Bangkok Old Town

What wonder! How did I not find this before? By not turning left, that's how - Zoolander would be proud of me today!!

The green river, piled high on both sides with articles of life and living: mattresses, sofas, chairs - places that people work and eat. I saw a family lying asleep, mother curled around her child, father with his arm draped loosely around his wife. So tender and inclusive. A little circle of love. It touched me so! Another woman lay sleeping alone, so thin it was a wonder she did not break - she certainly broke my heart. So still, she could've been lying in a coffin.

I walked where my feet took me and I came across another beautiful temple, only this one was not so perfectly maintained as the others I have seen. Parts seemed abandoned. It was populated - in its gardens - by stray cats, cautiously approaching, then bolting when they got too close; monks in their orange robes with bright yellow sashes; and old people resting in the shade, some with blisters and sores open, weeping down their legs. The paintwork was patchy, but beautiful nonetheless, and the trees and flowers seemingly watered and nurtured with love (people at work are you nurturing my plants, I wonder!). A man gestured to me. "Come" he said. "Take your time."

Take your time. I love this phrase and it is so common here, especially in the temples. I find it so welcoming and gentle. I would love this to be an ethos more common at home, where time always seems to be of the essence. Of the essence. Now what does this mean? Time is just a construct designed to help us fit into a time-bound world. It is so bizarre. Time should not be something to be lived to: how can it be? How can you make a good decision if you cannot take your time? You need time to gather clues and wait for the answers, as difficult as this might be. Patience brings the truth. Good things come to those who wait. Perhaps there is an ethos of this at home after all, even if only through advertisers...

So I sat, legs crossed, eyes closed for what must have been a while. It was long enough for my right foot to go numb so I could not stand - this usually takes around 45 minutes. I was brought back by the sound of a child crying and I saw a mother had arrived. As soon as she started to pray, the little girl quietened and stared around with her big brown eyes, still wet from her tears. How quickly sadness or frustration or whatever she felt, can fade.

When I left it seemed I had stepped into another world. I am still slightly anxious about what the next few months might bring to me, but for now, all is okay. Most people are good. They are kind, warm and friendly if they see you - I mean properly see you, as a person, rather than as a source of money. They are kind. They look and they smile.

Keep smiling folks!! I am.