Nephat

. . . is from Thailand and has lived in Belgium for five years, I think. He is about the same age as me, but seems younger. He is in our Flemish class and attends every time. He never misses. He's very attentive and eager to learn.

He lives in an apartment in downtown Hasselt, right over the stores, and teaches yoga in his spare time. He speaks very good English, has a cell phone, but never watches TV.

He told us he works for a doctor in Hasselt giving massage therapy. Interesting, the doctor decided some years ago that he didn't like practicing medicine in the traditional way. Doctor visit, prescribe meds, possible hospital admission, etc. This doctor went to Thailand to learn massage therapy from Nephat and asked Nephat to return here with him. So he did.

Now you may be familiar with the difference between an M.D. and a D.O., but in case you aren't . . . it's basically the same rigorous training to become both kinds of doctor. The main difference is in their philosophy on how to practice medicine.

When an M.D. begins to specialize like say in Obstetrics or Cardiology, a D.O. leans toward no specialization and will likely become a General Practitioner since he/she believes more in preventive care and sees every disease or condition as affecting the whole body rather than just one part of the body. They are full-fledged doctors, have completed the same amount of training as an M.D., can prescribe meds, etc.

So, I have no idea what kind of doctor Nephat works for, but he is certainly not traditional.

Nephat says their approach to ailments is through diet and massage. He says the doctor will prescribe a regimen of fasting, drinking only liquids for one day or several, and massage therapy. Never prescribes any medication.

He says he fasts one day per week, drinks tea (not just green), and uses only natural oils on his skin. He says when he has a cold or a headache, he drinks warm water. He figured we think he's crazy and I don't know if I would be willing to turn my health over to this doctor or to Nephat, but I appreciate this approach. No doubt we could all fast every now and then. And I have to admit, his skin is pretty nice.

Sharp Hill

no comment

Scherpenheuvel.

A mouthful,

the most important Pilgrimage (Catholic) in Belgium,

and where we spent Sunday afternoon with Rik and Marie-Louise. They have lived in or near Scherpenheuvel all their lives.

As you can see, the basilica is the main attraction here.

Its origins date back to the Middle Ages. On top of the hill a solitary oak tree was visible over a wide area. This tree seems to have been the center of superstitious practices until a wooden figure of the Virgin Mary was affixed to the tree during the 14th century.

Legend has it that in 1514, a shepherd tried to take the statue home. He remained transfixed until the little statue was put back. Since then the shrine gained wider celebrity. In 1602 a little wooden chapel was built. In 1603 a new miracle is reported and the statue is said to have wept bloody tears. It doesn't do that now.

Bizarre? Yeah, but I could probably tell you a few more like . . .

did you hear the one about the man and his concubine wandering the streets?

Okay, I should probably stop right there with that one.

Not the original.

Long story short. Lots more happened on this hilltop. As you can imagine - Middle Ages . . . Now.

In 1605, the present baroque basilica was built with the help of Archduke Albrecht and Archduchess Isabella.

The Basiliek van Scherpenheuvel

Designation as a basilica is pretty detailed, but it basically means a large and important church given special ceremonial rites by the Pope. The. Pope.

The exterior of the structure is currently undergoing some serious restoration. I guess this isn't the first time that's happened in 400 years. Nor the last.

Each year in May, the pilgrimage is opened with a feast and since around 1550, people have come here to pray for health or . . . whatever one might pray for.

As many as a million people visit this basilica annually. That's a lot of pilgrims, pilgrim.

On the first Sunday of May, a group of pilgrims start in Antwerp and walk all the way to Scherpenheuval. That is over 50 km and takes about 11 hours to walk it! I don't think I would look so good after 11 hours of walking - most of it in the rain.

Handmade candles/fundraiser

Interesting . . . you can bring your car here and the priest will bless it. There were cars here the entire time we were here.

Car blessing/fundraiser

Let me thank Becky and Kay for making this happen. And Rik and Marie-Louise for being such nice hosts. This is a really great little town which we would have missed seeing without some connections. And we made two friends whom we hope to visit again :)

A wonderful day!

Enjoying, what else, a Belgian bier.

Guffaw

I used to be a hot-tar roofer. Yeah, I remember that . . . day.

Mitch Hedberg

I'm lucky to know quite a few witty people. Many are in my very own family.

What is it that makes you laugh? That thing that makes you laugh 'til you cry or your stomach hurts.

I love comedies, comedians, and being around those people who are so quick-witted you wonder how in the world they come up with such priceless comments.

Here are a few old clips that still make me laugh. Hope you guffaw.

Oh, and just click on the name then hit the "back" button to return here.

Ellen DeGeneres

Maria Bamford

Brian Regan

Kathleen Madigan

"We don't laugh because we're happy. We're happy because we laugh."

William James

Comfort Zone

Understood Assignments.

Like in a classroom. You pick a spot on Day One and from then on that's Your Seat. Everybody knows it. No one questions it. No one would dare sit in it. It's understood.

An Understood Assignment.

Jim and I have been married for almost 30 years and in that time we've moved to a few different houses. Okay, quite a few. But no matter how many houses we've lived in, no matter how the bedroom is arranged, I always sleep on the left. Always. It's just understood.

One time recently we were staying in a hotel and I didn't sleep well at all. The reason occurred to me the next day. I'd slept on the wrong side of the bed!

Maybe that's where the saying "got up on the wrong side of the bed" comes from.

Hmmmm. Something to ponder.

If you are lucky enough to have 2 sinks in your bathroom, no doubt you use the same one. Every time. You probably couldn't even brush your teeth over the Other One. If someone is at Your Sink, you reluctantly move to the other one realizing immediately you should have waited on Your Sink to free up.

And furthermore, wonder why anyone would consider using Your Sink. It IS an Understood Assignment after all. Hello? What is wrong with you?

I'll bet your dinner table is the same. Every time you sit down to eat (assuming you do sit down at the dinner table to eat), you always sit in the same spot. Even if you eat alone, I'll bet you sit in that same chair every time. And for all of us who eat on the sofa or in the living room chairs, where you're supposed to eat, I'll bet you sit in the same place. Every time.

It's an understood assignment. Nobody questions it.

Now, for the record, we do not have this next piece of furniture.

For those of you who DO have a Papa Bear chair in your living room, Papa Bear usually sits in it. If company comes over and moves toward that chair and hesitates knowing full well it's the Papa Bear's chair, you say something like . . . Please, have a seat. Your company says . . . Oh no, I don't want to sit in Papa Bear's chair. You say, sheepishly . . . It's not - please sit down. So they reluctantly do. Of course we're all out of our comfort zone now. Everyone knows that's an Understood Assignment. Someone is in Papa Bear's chair.

Yeah, we're all comfortable with that Assigned Seating. Until company comes :-/

If you have 2 cars in your garage, there's no doubt in my mind that you park in the same place every time. If you come home and whomever shares your garage is on Your Side, you wonder immediately . . . Why are they parked on My Side? Now I've got to park on Their Side. They're in My Understood Assigned Place.

You go inside and ask . . . Why are you parked in my place? And you get this answer like your garage-sharer is unaware of the understood assignment. Oh, I didn't know we had assigned parking spaces.

Now you do.

In our Flemish class, the front row has only 3 seats. There were three people in one family who always sat on the front row. For weeks they'd sat there. Always.

One day we got two new people in our class and they sat on the front row. Jim and I looked at each other like "Oh no. Those seats belong to that family of 3". Then the family of 3 walked in.

The two new people had no idea what they'd done. But the rest of the class did. The family of 3 looked at their former seats and were relegated to the back row. The two new people have sat there ever since. Never knowing they took "an understood assignment".

I felt badly. For all of them. I still do! That is just ridiculous.

Never underestimate your comfort zone. And that it may even extend to the comfort zone of others :~|

May Day

"Going a-maying" - going into the country to gather greenery and flowers was an English tradition celebrating the start of Spring.

Another English tradition is the maypole usually hung with greenery and ribbons serving as a central point for festivities. The maypole was sometimes used for morris dancing (an English folk dance) where the people would braid the maypole with ribbons by weaving in and out during the dance.

When I was in kindergarten at the Hodge Baptist Church (and we were Catholic), we had one of these maypoles. It was all metal and seemed huge at the time. Frankly, I really hated that thing. It's probably still there. Here's one on the playground right by our house now.

In many countries, May Day is also Labor Day. This actually originates with the United States labor movement. In the late 1800's, unions across the country went on strike, demanding that the standard workday be shortened to eight hours. This meant eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest.

The protests were eventually successful as eight-hour work days are now the norm. The rest of the world took the American strikes as a rallying point, choosing May Day as a day to celebrate.

Most countries celebrate the annual holiday of Labor Day on May 1, popularly known as May Day, to celebrate the achievements of workers. Belgium does. However, some countries celebrate Labor Day on the first Monday of September. The U. S. does.

Giving baskets of flowers also became part of the festivities of May Day. Usually made by children, these baskets are filled with flowers and placed on a neighbor or friend's doorstep.

When I was in elementary school, my mother thought it was important to give a basket of flowers to my teacher on May Day. Of course, I liked this idea too. We would use those little green plastic strawberry baskets you get at the grocery store, fill them with Easter grass, and a little bouquet of whatever flowers were blooming at the time. I haven't thought about that in a very long time.

And totally unrelated trivia . . . Mayday is also an emergency code word used internationally as a distress signal. It comes from the French venez m'aider, meaning "come help me" and has absolutely nothing to do with the May Day known also as Labor Day.

So Happy May Day. Or Labour Day as we call it in Belgie :) Surprise someone with a strawberry basket filled with Easter grass and a jonquil or two.