The Monks' Mandala

You'll never guess what I did at work today! After lunch, Brian and I walked down to see the Tibetan Monks from the Drepung Gomang Monastery who are spending this week "in residence" at Bucks County Community College. They are making a mandala out of dyed sand on the floor of the Solarium. This thing is so intricate and colorful that I doubt my iPhone photos will do it justice.

When we arrived at the Solarium, the monks were taking a lunch break, but there were many visitors and Bucks-affiliated people gawking at this fantastic work-in-progress. If you look closely at the photo above, you can see the design sketched out on the blue base. Sometime tomorrow (approximately 12:30pm), that blue section will be finished and the mandala sand will be swept up in a ceremony and brought to the park where it will be dropped in the creek. Some of the sand will be distributed to the audience as a blessing.

After a few minutes, the monks finished their lunch and returned, one-by-one, to their work.

One monk...

 They hold two long, thin funnels made of metal. One funnel holds the colored sand, and the other is used to tap the sand-holding funnel controlling how fast the sand comes out.

...two monks...

If I were to say that these mandalas are created one grain of sand at a time, I would not be exaggerating. Nevertheless, these expert sand artists covered quite a bit of the mandala while we watched.

...four monks and a basket of tools.

These "sand-painted" mandalas are considered tools for consecrating the earth and people. They represent the universe and its inner and outer meanings. I am no expert on their symbolism, but these monks were kind enough to furnish us with thorough background information on this tradition which is hundreds of years old. All who view the mandala are supposed to experience "profound peace and great joy." This was a welcome inspiring experience in the middle of a mundane work day, and thus did give us peace and joy. ;-)

But wait there's more... everyday this week when I walked past the Solarium on my way to the cafeteria I heard the singing bowls. It's a beautiful, hollow, metal sound and has a pleasing quality. Well, the monks had a table set up with jewelry and prayer flags for sale...and...bowls. Reader, I bought one.

My singing bowl on my desk.

I will now try to make it sing for you.

My video isn't great, so chill out with this guy who has many singing bowls, gongs, and crystals:

Tasting for Tyler: Up, Up and Away!

The Balloon and the Moon

I was the lucky winner of tickets for an event known as Tasting for Tyler. This was the 26th annual installment of this fundraising event held at Bucks County Community College to benefit Tyler Hall, the 1930s French-Norman revival mansion now used to house the College's administrative offices. George F. Tyler, a banker, and Stella Elkins Tyler lived here back in the 1930s, when this building was new. They called it Indian Council Rock. Her sculpture decorates the formal gardens, some of the original buildings, and the grounds which now make up the College's campus. It's a lovely place to learn and work, but old buildings take a lot of care.

Tyler Garden, ca. 2012

Tasting for Tyler is a lavish party held each year to raise funds needed to care for and restore this glorious estate..er, uh...campus. Tents for this event start appearing on campus a week before. Arrayed over the terraces and tent area near the formal Tyler Gardens, over 25 local eating establishments offer samples of their best dishes and beverages.
Attendees are given plastic trays and a wine glass upon entry and encouraged to partake of the tasty vittles. My companion and I divided the array into three geographic areas, and ate in three installments over the course of the evening. We ended at the Orangery, an original Tyler building, where the desserts and silent auction were located.

Desserts in the Orangery

Attendees dress to impress at this event, and it was fun seeing the fashionable costumes worn by usually-businesslike college employees. As I selected my own outfit, I remembered the cobblestones and slate walkways that can be difficult to navigate in everyday shoes, and composed from the feet up. Along with my black lacy flats (designed by Fergie, I'll have you know), I wore that green chiffon-y frock with the matching green sweater, because it wasn't hot that evening.

Wearing a dress of any kind wound up being a liability for the moment-in-time that I will probably remember for years to come. Up & Away, Inc. was set up on the lawn offering hot air balloon rides in the "Fleckfolly V"! Wow. But here's the thing: in order to get into the balloon's basket for the (tethered) ride, one had to hike up their skirts and climb over the side. The balloonists supplied a stepladder on the outside, but there was no room for one inside. This would not be a graceful moment for the short-legged among us, but the thrill of the ride was worth the momentary lapse of decorum. In fact, knowing that I would blog about this experience, I had my phone in hand to take some shots while airborne. You guessed it--I forgot to snap any because I was too busy looking around. Here are some from the ground instead...

All Aboard!

The Ascent

Back on Earth

We didn't know what to expect from this party as neither of us had been before. It's rather expensive, so there aren't a lot of fellow college faculty roaming about, but I came across more colleagues than I expected. The food was mostly great, and mostly labelled for those of us with food allergies (don't ask me about my shellfish thing, okay, just don't ask), there was live entertainment inside and a dance floor and DJ outside for those so inclined.

Dancing under the tent.

All in all, it was a lovely evening, and we had perfect weather for it. "It was kind of like a wedding reception without a bride," according to my friend. Yeah, and a hot air balloon balloon instead!

Tyler Hall, after the party

My Amazing 2009 Birthday

Most of my birthdays come and go without a whole lot of hoopla, and that's the way I like it. But this year I was showered with gifts and surprises, and I'll remember it for a long time. It's not a Big One ending in a zero or even a favorite number. It's just plain old 46, divisible by 1,2,23 and 46 itself, and that's about it for whole numbers.

The Language and Literature Department at BCCC has an annual Women Reading and Writing event where women faculty, staff and students read the work of women, their own or someone else's. I haven't read in the past, and I wasn't planning on reading this year especially since the event fell on my actual birthday. It's hard to resist people I like, though, and when a few of the organizers asked me again to read, and then pleaded because they had an empty spot, I relented. I thought that might happen, and had quickly grabbed something of my shelf at home. (Yes, I work in a library but I know my own books best). The chosen passage was a piece of Frances Mayes' A Year in the World: Journeys of a Passionate Traveler. After "the book that changed my life" as she calls it (Under the Tuscan Sun), Ms. Mayes had the freedom and the funds to spend a year travelling to places she might like to live. Most importantly, she attempted to live as the natives live in each place. This is what she wrote about. This is how I introduced my chosen passage about exploring Madrid, a city I'd actually visited myself. I was concerned about the Spanish words that might trip me up, especially since I am physically unable to trill Rs, but there were no such words in this passage except for maybe churros, but I figured most Americans would know what they are. What I didn't see coming was the word 'penis' as in a wish candle sold in a black magic shop Ms. Mayes visited in Madrid. So there I was in front of colleagues and students, reading this favorite piece of travel writing and knowing that I was soon going to have to say the phrase 'big pink penis' into a microphone. Well maybe if I plowed right through no one would notice, but if I showed any anxiety they surely would. Some students in the front snickered (imagine a librarian saying that), but my colleagues were too busy to notice, I think. I survived, I read something unique, and I got some attention. I don't look too frazzled, either:

That evening was the birthday treat I was waiting for. As part of the Philadelphia Speaker Series that Sue and I have attended for five years now, Jane Goodall would be speaking and, for the first time in Speaker Series history, signing books. I love signed books. I love author talks. As expected, Dame Goodall was fabulous. She talked about the chimps and demonstrated a couple of their calls, talked about her life and how she got involved in this research, and finally told us about her Jane Goodall Institute (www.janegoodall.org) and all the good things they do for the environment and education. I admired her passion and I was in awe of her schedule, on the road 300 days of the year! I joined the line afterwards with my book fully expecting to be there rather late. To my surprise, I was near the front of the line and it went quickly. Not only did we get our book signed, but Dr. Goodall posed for a picture with each and every one of us! Her staff had this down to an efficient operation, and handed out business cards with instructions for downloading our photos in 7-10 days. Here's mine:

What an amazing birthday!