I'm overdue for an update.

I've been dealing with some problems with my neck and shoulder (a result of all those kip-ups a few weeks ago) and thus have fallen waaaay behind on my bridges. It's a bit disappointing but these things happen. I still intend to complete the project but doing so before the end of August is starting to seem unlikely. My intention was only to motivate myself to practice more and that has already happened so it is not a failure or a waste of time, just a challenge to work through.

Something I've learned here is patience. In the west we say "patience is a virtue" but it doesn't seem as if it's a quality that people try to cultivate in themselves or expect others to have. We value efficiency, hard work, intelligence, and a load of other things, patience......not so much. Living here I have learned to be patient. It was a tough process though. Basically I've had to deal with tons of frustrations, complete powerlessness, total ignorance of situations, and little guidance. Patience is sitting in meditation posture every day for 3 years with very little information or teaching. Patience is learning that things will happen here when they happen and there is nothing you can do to expedite it, so you'd be better off to not get frustrated and just find a something to do while you wait. I was raised to do things "right" and expect that from others but here, nothing is done "right" and culturally it's just not important so it's impossible to change or to force others to see it your way. You just have to accept it.

I'm not saying I love Chinese society and culture, in fact, living here has made me appreciate certain western values like honesty and forthrightness so much more, but patience is something you can really develop in a place like this.

So I'm rambling but basically my point is that even though I can't practice bridges when I want to, I've developed enough patience to accept that and just plug away slowly when I can.