April 10, It’s Tea Talk 6th Anniversary.
But Tea Talk is closed.
And many people are sad and asked WHY?
Outsiders look in and ask “What went wrong?”
“Why didn’t more be done to keep it going?”
But Tea Talk is closed.
And many people are sad and asked WHY?
Outsiders look in and ask “What went wrong?”
“Why didn’t more be done to keep it going?”
Those of us who are insiders knows why.
We may be sad but not disappointed.
In fact, many of the Vietnamese who have
expressed sadness also wrote me to tell me
how thankful and grateful they are for
Tea Talk. And that is true, my own sadness
has turn to thanksgiving, then to gratefulness
and finally celebration. So why celebrate the
closure of Tea Talk, a space that had
cultivated hearts and nourished souls?
We may be sad but not disappointed.
In fact, many of the Vietnamese who have
expressed sadness also wrote me to tell me
how thankful and grateful they are for
Tea Talk. And that is true, my own sadness
has turn to thanksgiving, then to gratefulness
and finally celebration. So why celebrate the
closure of Tea Talk, a space that had
cultivated hearts and nourished souls?
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| This is just a fraction of the Tea Talk family. |
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| Fun days! Learning to bake! Or is it? |
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| Learning to serve on another! |
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| Learning to love one another: Love does not keep records of wrongs. |
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| Just some of the many young lives that Tea Talk has been working with. Each of them represents at least a 1000 lives. For who they are is at the core of what we do as professionals. |
It is good from a development social work
perspective it is good that Tea Talk is closed.
Is Tea Talk’s mission accomplished?
Not really. Just partially, not all!
Tea Talk is closed for a very simple reason.
No money no (Tea) Talk. The fiscal realities
make its very challenging to keep Tea Talk
going. That said, Tea Talk has impacted
many young lives. These young lives are
like the bud breaks that signify the coming
of spring. They are ready to spring forward.
It's time for me, an international development
social worker to step back, and let these
young lives take over. Oh, the letting go is not
easy. The image and statues are the easy part
to let go. It is the sense of significance and joy
when working with these young lives that is
hard to let go. Let go I must for this is fitting
with what Prof Robert Chambers in his book,
Development: Whose Reality Counts? Putting
the First Last, asserts. Prof Chambers
“reflects on the view that listening and
participation isn’t enough: the whole idea of
empowerment means development
institutions need to disempower themselves
too.” (I did not read the book but read an article
located here: Click.)
Over the past 6 years of developing Tea Talk,
it has empowered many young lives. But
unknowingly, I have empowered myself and
many other international development workers
too. I remembering reading a wise saying that
goes like this: “For the mission to be deeply
ingrained, one must become less and less.”
And like Mr. Tien, one of the co-founder of
Tea Talk said: “Unless a seed dies, it remains
only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces
many seeds.” So, it is good that Tea Talk
is closed. It is time for us outsiders
to disempower ourselves.
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| I took this picture at the end of Autumn. The sun setting, the tree lost all its leaves. Signifying Letting Go! |
It is good from a psychological point of view.
For almost 6 years, the volunteers, staff,
donors and many others have toil. Many toil
with real sweat and blood. If I may use a
farming analogy, the past few years were
seasons of plowing the soil. It's hard work.
Do you know why farmers need to plow the
soil? Truth is, seed requires two things
for germination. They are moisture
and warmth. To get moisture, the seed to soil
contact must be firm. To get warmth from the
Sun, we plant seed when the temperature is
favorable. Likewise, it is with developmental
work. The person-to-person contact
must be firm. To be firm, we must work
alongside our local counterparts to share
skills and knowledge (moisture). Warmth
can only come from the sun. In winter, some
farmers try to create warmth by using the
greenhouse effect. However, nothing can
be compared with real Sun. Planting the seed
at the right time is crucial. Too early, you kill it.
Because it too cool. Too late, we miss the
season and so have nothing to do but wait for
the next planting cycle. I guess this was hard
for me to understand when I was living and
growing up in Singapore. All kinds of fruits and
vegetables are available all reason round and
often in an instance. We get it anytime and
want it now! But the natural cycle of the
creation the creator has installed is
different. There is a time for everything
under heaven. So it is good that Tea Talk
is closed. The time has come for the
natural process of germination to do its
work. For April rain comes spring flowers.
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| An antique plow frozen in time and in the snow along the path that I usually takes my walk. Reminding me that winter is a season of rest from toil and wait for the first sign of spring. |
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| Its April but it is still very cold outside so I bought a pot of tulip. Can't wait to see what Spring will be like! |
It is very good indeed. In fact, it calls for a
celebration. I can’t wait to see what will
spring be like. I want to be able to smell
very flowers. I want to look at them, admire
them and take pictures of them and with them.
And this is the call to celebrate Tea Talk as it
closed it door at the end of its 6th year.
The 7th year, will be a time of rest, of waiting
and anticipation, that the natural process and
power of nature will do it germinating work,
then when the bud breaks, flowers blossom
and plants that have been dominant in the
winter months begin another cycle of life, of
growth, then shedding and dormancy later
in winter. It is also a time to re-imagine.
It is with this same spirit that I see the young
lives of Tea Talk, spring up and carry on the
work of building people, deepening
relationships, loving and sharing with one
another, growing in joy and peace,
being patient and kind,
cultivating goodness, faithfulness and doing
everything gently and with self-control.
Very simply, Tea Talk believes in LOVE.
Literally, some found their love at Tea Talk,
some fall in love with Tea Talk,
some felt loved at Tea Talk, and still some
found LOVE at Tea Talk, and this is Love.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy,
it does not boast, it is not proud.
It does not dishonor others, it is not
self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices
with the truth. It always protects,
always trusts, always hopes,
always perseveres. Love never fails.
It is my Vietnamese friends, volunteers
and colleagues who have taught me
what it means to be loved. So let’s celebrate
that Tea Talk is closed even as we
celebrate it 6th anniversary. We celebrate,
because, it is in the closing that the
LOVE we experienced can be shared to
those outside of Tea Talk.
Then, we can all really say, it is so!
Mission Accomplished!
celebration. I can’t wait to see what will
spring be like. I want to be able to smell
very flowers. I want to look at them, admire
them and take pictures of them and with them.
And this is the call to celebrate Tea Talk as it
closed it door at the end of its 6th year.
The 7th year, will be a time of rest, of waiting
and anticipation, that the natural process and
power of nature will do it germinating work,
then when the bud breaks, flowers blossom
and plants that have been dominant in the
winter months begin another cycle of life, of
growth, then shedding and dormancy later
in winter. It is also a time to re-imagine.
It is with this same spirit that I see the young
lives of Tea Talk, spring up and carry on the
work of building people, deepening
relationships, loving and sharing with one
another, growing in joy and peace,
being patient and kind,
cultivating goodness, faithfulness and doing
everything gently and with self-control.
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| If you were to ask Luong if she was aware that behind her was the word "re-imagine", she probably don't. Yes, moving forward, the young people have to re-imagine what the Tea Talk community means to them and how they can continue to keep it going. Touching lives, one at a time. |
Very simply, Tea Talk believes in LOVE.
Literally, some found their love at Tea Talk,
some fall in love with Tea Talk,
some felt loved at Tea Talk, and still some
found LOVE at Tea Talk, and this is Love.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy,
it does not boast, it is not proud.
It does not dishonor others, it is not
self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices
with the truth. It always protects,
always trusts, always hopes,
always perseveres. Love never fails.
It is my Vietnamese friends, volunteers
and colleagues who have taught me
what it means to be loved. So let’s celebrate
that Tea Talk is closed even as we
celebrate it 6th anniversary. We celebrate,
because, it is in the closing that the
LOVE we experienced can be shared to
those outside of Tea Talk.
Then, we can all really say, it is so!
Mission Accomplished!
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| I painted this picture. The tree is now a log, A resting place for the worn out bicycle wheel. Flowers blooming in the distance leading to a path of light. Signifying something wonderfully new is inviting us to explore. |