Summer in southeastern Vermont is glorious. What could possibly be the reason to leave Brattleboro in summer?!

Thailand had not been on my radar. Other destinations had been on my radar. I thought that after Crete I would be spending time with Madam Sisca in Tanzania, Africa, and maybe check out Mozambique from there. After that, I had hoped to make my way to Cape Town, South Africa to visit my Meditation Family friend, James. The Tanzania plan fell through when Madam Sisca's parents needed her attention in India, so the African domino tour never got started. Then, a friend in Athens talked about...

Meditating at the Phang Tru temple in the Kanchanaburi district on the evening of Monday the 2nd of February, 2026 proved auspicious. It was one of four Buddhist Lunar Holy Days that month, this one on a waxing moon. My homestay co-host offered to walk with me to the local temple for the evening meditation. Inside, there were two monks and a group of women who I learned were staying at the temple for a time, studying. They offered me food and drink, talked and laughed. One of the monks...