Luang Prabang - Laos, January 9, 2006

It's a sunny afternoon in Luang Prabang, a city of temples. Temples where the gold glitters up to the sky, the trees bloom in perfect harmony to a Monk's frock.

As I wander through the valley of temples, I wonder if this place was to be my Destiny. I've come so far to find in many ways a life of simplicity, a life of peace.

Luang Prabang is a beautiful place, not soley for it's wonderous nature but also for it's soulful people. A past that consists of war, a future that is still unknown.

On this day, a boy on his growth path to manhood beckons me. His perfect English is a surprise for it has been a rare finding. His voice is even, thoughtful with a hint of intrigue. Even as he twists his hands and shuffles his feet that lay at the foot of his orange novice robe, he gathers the courage to invite me to visit his temple, his home.

I accept graciously and we walk. I note that his scripture and prayer book is in young hands and his words tell his story. He for the time does not know his future, he is in search of. He came to this home, the temple, as a boy. A boy from a poor family that allowed him to make his own decision to leave for a better place, an education, a future.

I listen and understand how this decision must have carried a weight of one much older than his years. His shyness disappears with time and he openly offers me a reading, as well as a view of his price posession, his photos.

I turn each page quietly, slowly. I see a child with an orange robe standing alone. I see a photo of the same child, a few years older dressed with a robe and sunglasses on. I assume fighting the restrictions of the world in search of a young man's youth.

I find myself, listening to each word he says and wondering what his future will hold and if whether that is the same future he desires for himself.

As he questions my past, my future, he pauses in thought and proclaims that "a great destiny lies ahead of me". I have had so much already for "destiny" brought us together.

(Picture to follow)