Meg Noble Peterson

Author of Madam, Have You Ever Really Been Happy? An Intimate Journey through Africa and Asia

Author: Meg Noble Peterson Page 11 of 30

THIRTY DAYS HATH SEPTEMBER…and every one a jewel

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On October 14, 2015

In Whidbey Island

September in Langley can be dizzying as we move from heady summer into crisp autumn. The smell of fallen apples, the waning gardens, the hint of harvest, the bright moon dancing on the Sound. There’s a nostalgia that creeps in toward the end despite the variety of activities swirling around us.  The outdoor Shakespeare Festival has come to an end and leaves are falling on Goss Lake. But we move on. There are the abundant art gallery openings and the two major theaters in town that present unusual and superb modern plays. So far this season I’ve enjoyed Looped by Matthew Lombardo and Dead Man’s Cell Phone by Sarah Ruhl. Then there is a gala open house at the retreat for women writers, Hedgebrook, the international Django Fest Northwest, and the inimitable Soupbox Derby (yes, you read that right). And let’s not forget Seattle, a ferry ride across the water, with its plethora of art exhibits and full cultural menu.

I started September with a flying visit from two of my favorite musician buddies, Coleen and Neal Walters, who have been spearheading the Mountain Laurel Autoharp Gathering I try to attend every year in Pennsylvania. They came by for lunch after performing at Pete d’Aigle’s Workshop in Seattle (Pete and Polly Daigle publish the Autoharp Quarterly), and we had a great time catching up.

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The streets were alive with music for ten days for a bigger and better DjangoFest Northwest than ever before. Langley was the center for topnotch players from all around the world. My favorites were the French contingent, highlighting Bireli Lagrene, thought to be the greatest known guitar player in the Gypsy Jazz genre. Musicians hosted a variety of workshops during the day and concerts every evening. There wasn’t a coffee shop or empty spot in town that wasn’t full of guitar players, fiddlers, bassists, and assorted wind players…and enthusiastic onlookers clapping and dancing to the music.

I remember my grown daughter as a four-year-old riding with her father in a handmade cart down a steep hill in Clarksburg, VA, and my young sons a few years later doing the same crazy thing in what they called the Soapbox Derby in Summit, NJ. So you can imagine my surprise to find that my new home town was continuing the tradition with its own special name (Soupbox) and even more elaborate vehicles to scare every mother and onlooker to death. Thank heaven for those bales of straw to save the young ones if the brakes failed. But, actually, it was the older ones who seemed to have the most trouble. What a hoot it was, and what a great way to usher out the month!

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BETTY TISDALE, KNOWN AS THE ANGEL OF SAIGON, AND ONE OF MY HEROES….

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On October 12, 2015

In Seattle

left us last month just a few months shy of her 93rd birthday. And what a powerful life she had!

Betty was diminutive, full of humor and compassion, and captain of her own special ship, H.A.L.O. (Helping and Loving Orphans). She spread hope and happiness from the time she took over the work of Dr. Tom Dooley, who died at 34 in Vietnam in 1961, through the fall of Saigon, and into the present day. She left a rich legacy of orphanages throughout Southeast Asia.

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Her story was told in a CBS movie, The Children of An Lac, starring Shirley Jones as Betty. The title of “Angel of Saigon” was given her after she rescued 219 orphans, their director, and two assistants from the An Lac orphanage on April 30, 1975, just hours before Saigon fell. The babies were carried in handmade baskets,  then transferred to cardboard boxes and placed on the floor of the plane. Betty found a place to house them in  Ft. Benning, Georgia, and within a month of their arrival in the U.S., all were adopted. She adopted five girls, herself, and has been in touch with numerous others over the intervening years. The internet and her website are full of their stories of gratitude and success.

I met Betty at the height of the war in Afghanistan. She lived in a charming house in the Queen Anne section of Seattle with three floors…an office in the basement for HALO, littered with clothing and necessities she collected for the orphans, a living area full of mementoes of her life in Asia, and two upstairs bedrooms full of exquisite tapestries, dresses, and antiques. Pictures of her work and her meetings with heads of state lined the stairway. She tripped merrily up and down the three flights like a teenager with a lot of experience. I loved it!

Shortly after we met she called me in some distress and said, “I need to check on the children in Afghanistan. I think I’ll just go to Kabul.”

“Betty, you can’t go to Kabul right now. There’s a war going on! And, besides, how are you going to get permission to do that? The government will never let you.”

“That’s not a problem,” she replied. “I’ll simply go to the airport and buy a ticket.” And she did. AND she went! That is Betty in a nutshell. Something has to be done and she finds a way to do it.

Betty Tisdale was the epitome of the phrase, “One person can make a difference.” She did. Not many people like her come along in one’s lifetime. We will miss her immensely.

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I HADN’T LET GO OF SUMMER, YET, WHEN THE AUTUMN FOG BEGAN ROLLING IN….

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On October 12, 2015

In Northwest trekking

Where did all that glorious sunshine go? One day I’m photographing the bright yellows and reds of Autumn from my front deck, and an hour later the rains come with hurricane force to strip the trees of color. Ah, but they can’t hurt the firs in their variegated green coats. They will not leave me!

I rushed out front to get that last gasp of sun, just in time….

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P1080233Music has charms to soothe the savage breast, but so does nature and, especially, mountains. I treasure the memory of my days in late August with Jon Pollack and a mutual friend, Carol Johnson, on Mt. Rainier. I’ve written about my hikes in this region before, but each time we explore a different area, so there’s always something new. This year we stayed at White River campground. It’s rich in woodland trails and scenic views, but because of the lack of rainfall, the normally rushing river was down to a trickle and many lakes were reduced to struggling puddles. Frozen Lake on Rainier was anything but frozen for the first time in recent memory. Add to this the smoke-laden, heavy haze that engulfed the peaks, and you become aware of the tenuousness of nature’s balance and how dependant the health of any habitat is on the global community. Nowhere can you see this more than when you get down into the heart of the natural world.

This year we did the three peaks of Burroughs mountain and a day at Owyhigh Lakes. The lakes were really low and very hot, but the entire trip, even on the ridges, called for plenty of sunscreen!

For more Mt. Rainier photos, click Here, Here and Here.

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THERE IS A HARMONY IN AUTUMN, AND A LUSTER IN ITS SKY….

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On September 19, 2015

In Northwest trekking

…so said Percy Bysshe Shelley. And I add to that the ghosts of summer past…one full of beauty, drama, sunshine, and tumultuous events that we, in the computer age, cannot escape. It’s almost too much for one human. So, into this crazy-quilt world I shall weave the threads of my life and tick off the weeks since June with short tales of my summer explorations.

July was a whirlwind trip to my old stomping ground on the East Coast, starting with three weeks at the family cottage on Lake Winnipesaukee…swimming in the world’s most beautiful lake and enjoying the White Mountains, of New Hampshire…and ending up with daughter, Martha, in Summit, New Jersey, where I enjoyed old friends and my fill of theater. For you aficionados I left very few stones unturned. Here’s a partial list: An American in Paris; Wonderful Town; The Curious Case of the Dog in the Night (amazing!); Wicked; and Hand to God. Except for the 98 degree heat, reminiscent of south India, it was marvelous.

Immediately, upon my return to the Northwest in August, Jon Pollack and I headed for a husky hike around Mt. Baker followed by a ridge run around Damfino Lake. During this time we stayed at our favorite campground, Silver Fir.

We had taken a big chance on this weekend, for heavy rain was predicted. Guess what? It couldn’t have been more glorious. Sunshine in the morning over the Nooksack River next to our campsite and clear skies for three days. Hallelujah! We were so sure of possible rain that we even visited Artist Point the night before the hike, just so we could see it in good weather. And we took photos where I had stood next to the snowbank on two previous years. This was the first time in three years that Ptarmigan Ridge wasn’t covered with ice and snow! It was also very interesting that on our way to the climb we encountered more than 65 cyclists heading up the mountain road…laboriously! They, too, were enjoying the balmy weather.

Follow us on the slide show below, from the Austin Pass Visitor Center over the Chain Lakes Loop Trail, which includes Bagley Lake, Herman saddle, Hayes Lake, Mazama Lake, and Iceberg Lake. This is the first year Iceberg hasn’t been frozen during the summer months…rather worrisome to those who depend on snow melt for water. In fact, we were appalled at the way the lakes had receded this past year.

We continued on around Ptarmigan Ridge, encircling Table Mountain and making our way over the Wild Goose Trail. Once at the visitor’s area we walked the two miles downhill to our car through the woods by way of a steep trail of wooden logs. That was the scariest part of the trip for me!

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SOLSTICE IS OVER AND SUMMER IS IN FULL SWING….

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On June 25, 2015

In Uncategorized, Whidbey Island

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Just to prove it, here are photos of the sunset on the longest day of the year, taken from my balcony.

This island abounds with gardens of all types–flower and vegetable, large and small. Many families have their own space in cooperative community plots and you can see homemade green houses springing up every year for specialty plants suited to the Northwest weather.

Two years ago my daughter, Cary, spearheaded the Good Cheer Garden for the Good Cheer Food Bank, which helps feed hundreds of families every year who would otherwise be without fresh produce. And this year she has successfully put into operation an extensive school garden program that provides garden-based education to grades 1 – 5 at the Elementary School and grade 7 at the Middle School, while introducing young people to the joys of growing, and eating, their own food.

Here is a video made in May as the garden was getting into full swing. It will give you some idea of the enthusiasm with which these youngsters view their experience in the school gardens. You have no idea how hard they work to plant, hoe, fertilize, and harvest these crops…nor how proud they are of their accomplishments. The video was produced by the South Whidbey Schools Foundation which has provided grant funding to the school gardens.

Click HERE to see the video.

On June 24th, at a special fundraiser for Nepal, Cary shared slides of places we trekked before the earthquake and the same areas after the devastation. Over $1800 was raised! A big thank you to those of you who responded to my first plea for help in the rebuilding of this country we hold so dear. And no words could possibly express my admiration and gratitude to those Nepalese friends who are on the front lines providing help, taking food and supplies to towns isolated in the mountains, and building homes and shelters as the monsoon season approaches.

I have already mentioned Crystal Mountain Treks and Grand Asian Journeys, its U.S. affiliate. These are the people with whom we trek every year. Not only have they been instrumental in getting food and supplies to isolated villages in the mountains, but Jwalant Gurung, the director of operations, has now developed a new plan to help rebuild his country. Here is an opportunity for those who love trekking in the mountains of Nepal and also wish to be of service at this crucial time.

Click HERE for the rebuilding tours that Jwalant is organizing this fall.

CRASHING ON THE PAVEMENT IN TACOMA….BIG TIME!

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On May 25, 2015

In Uncategorized, Washington State

I’m an expert crasher. I try to average at least one major dive a year. Seems pretty frivolous to mention after all of the important news from Nepal. But this is not like an earthquake. It’s preventable. Just ask my children, who feel that if I’m trying to kill myself, this is an unceremonious way to die and needs serious addressing. So I hasten to remind them that I have never, repeat never, fallen on a trek or a mountain (except once on the top of Mt. Washington, where I understandably tripped over my new, unfamiliar hiking poles) or even on the sidewalks of Asian countries like Myanmar, where one misstep can land you in an open sewer with a broken leg. I specialize in monasteries, trains of questionable quality, and city streets where the pavement is supposed to be smooth. And where you don’t expect potholes or crooked pavement. If only my recent mishap had occurred in New York City I could have sued for a million dollars and been on easy street. But, alas, I had to pick Tacoma, Washington, unfamiliar territory for my Guardian Angel, who was probably snoozing, anyway, while my own thoughts were on the hike I was about to take with my buddy, Jon Pollack, of Annapurna fame. And therein lies the rub.

I’m always amazed at how few Good Samaritans there are at such times. There I was, having smacked my head on the pavement and scraped myself to a fare-thee-well from top to bottom, and in the process of wiping the blood from my clothes, when a man walked by, cigarette dangling from his mouth. “Are you OK?” he asked, desultorily.

“Oh, sure,” I replied. “I sit on the ground every Friday and bleed. It’s a religious ritual.”

“Hrrumpff,” and off he went leaving me to pick myself up and move my car to the garage where Jon and I continued packing. Forty Band Aids later we took off, and in seven hours were in beautiful Columbia River territory setting up camp for a three day hike in the woods.

Three weeks later, the hiking having been superb and my purple shiner almost gone, I started to have numbness in my left hand. When it moved to the face and my speech started slurring I got scared. Thus began a series of tests…CAT scan, MRI, and MRA. It was an education for me, and not one I care to repeat. Seems I sustained a small subdural hematoma which was attempting to re-absorb into my head, while poking into my right brain and causing me to babble. That’s all you need to know, except that all is well and I promise never to fall, again. It just ain’t worth it!

Here is the beginning of my summer hikes.

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THE TRAGEDY IN NEPAL SEEMS NEVER-ENDING….

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On May 16, 2015

In Nepal, Uncategorized

And it is and it will be for a long time to come. But that is not stopping thousands of people from rolling up their sleeves, pulling out their wallets, and tackling the problems head on. We’ve all read about it. We’ve all seen the heart-wrenching pictures. We’ve cried for those who are lost and for the beautiful relics of thousands of years of history that now lay in ruin. If we look at the big picture it seems hopeless. Countless people homeless, mountainsides still crumbling, roads destroyed by avalanches leaving whole villages isolated, a viable tourist industry crippled, cherished landmarks no more. But we don’t do that. We take each day as it comes as Nepal starts to rebuild.

2015-05-02-817I have many friends in Nepal. I’ve often said that it is my Shangri La. Fortunately, so far, nobody I’ve worked with or trekked with has died, but many have lost their homes. I received an email and photo from Pasang Lama, a man who works at the Shechen Guest House in Boudhanath. There was such sadness in his face that I hardly recognized him. He said his family was alive, but his house was gone. That was all he said. The picture says the rest.

P1070159Pasang is a man I talk and laugh with every year. He has a lovely family and I have never seen him without a huge grin on his face.

Here he is with his family last December.

 

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Cary and I climbed in the Langtang region of Nepal in 2012. We wandered through this valley and through the town of Langtang, which, as you can see, is beneath overhanging cliffs. Here is the area we remember.

This is the view looking up the valley towards Langtang Village. Our fear is that this already slumped mountain is what let go in the earthquake, destroying the entire village.

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Here is a picture looking down the valley at the village.

The following photos tell you about the beauty of this formerly idyllic spot. Click on first photo to start slide show.

A very long mani wall
Walking through the valley next to a rushing stream
A typical Langtang village
Surrounded by mountains

I met last December with a friend I have known since he was a young man in 1988, and who became the mayor of Dhulikhel, a small town not far from Kathmandu. In his time in office he spearheaded the building of a university, a highly-acclaimed hospital, extensive new homes and businesses, a sewage disposal plant, recreational facilities, and a water treatment facility. In other words, he and his fellow citizens transformed Dhulikhel!

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B.P. and M.P at the Shechen Guest House in 2014

B.P. has written an impassioned letter to me and other friends telling of the need for help at this time. The Dhulikhel Hospital, which he helped found, has been inundated with earthquake survivors during the past few weeks.

I urge all of you who wish to help to examine this and the other websites below to see which one you choose to support. I know that these are not huge organizations with high administrative costs. Your money will get to the people who need it.

Here on Whidbey Island we have a Tibetan Buddhist sangha led by Kilung Rinpoche, who has already collected donations through the Kilung Foundation. These funds will be directed to organizations in Nepal that are helping remote mountain villages, as well as those in need in Kathmandu.

The Nepal Youth Foundation is another very reputable and established organization that is dedicated to help all earthquake victims.

Finally, I have just heard from Jwalant Gurung, who runs Crystal Mountain Treks, the organization with whom Cary and I have trekked for years. Every spring Jwalant comes to the United States and takes a group up Mt. Rainier to raise money for Nepalese orphanages through his organization 3Summits. Now he is raising money to help rebuild the lives and homes of his fellow-Nepalese through a Crowdrise fundraiser.

Please get in touch with me if you have any questions.

TECHNOLOGY! TECHNOLOGY! TECHNOLOGY!

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On April 22, 2015

In Uncategorized, Washington State, Whidbey Island

How many people over 65 (and that includes me) are roaming around the halls of mental asylums, clicking on every doorknob and cutting and pasting their inmates as they search for old photographs and lost documents, repeating, hysterically, pdf. mpf, hypertext,.doc.? I have come up with a solution: a new organization,Technology Anonymous for Technotards (TAT). It may not sound politically correct, but it will save your sanity. Who would like to join me? It meets every Wednesday at 6 PM at the Langley Marina on Puget Sound. Come dressed in your diving gear. It will be a long, dark night, but it sure beats Bedlam.

All of which is to announce that at long last I have had my website upgraded with new photos, incredible insights (just ask my children if you don’t believe it), and a clickable map of my travels that exhausts even me. It will be launched by the middle of May (cross your fingers), so watch for it! If my erstwhile webmaster, Matt McDowell (www.screenthumb.com), survives the ordeal, he has very kindly agreed to be the premier advisor to TAT. That’s the first split infinitive I’ve used in years, but Matt deserves it!

As a heralding of spring I want to share this beautiful African lily, the rare yellow clivia, which my son, Tom, brought me a few weeks ago when he moved to Langley. And there is another orange one just getting ready to bloom. Doesn’t it make you want to dance? P1070339 On the first day of March, Jon Pollack and I celebrated the beginning of the hiking season with a day trip to Park Forest near Eatonville. We were accompanied by old friends, the prolific historical writer, Dennis Larsen, and his wife, Pat Ziobron. Mt. Rainier was overpowering, with views all along the trail. I was unable to get a photo on the winding road back, but I did catch some beautiful shots at the marina in Tacoma near where Jon lives.

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The closer you get the more beautiful it is!

P1070291 Life continues in Langley, with enthusiastic Art Walks, excellent theater–a superb production of Other Desert Cities by Jon Robin Baitz–and an original musical, Pasture-ized, by Whidbey’s own Ken Merrell and Eileen Soskin, which could well start, immediately, Off-Broadway. And, of course, volunteering in the garden is in full sway as the fresh produce has returned in abundance, thanks to the tireless work of the garden experts  and their apprentices. I haven’t forgotten about Yolmo/Helambu. Just had a little detour, but it’s on its way….

THE SUN IS SHINING, MT. BAKER IS SMILING…

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On February 19, 2015

In Nepal, Uncategorized, Whidbey Island

…and all’s right with the world! I must say that I miss the snow from “back home,” but there are some who say it’s overkill, and admonish me to be happy with my 55 degrees and enjoy the early spring! It’s hard for me to believe that the flowering trees are already pink and white and the rhododendrons are out. But what amazes me even more is the grass, which has been green all winter, and is now being cut on a regular basis.

I walked along the beach last evening…two blocks down the hill from me…and here’s what my iPhone saw. It’s not a fancy camera so you’ll have to imagine the soft pinks and coral shadings on the mountains.

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BACK TO OUR JOURNEY IN THE YOLMO….

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On February 12, 2015

In Nepal

Now, to continue our trek in the Yolmo/Helambu region before I head out for a new hiking season in the Cascades. “Catch up” is my standing New Year’s resolution.

How exciting it was to wake up and see blue sky after all that rain! But there was still too much snow and ice on Ama Yangri to attempt a one-day climb, so down the strenuous path we headed to the river and ate lunch at the River View Lodge. In some of the villages we saw on our descent, Cary showed us where many small apple trees were being planted on the terraces, as part of a new agricultural program in Nepal. We also passed many very old mani walls and chortens nestled in the forest. There is a very strong Buddhist presence in this area, since the Yolmo people migrated from Tibet in the 18th century and intermarried with the local Tamang, Rei, and Sherpa people.

After lunch we climbed up a steep, rocky trail for three hours, reaching our guest house, the Himalaya Lama Lodge, in late afternoon. It was three hours of relentless scrambling through dense forest, with a few switchbacks over a newly constructed and very elemental road.

 

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During the night it rained, but there was a magical sunrise the next morning in time for our exploration of Upper Melamchi and its sacred caves. Next time: the end of the trip and our return to Boudhanath.

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