Safe to Learn
  • About
    • Why Safe to Learn? >
      • Page 2 - Why School Safety?
      • Inspiring Quotes
      • Thank You...
    • Leading Safety >
      • Select one action item to support the Safe to Learn Community Project
      • Incorporate Safe to Learn
    • Safe to Learn
    • Safe to Learn Community >
      • Mission & Values
      • Background: Safe to Learn Pilot Project
      • How Are the Children?
      • Reflections: Education & Safety
      • Educators Q&A: "Why be part of Safe to Learn?
      • Saving School Safety
      • Let's Be Safe
    • Quick Views >
      • Principals Quick Views
      • Teachers Quick Views
      • Directory Quick Views
    • Advisory Council >
      • Chate Asvanonda
      • Dr. Nancy Degnan >
        • Uncommon Sense, Uncommon Courage
      • Renee Domingo >
        • School Safety Standards
      • Kim Colella >
        • A Musical Journey to Africa
        • Kim Travles to Africa
        • Kim's Photos from Africa
      • Dr. Tom Horton >
        • 1923 Cleveland School Fire was Catalyst for School Fire Drills
      • Kay Karr >
        • Why Plan?
        • Lessons Learned from Hurricane Ike
      • Avagene Moore >
        • My Dream of “A Nation Prepared”
      • Sgt. Tracy Moore
      • Captain Jim Olsen >
        • School Shootings - What Have We Learned
        • Let's Listen - School Shootings
      • Barbara Thurman
    • Safe to Learn Teams >
      • Our Team & Contributors >
        • Dee Beaugez, Founder >
          • Interview Q&A
          • About Safe to Learn >
            • Preparedness Experience
          • Real Images
        • Donald J. Beaugez >
          • Technology Expereince
        • Diana Savage
        • Jessika Savage
        • Elizabeth Hall
        • Patti Lowry-Parrish
        • Kanun Andrade
        • Jorge J Martinez >
          • A Gateway to Freedom
      • Pilot Project Team - LCISD >
        • About the Safe to Learn Pilot Project
        • Thank You - Lamar CISD Principals & Assistant Principals
        • Balancing School Safety and Academic Goals
        • Irma Nurre
        • Sonya Sanzo
      • Safe to Learn Authors
    • Authors
    • Authors In the News >
      • Phillip Martin - In the News >
        • The Mural Man - Liberia
        • Help African Teachers Expand School and Clinic
        • Mural Man - Moldova >
          • #1 TV Interview
          • #2 TV Interview
          • #3 TV Interview
          • #4 TV Interview
          • #5 TV Interviews
        • The Mural Man Series Begins
        • A Taste of My World Cookbook
      • Rick Tobin - In the News >
        • Ten Tips for Safer Schools Series
      • Authors Press Releases
    • Media & Press Releases >
      • TEPSA Conference 2016
      • Three Questions June 2016
      • Authors Press Releases
      • Advisory Council Press Releases
      • About Safe to Learn
    • eBook Submission Guidelines >
      • eBook Submission Requirements
  • Blogs
    • Wander My World With Me by Phillip Martin >
      • 2018 - 2016 Directory Wander My World With Me
      • Introduction - I Draw
      • Faces in the Crowd Logo
      • Help African Teachers Expand School and Clinic
      • Wander My World - Liberia -eBook Helps Fund School
      • About Murals for U.S. Embassy Ebola Survivors Project in Liberia
    • Safe to Learn by Advisory Team and Authors >
      • Dream of A Nation Prepared
      • About the Masai Warriors
    • Golden Navigator by Sage West
    • Ask Tiffanie - Seasonal Foods and More >
      • Tiffanie's Invitation
      • About Tiffanie Boldizsar
    • Nurse Stitches
    • Authors Blogs >
      • Authors Blog Directory
    • Honoring Mourning and Remembrance
    • Preparedness Perspectives >
      • Preparedness Directory
      • Flooding in Texas
    • What Have We Learned? >
      • Directory 2016 - What Have We Learned?
      • Let's Listen - School Shootings
    • Inspiration for Life
  • Let's Guide Safety
    • School District COOP
    • Principles for Principals >
      • Leading the Way to School Safety
      • Reflections >
        • The Day After 9/11
        • Observations
        • Be Prepared and Be a Leader
        • Communication is Key
        • New Safety Checklist
        • Practice, Practice, Practice
        • Note to Ada
      • Author Ada Rosario Dolch
      • It Takes Time & Practice
    • Keeping It Real >
      • Building School Response Teams >
        • Lucien Canton, CEM
    • Response to Violence >
      • The Best Response to Violence in Your School Is the Response which Never Has to Happen >
        • Dr. Cathy Anthofer
        • Links and Resources
    • Ten Tips for Teachers for Safer Schools >
      • Elementary Schools
      • Middle & Junior High Schools
      • High Schools
      • A Great Starting Point
      • Rick Tobin
    • Color Me Safe Series >
      • Patti Parrish >
        • Pet Safe - All Seasons
        • Keep Pets Disaster Safe
        • Lucky Dog's Message
        • Lucky Dog Rap
      • Denise Langston
    • Forever Hope >
      • Fulfilling a Dream >
        • About Vickee Greer
    • 2016 Authors Inspiring Safety & Awareness
    • 2016-2017 Authors Inspiring History & Leadership
  • Safety Series
    • Invest 1 Hour a Month to be Safe to Learn
    • Principles for Principals by Ada Rosario Dolch
    • #1 - Safety First
    • #2 - Calendar >
      • Safe to Learn 2016-17 Calendar
    • # 3 - Fire Drills >
      • 1923 Cleveland School Fire was Catalyst for School Fire Drills
      • Fire Drills Prepare Students for Real-Life Incidents
      • Outstanding Safe to Learn Pilot Project for 2014-2015
    • #4 - Building & Campus Safety
    • #5 - School Response Teams
    • #6 - Tips for Teachers
    • Why Plan? Documentary >
      • Why Plan? For Sale
    • Future Safety Series
  • Teachers Tools
    • About Health Equity Project >
      • Waiting for Health Equity
      • Start a Conversation about Health Equity
    • The Door - A Must for the School Year >
      • More About - The Door
    • Tsunami K-6 Curriculum
  • Let's Read
    • STORE
    • Wander My World - Liberia -eBook Helps Fund School
    • Let's Read Authors
    • Contact Safe to Learn About Volume Orders
    • Let's Read - Books >
      • What Do You Do With An Idea by Kobi Yamada & Illustrated by Mae Besom >
        • Resource: Examples of Lessons Plans Based Around "What You Do with An Idea"
      • The Mitten by Jan Brett >
        • Sheir Loy Reads "The Mitten" to Help with Safety
      • Sleep Ponies by Gudrun Ongman
      • Garbage Bag Suitcase
      • A Long Walk to Water >
        • Links - Linda Sue Parks
      • What Color is Your Parachute for Teens
      • Helping Traumatized Children
      • Let's Be Prepared Resources
    • Let's Read Educators
  • Let's Talk
    • Start a "Let's Talk" Round Table Discussion >
      • Let's Brew a Cappuccino
      • Every Child Needs a Champion
      • Foster Care & Garbage Bag Suitcase >
        • More about Garbage Bag Suitcase
      • "Why Plan?" Documentary
      • 9/11 Webinar 9/13/2016 >
        • New York 9/11/2015 >
          • Let's Talk 9/11/2015 - Stand with Me Today
          • New York 2015 - 9/11 Images
          • Remember 9/11 by Phillip Martin
      • Documentary Films >
        • Let's Talk - Most Likely to Succeed
        • Let's Talk - Beyond Measure
        • Let's Talk - Paper Tigers >
          • Educational Versions
          • ACEs/toxic stress color wheel
        • Let's Talk - The Cats of Mirikitani >
          • The Cat Who Chose to Dream
          • Asian American History
      • Distracted Driving Awarenes
      • Discovery Education MS 88 Brooklyn NY
      • Bullying Though the Eyes of a Child
      • Kindess Matters Campaign
      • Let's Listen - School Violence
      • Let's Talk - Safe to Learn >
        • How Are the Children?
        • Reflections about Safe to Learn
        • Why Safe to Learn?
      • Let's Talk - Safety >
        • Active Shooter
        • Make A Difference
        • Emergency Preparedness for School
        • Incarceration >
          • Incarceration - Links and Resources
        • Natural Disaster - Lessons Learned
        • Teaching 9/11
        • Violence in Schools
        • Violence Prevention Resouces
        • Cure Violence
      • Let's Talk - Social Issues >
        • Homeless Students >
          • Homeless Youth Resources
        • Helping Hunger
        • Human Trafficking in Schools
    • Health Equity Issues
    • Share Your Ideas
  • Free
    • Free Graphics for Teachers
    • Presentations for Teachers
    • Free Art Lesson Plans
    • Free Coloring Books
    • Websites for Teaching and Learning
    • Original Stories
    • Safe to Learn Calendars
    • Safe to Learn Drawing
    • FREE Seasonal Recipes >
      • ​Cumin-Jalapeno Black Bean Soup
      • Pies by Barbara
      • Healthy "Ice Cream" Treats
  • Links
    • Suggest a Link
    • Animals and Children >
      • Pasado's Safe Haven
      • The Gentle Barn
      • Red Rover Readers
      • Travel the World & Learn Kindness to Animals
      • Animal Stories & Books
    • Children, Education & Safety Resouces >
      • Linda Lantieri
      • Resilience Resources
    • Let's Talk - Preparedness >
      • Emergency Plans
      • Incident Command System
      • FEMA Trainings
      • Earthquake and Tsunami Resources >
        • The Really Big One
      • Distracted Driving Awareness
      • School Bus Safety Resources
      • Fire Drills
      • School Safety Resouces
    • Homeless Youth
  • Leadership
    • Inspiring Leaders >
      • Every Child Needs a Champion
    • In Memoriam >
      • Principal Susan Jordan
  • Amazing Educators
    • Every Child Needs a Champion
    • Sheri Loy's Innovative Lockdown Solution
    • Miss Julie Inspires Safety >
      • Julie Kennedy, Teacher/Educator
      • Outstanding Safe to Learn Pilot Project for 2014-2015
    • Let's Sing >
      • Nancy Stewart, Founder of Sing With Our Kids >
        • Sing With Our Kids - Nancy's Pilot Project and Free Resources Website
        • Nancy Stewart Free Website Resources
        • Why Sing? The 5 Practices of Early Literacy
        • Safe to Learn - Let's Sing Excellence in Education Award Winner 2015
    • Let's Sign (ASL) >
      • Nancy Hanauer, Founder Hop to Signaroo ® >
        • Babies Can Communicate
        • Signing for Social and Learning Skills
    • Educators in the News >
      • Abigail's Plan
      • 10 Minutes of Compliments >
        • Special Books Project
      • Inspiring Student with Music & Songs
  • Let's Explore
    • Phillip Martin - The Mural Man >
      • Directory of Murals
      • Let's Explore Mural Man Series
      • Murals #43 and #44
      • Mural #14 - Don't Let Drugs Take You for a Ride!
      • Murals #6, #7 & #35
      • Food Pantry - Ohio, USA
      • Mural Man' Phillip Martin
      • Artist Phillip Martin
    • Wander My World With Me Blog Directory 2016
    • Water >
      • Water Center - Earth Institute | Columbia University
  • Let's Taste
    • A Taste of My World Cookbooks by Phillip Martin >
      • Let's Brew a Cappuccino
      • A Taste of My World, Vol. 1
      • A Taste of My World, Vol. 2
    • The Very Exciting, Great And Nutritious (VEGAN) Cookbook >
      • Kanun Andrade
    • Flavorful Food Adventures >
      • Tiffanie Boldizsar
  • Communities
    • Principals Resources >
      • "Why Plan?" - School-Center Emergency Management
      • Lessons Learned from Hurricane Ike
      • THE DOOR - Health -Safety
      • "Principles for Principals" A Gift From Ada Rosario Dolch
    • Leadership & Safety Series Downloads >
      • Leadership and Safety Series HS
    • Lamar CISD Community
    • Inner Resilience Program
  • Store
  • TEPSA 2016
  • Training Site
  • About Health Equity Project

My Next Book . . .

6/4/2021

2 Comments

 
Picture
I just finished book number eleven, "Hark and Harold Angel Sing".  And, I think it has some of my best illustrations out of any of my books so far.  Since I don't have any murals lined up, after all, the world is only barely starting to open up, I decided that it might be time to write another folk tale book.  I wanted to do one from a corner of the world that I have not yet done.  I first thought of Paraguay.  I have a tale, The Legend of the Waterfall, that I absolutely love.  It's kind of a Romeo and Juliet tale with poisoned arrows, people hacked to death with axes, and pretty much everyone dies in the end.  Yes, it's a gruesome tale, but I had a kind of "Princess Bride" mojo in mind as I wrote the story.  It's laugh out loud funny and simply not acceptable for a children's book.   So, I opted for a tale from Burma.

Picturea vase worth trading for
I love Burma. 

I first went to Burma in the early 90's just after it opened up to the West.  The Burmese people were so very friendly and so hungry for anything from the outside world.  I traded every stitch of clothing not on my back for lacquerware and other treasures.  I've never had that kind of experience anywhere else.  One of my best treasures was a huge vase, about as wide as my outstretched arms.  The shopkeeper said it was made by his father, who had recently died.  I said that he couldn't sell it; he had to save this heirloom!  But, the man wanted to sell it to me.  If I remember correctly, I bought the vase for $5 and a backpack.  He knew I would treasure it.  And, he knew I would send him photographs of the vase when I arrived home.  (Of course, I did.) 

My favorite place in Burma is Bagan, a UNESCO Heritage Site just stuffed full of historic pagodas of enormous size.  And, it's where you get your lacquerware while in Burma.  There were not many tourists in the area when I visited.  So, while I climbed around the pagodas (taking limited photos in the days of film photography), I was easily discovered by a charming local kid, about eight years old, who wanted to hone his English skills.  Aung Aung was delightful.  I know he had to meet many, many people in Bagan.  I was just one among the crowds.  But, for my travel experience, he was one of my highlights in Bagan.


PictureOne of so many Bagan pagodas
I returned to Bagan about five years later, and there were a lot more tourists and a lot less bartering.  Of course, I wanted to see if I could locate Aung Aung.  And, my search was successful.  A very polite teenager invited me into his home.  His parents welcomed me with a traditional Burmese meal and a wonderful experience was shared by all.  One of my sweetest memories was the day I left Bagan.  Aung Aung and his mother met me at the hotel to send me off.  And, they presented me with a golden lacqureware vase that I have treasured ever since.

I've never heard from him since.  I really had no way to contact him.  And, I've always wondered what happened to this kid.

So, these were all the thoughts going through my mind as I selected "The Frog Princess - A Cinderella Tale from Burma" as my next project.  I dug out my old travel journal to see if I had a mailing address for Aung Aung.  I didn't.  But, I did have an address for the Golden Cuckoo Lacquerware Shop in New Bagan.  Well, the world has changed since the early 90s.  The store now has a Facebook page and I decided to write to them.  New Bagan couldn't be that big.  There was a very good chance that they had to know Aung Aung.  I even threw in the name of his parents.  With the message sent, I went to bed.

Well, there was a pleasant surprise in the morning.  I had very positive communication with a guy from the lacquerware shop.  He was the son of the man I traded with for my vase so long ago.  I sent the merchant photos of his father with my vase.  He couldn't believe how young his father was.  Truth be told, this all happened before the son was born.  I assured him I knew all about time marching on.   

On top of that, the people at the store were well acquainted with my friend Aung Aung.  It appears that their store had expanded since my days there.  They also gave tours in and around Bagan.  And, Aung Aung sometimes worked for them as a tour guide.  It would be a perfect job for him.  He continued to hone his English in the years since I met him.


PictureAung Aung in red with Anderson Cooper
The lacquerware man passed my information on to Aung Aung, but as I expected, he didn't recognize my name.  How could he?  But, it didn't stop him from communicating with me on Facebook.  And, he explored all over my blog.  I sent him a few of my Burmese photos and told him about my two visits, meeting his family, a Burmese meal and his parting gift.  He remembered all that right away.  So, we exchanged telephone numbers for a face-to-face WhatsApp conversation after oh, so many years.  How many years?  I'm not sure, but he is now thirty-eight.

In catching up a bit, Aung Aung worked as a travel guide among other things.  I told him I am one of the most non-famous guests he ever met in Bagan.  But, after looking at his Facebook page, I saw that he had hosted one of the most famous tourists ever to come to the area, Anderson Cooper.  However, all of this was before Covid hit the planet.  People in Burma are suffering just like everywhere else.  None, zero, zip tourists come to Burma these days.  He has no job, no income, and not a lot of hope for the near future.  Currently he is residing in a monastery as a Buddhist monk.  His English is completely self-taught by his interactions with tourists.  And, while at the monastery, he has taught an English course to local children.  The kids worked at the family farm by day, and thirty-five of them came to his class from six to eight in the evening.  I had to ask.  When you teach classes at a monastery, there are no behavior problems.

I learned something new about Buddhist monks in my conversation.  They eat twice a day.  The first meal is breakfast and the second one is lunch at noon.  They eat nothing else the rest of the day.  I would lose some needed pounds if I were a monk.

Anyway, needless to say, my next book is going to be a tale from Burma.  I'm now going to have much more frequent communication with Aung Aung.  Once every thirty years or so is not satisfactory.  And, when I finish my folk tale book, he will be one of the first people to see it.

Picture
Sunset on the Irrawaddy River in Bagan
2 Comments
Geremias Cilião link
6/4/2021 05:01:53 pm

Wow, everytime wonderfull words...

Reply
Phillip
6/4/2021 05:26:01 pm

I'm glad you enjoy it, Ge. Do you read it in English or Portuguese?

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Wander My World With Me 
    by Phillip Martin

    Artist, Muralist,
    Photographer and
    World Wanderer
    Blog Directory

    Wonder about Wander My World With Me?
    • I Draw (Introduction)
    • Faces in the Crowd
      About Icon Images 
    • Directory

    Archives

    December 2022
    November 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016

    Categories

    All
    Portraits
    Travel

    RSS Feed

    View Previous Blogs and Add Comments
    Scroll to the bottom of this page and select "Previous" 
    and/or add Comments by selecting "Comments" and fill in the "Leave a Reply" form.
    Phillip Martin's Web Sites
    • Facebook
    • ​The Mural Man
    Phillip Martin's Books
    • The Mural Man Series 
    • A Taste of My World Cookbooks
“Safety and security don’t just happen; they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. 
 We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear.”
 
~ Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa



Proudly powered by Weebly
Design by DivTag Templates