The Shift

Life is the moment in time where our one action, no matter how small or innocent, makes the difference.

With the wave of my hand, I was able to open up a smile into this world today. To lighten up the tensions on our faces and to create a small conversation between two cultures, where the only reason we are staring at each other is because we are curious. Curious to look, to see, to try and understand one another.

It's an amazing event when two eyes meet. The look, the quick examination of each other, how much we read in those brief seconds, how much we judge in a short period. Most people shrug these intimate little moments off, but I think these are the moments of most importance. It's where we really get to interact with human nature. To see it, for all that it is, isn't and wants to be.

It's where the change occurs. It's the moment between the inhale and the exhale of our breath. That's where and when life happens. In the least unexpected moments. When you meet someone on a train, connect over an innocent touch and let all precedence go.

Life happens when we listen to our heart, truly. When we act on life and not just wait. When we have the energy and courage to let go of our fears and insecurities and invite everything in.

Experiences are created when we are willing to take the risk, put our criticisms aside and do what we feel. When we connect our souls with our brains.

The paradigm of people's life in the 21st century is beginning to shift. It just might start with the fall of the most powerful country in the world.....but I think this needs to happen in order for awareness to be fully realized, in order for us to really understand the fragility of life.

The next step of Jessness

I Will Not Die an Unlived Life.

I will not live in fear of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
to allow my living to open me,
to make me less afraid,
more accessible,
to loosen my heart until it becomes a wing,
a torch, a promise.

I choose to risk my significance;
to live so that which came to me as seed goes to the next blossom
and that which came to me as blossom,
goes on as fruit.

--Dawna Markova

Cambodia

Oh! Cambodia went to fast. We got greedy and sped through it and now I wish I was in quite ole' Siem Reap instead of dirty Bangkok. But that's what one gets when rushing into things. Anyways...Cambodia!

What a beautiful country. I miss it already. Beautiful caring people, beautiful landscapes , quite, peaceful, relaxed. It was fabulous. Angkor Wat...magnificent! The entire complex is so amazing. I loved just walking around in the forests surrounded by peacefulness and old temple ruins. One of my favorite parts was just driving around in the tuk tuk. It was so nice, country road drives that took me back to Iowa memories. It also reminded me a lot of the Philippines. Very simple lifestyles, they mostly ride bicycles. The power doesn't always work and cows everywhere. For such a beautiful country, the people have suffered greatly and still do due to the 3-5 million landmines that exist there still!

Tonight, Derrick and I are on Kosan Road in Bangkok wishing we weren't here. Ugh...dirty, nasty, noisy city...We are leaving to go to the North tomorrow though, so only a few hours left here. Today, I feel that I am ready to head back to Taiwan, but we still have 16 more days. We will see how I feel in 2 more days, hopefully things will get better once out of Bangkok! Take Care!

The Uncle Ho Trail

It is raining this lazy Sunday morning as we prepare to say goodbye to such a beautiful country. From the early age of 16, when I was introduced to my second family in life, the Tran's at Asian Gourmet, I've always wonder what Vietnam was like. Lien always said she would take me there, but I couldn't wait any longer.

From the minute I entered Saigon I was happy. Ecstatic more like it! Clean air, western style, everything that Taiwan isn't. The people are amazing! Friendly, quite, resiliant, hardworking, and passionate for their country. They don't take less than they deserve and seem to strive each day to make life better for themselves and thier families. They don't give up. Evident by the masterminds of the Cu Chi Tunnels.

The highlights of my trip have been Dalat and Sapa. I had no idea what amazing mountains were in this country. I took in every negative ion the greenery produced and repaired my mind and body. Nature...I've missed it so much. Crusining on scooters in Dalat, sucking in the awesome big, blue skies, the fabulous cummulus clouds and the fresh wind whipping thru my hair. Getting sick on buses because my eyes couldn't get enough of the amazing amount of elevation that we would gain and lose was worth it all. Trekking for 3 days in the rice terraces of Northern Vietnam, opening my eyes to the way people live just to have survive each day, while the stock market crashes in America and everyone thinks the world is going to end. What little they realize....

To the craziness of Hanoi, boy! I am glad to leave it, to the serenity of Halong Bay. To all the awesome people I have met in this countr! I am usually jaded to the tourist track, but it's been great to be able to keep relationships going throughout our trip.

Vietnam has opened my eyes. Opened my eyes to all the places in the world I have not been yet or even thought of, to changing my attitude and lifestyle. To helping me realize what Taiwan is to me, what it was and how it will be. It's been a good mind expansion, to say the least.

Now we are off to Cambodia...I have no idea what to expect, which is good, for I am trying to live my life with little expectations. Just trying to life life for each moment that it hands me. So, stay tuned to the adventures of Team D.J. as we roll into Camobdia to discover whatever it has to give.

American Woman!

Wow! Another day in Paradise. Can life really be this good? I guess it can, because I am living the best life right now. Today, as I swam in a beautiful bay in the middle of Asia, rode my bike through remote villages, I realized how awesome it is to be Jess.

I've worked so hard, taken so many risks and struggled a lot this year, but I realize more and more everyday how worth it, it has been. My friend Donna once said to me, "I choose to be happy." That simple statement has influenced me for the last year. It was the initiator into my life in Asia. And, it is a priority in my life. I choose to live a happy life and that meant leaving Brian, leaving a huge part of my life behind and it has been worth all of it!

Today, I realized that American women are highly regarded around the world. I am so lucky to be an American woman! We are so lucky to be able to have the rights we do, be self-confident, independent and opportunities galore. Others are not so lucky...we are lucky to be raised in a culture where we are equal. No silly standards to live up to.

Well, it's time to close this blog and I hope you all are well. I will write more soon and miss you all!

Sapa, Vietnam- 3 days in Paradise

We just spent the last 3 days in Sapa. We took an overnight train and a one hour car ride to this great little mountain town, it was worth every bump and motion sickness pills to get there!

From Sapa, we booked 2 nights to sleep in minority villages. We got to stay with the local people in their homes. It was quite an experience. The first day we hiked 12 KM. Through gorgeous rice terraces, mountains and the freshest air I have had in a long time! The local Black Muong tribe followed us the whole way. All the women follow the tourists each day, being very nice to us, making us beautiful flower wreaths for our hair, little animals crafted from rice stalks and bouquets carefully crafted into heart shapes for us. They carry handbags, bracelets, blankets in woven baskets on their backs hoping that us, rich white people, will buy their goods. Each day, the walk the mountains in hopes of making such little money on their intricate embroidery. There embordiery is so detailed, beautiful, it blows Gramma Sahm's away! So, you know me, I definitly purchased my fair share!

We had this fantastic tour guide named Zung. He really made our trip the best! Super enthusiastic and always making sure we were happy! We went swimming in beautiful waterfalls, crystal clear waters and beautiful mountains! It was very interesting to go from village to village. It was obvious which villages had more money than others and how important it is for the local people to have the toursit industry come to them. They are so very poor, indoor plumbing is definitly a luxury item, only for the richest people in the village. And those people are the ones who host the tourists in their homes! Amazing how everything in our lives is just an "extra" compared to these people. It's a good eye opener for Derrick, I believe.

We hiked a total of 28 KM in three days! I loved getting out and being in nature and it feels so good to exercise. Along the way, I met a very nice Vietnamese man named Kien. He was very passionate about learning English, so I spent many hours helping him with pronunciation, phonics, etc. He was also very good looking :) But, what I loved about Kien is that he opened up my eyes to how important learning English is for them. It is a survival tool they need in order to make money. He opened my eyes to how much I have learned how to be an English teacher and how I am looking forward to doing this more, just in a different environment. I have many tools to give and want to give them to the people who need them most. So now, I am on a journey to figure out how to do this. I guess Sister Mary Lee is calling my name again!

I miss you all and hope you are well. Looking forward to returning to the States in June!

When Broken Glass Floats

As I chatted with a very close person to me today, I realized where his pain comes from. He swells with pain that comes from the absence of love in his life. The absence of a certain love. A Mother's Love. I believe that there is nothing else of more power than the feelings that eminate from a mother to her child. A Mother's Love fills us, the children, with energy, confidence, HOPE. A feeling that we can achieve all of our greatest dreams. Mother's are the backbone of the world. Without them we are non-existant. A Mother's Love is of the purest form, like mountain water that first sees the sunlight, like a new flowering bud during the first weeks of spring. Mother's Love is powerful, it can make us and break us. When we cannot feel our Mother's Love we are on a constant journey to reach it again.