Hi Evelyn,

I had a glimpse of Himalayan foothill spirituality during some self created sabbatical time I spent in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

I avoided my fellow Westerners like the plague, and found myself placed somewhat awkwardly in Thai culture as "Dr. Ray--Ajan." Ajan is the Thai word for professor, but conveys a much deeper meeting: "one who knows." Coupled with a wai held very high, it was unmistakable. I was being made into a sort of shaman myself-whether I liked it or not.

I spent time in non Thai Hilltribe villages, and formed a small business to sell Hilltribe arts and crafts in the United States to museums, but mostly spent time sharing a sense of spirituality I had never experienced before. A day before I got on that plane in LA headed for Chiang Mai, my heartbeat slowed down and I began to feel relaxed and happy--stress disappeared.

My own sense of spirituality has always come through music--and a Swedish culture based Christian Church. I saw no need to give up my Christian way for shamanism--nor to convert anyone to my Christian way. I communicated that sense by regularly singing Thai karaoke--and this is one of the songs I learned there that captures a shared hopefulness in the middle of hopelessness:

[www.youtube.com]

Ray