardship he faces and still he chose to love me well.
Even though I will never see him again and I will never know his name I can still see him so clearly in my mind and heart. It is in those moments when I couldn’t be convinced otherwise that love can be felt in an instant and last a lifetime.
Leaving Laos tomorrow will be heartbreaking and in my mind is a slideshow looping of all the faces I have looked upon here this month and fell in love with. Moving on in life but yet holding onto them is a constant tension here on the race. No matter the time and distance in between I know the love I received and the love given will continue on forever.
Who are you seeing today? How are you loving today? Do you trust that the seed you sow can last?
Give love – receive love – trust love.
“Almost nothing needs to be said when you have eyes.” Tarjei Vesaas
