There are places in life that are challenging.
I ended my last post with this sentence: “I love Sa Pa.”
I love it even if it’s a place like that.
The most that can be given
15+ days ago I started working on my project “The Miracle is Already Here”. I make short videos and post them online once a day.
There was a very uplifting episode in that work. The music that you can hear during my short videos has a pretty strong emotional background for me.
The story of this music started 30 years ago. At that time, the Swedish death metal band In Flames released one of their albums. Which I immediately fell in love with, and I still count it among my favorites.
The opening song of the album tells the inner journey of a person who, after a long suffering, begins to yearn for the beauty of life again.
Moonshield.
The music flows slowly. It is strong. It breathes with beautiful melodies. I remember that when I heard it, it immediately transported me to another dimension. When I hear it, I am still where I was then.
Then two years ago something happened. Something really significant in my life.
Before you read any further, I suggest you press the play button. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!
I heard this piano arrangement.
I will never forget how I felt then. While my tears were flowing. And I thought, “This is wonderful…”. And a realization, I think, that will last a lifetime, took shape in me.
I said then that a miracle is born when I recognize it. Then I realized that any moment can be a miracle if I give it a name. I myself make the moment a miracle.
Then I wrote it down for myself: “Recognizing a moment as a miracle is the miracle itself.”
This thought became the basis for my project “The Miracle is Already Here”.
I wanted to use a single song for my short videos. There was no question which song it would be.
The only question was what copyright issues would arise in the case of a video that appears on 5 social media platforms day by day. The song was originally by In Flames, but an author named JDanny made this arrangement of it.
I was in such a flow that I didn’t wait long to ask. I reached out to Daniel in a letter. I wrote him the following honestly:
My name is Steve, and I am a Hungarian traveler, writer, and digital nomad currently living in Southeast Asia. I have admired Moonshield ever since it was released and have listened to it for many years. Two years ago, I heard your piano arrangement for the first time. As strange as it may sound, I immediately found myself in tears. Your interpretation revealed something to me that I still carry with me today: “The miracle of recognizing a moment as a miracle is itself the miracle.” Since then, this idea has become an important part of how I experience life. I no longer believe that extraordinary things are rare. I believe they are all around us, waiting to be noticed. … I am currently preparing a series of very short videos . It would be a great honor if you would allow me to use approximately the first 30 seconds of your arrangement as the musical signature of these videos.
Daniel replied very quickly. Warmth flooded my heart as I read his lines:
Hello Steve, Thank you for your beautiful message. I am genuinely touched by your words and honored that my piano arrangement has accompanied you in such a meaningful way. Knowing that music can become part of someone’s journey and perspective on life is one of the greatest gifts a musician can receive. Your video concept sounds thoughtful and sincere, and I can certainly understand why you felt the opening section of the arrangement would fit it.
When I sent the message, I didn’t think it would have that kind of impact on someone. I didn’t think about how serious the recognition was, I was just being honest.
I really loved the moment of reading the response. Because Daniel gave me something important without knowing me. I gave him something very important without even meaning to.
Gifts Wrapped in Words
A few days ago, one of my friends gave me something important. Her mother is one of my readers whom I am lucky enough to know her. And whom I know really enjoys reading my writing. For that, I am very grateful to her.
When I write, I am not driven by the desire to please my readers. I do not write for fame or respect. (Sting, Shape of My Heart). I simply like to express myself in this way too and I like to see the world through my own writing.
Nevertheless, I am very happy with a feedback.
Regarding my post “Release”, my friend received this message from her mother:
Today’s post is very remarkable. Think about it, maybe make it your own. The past remains, but do not let it be an obstacle to the present.
Remarkable.
I think that’s enough to keep the fire of writing burning even when it may not be fueled from within.
And I think I’m damn lucky.
11 days before this message, I was on a great boat trip around Ninh Binh. There, we shared the boat with a very nice Vietnamese couple. I thought about it and asked for their help. I showed them one of my first videos. I asked them to say the first thing that came to their mind.
Meaningful.
That’s what the girl said.
I create my writings and videos with these gifts in words.
There are times when I want to give
In places popular with tourists, there are many people in need and addressing tourists is a serious part of their daily lives.
Sa Pa is one of those places.
The area around the square where I spent my last few days is full of local vendors. Women who walk around selling their wares. They offer very beautiful scarves, small bags, small figurines. They are all handmade local goods, and I have to say they are very beautiful.
I meet them about 10 times a day, if not more. At the beginning, I told everyone that I don’t need anything, I have everything. In such cases, it usually follows that I will buy something to support them, their family, let them be happy and so on.
I have no judgment, I have said this many times. I don’t regret the time spent having these conversations with the exact same script. In any case, the next round comes, whether I want to go hiking. Today I have several phone numbers in my phone so that I can call any of them if I go hiking. Because I have to go with them.
I have neither anger nor fatigue. I don’t have much money. What I can give them is patience and attention.
So after 5 days, I already have a circle of friends among them. One of the ladies spoke to me on the first day. The next day she remembered me. The third time I invited her for a cookie. She told me a lot about local life.
We got to the cookie in an interesting way.
An unknown lady spoke to me, we did the whole conversation, and then I was about to continue walking when another lady walked up. We played the same round with her, but she said that if I didn’t buy anything, she would follow me everywhere.
But whatever, I laughed and said that we should go then. We had a good chat, but the trip wasn’t long. I planned to sit on a bench and watch people. So, I sat down, and he stood next to me and we talked.
Before that, I bought myself a soda. Then, when we had been talking for a while, I suddenly felt that if nothing else, I wanted to give him this soda. He didn’t want to accept it because he was worried that I would stay thirsty, but I told him that wouldn’t happen.
At that moment, my former acquaintance walked in with a friend. So suddenly I was talking to three women. Then I went to eat a cookie with one of them.
Life gave me a nice answer to this give-and-take game.
After we ate the cookie, I went to work.
After work, I met the Chinese guy introduced in the post “Sa Pa” and in the 15th minute of our acquaintance, he suddenly pressed a soda into my hand, saying that he wanted to give it to me.
Moments like these make me love my life doubly.
There are times when you have to give!
I said at the beginning of the post that “there are places in life that are challenging.”
The women selling woven fabrics carry the difficult questions of life that are easy to handle.
The children…
I have already written about begging children. Also in relation to Indonesia, and then Laos.
What I am experiencing here is a really tough course.
That is just the “entry level” into this world, that at around 10, 11 pm the 4-year-old girl dances in folk costume for money. When she should have been asleep long ago.
However, it brings a terrible sadness every minute, when the 4-5-6-year-old children are there in every corner.
With a baby on their back.
The little one is usually asleep. The “big” brother sells the same things as the parents.
Barefoot on the street.
They also have the script. It’s almost the same as with parents.
But it’s much, much harder to say no for them.
I have to. I can’t help it.
It breaks my heart when I have to say no all the time, but there’s not enough money in the world to be here, there are so many people who ask.
Regardless, I gave some money to one of them once.
And two days ago I saw something that I simply couldn’t close my eyes to.
A little girl came onto the terrace of the restaurant where I was sitting. She was begging at the table in front of me. The two young female guests were talking to her. Then the little girl started eating their leftovers.
Then, after the two guests left, she sat down in one of their seats and started eating the leftovers.
I’ve seen it before. In movies. I read it in books.
Seeing it in real life is completely different…
I called the waiter over and asked him to prepare and pack a portion of chicken fried rice for her, and tell her to wait until it was ready.
The first waiter said something to the little girl, but I don’t think he said what I asked for. So the little girl came to me to beg. The strange situation arose that I told her no, even though the food was already on the way for her.
Then I asked another waiter to tell her to wait. She did.
And the little girl started to leave the restaurant. I was a little scared that the food would be left on my neck. But luckily she just went out into the street to wait.
Very slowly, but finally the food was ready. They brought it in a small box. But I think the little girl didn’t understand the situation at all because she didn’t want to accept it. As if I thought I understood that she was afraid that she wouldn’t be able to pay for it.
Finally she understood that it was her.
And she came to me to thank me.
I wished she hadn’t come. I would have preferred to be invisible then.
Now, as I write these lines, I think that as long as they are visible, I must be visible too.
But as long as they are visible, such places remain challenging.
Buy me a coffee?
If you enjoyed this story, you can buy me a coffee. You don’t have to – but it means a lot and I always turn it into a new adventure.
Buy a coffee for Steve
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