Check out Lesson 36
Hey, our newest lesson, number 36, is now available on our podcast page. This lesson is an interview with my Tibetan friends Jampa and Sonam Nyima. I think they’re very interesting and I hope you also find it interesting and educational.
Enjoy and learn.
March 13th, 2006 at 6:10 am
Hi John,
My name is Tashi and I’m a Tibetan living in Dharamsala, you know where I mean. Through friends I heard that you are back in town and I want to be true and tell you what we really think of you.
You may already knew this (if you have close Tibetan friends) that now Tibetans are getting a little tired of westerners (Americans in particular) and thinking about how to get rid of them. There are, so far, seven Tibetan blood suckers and surprisingly enough that all of these people are Americans. And to be honest, you are one of these people. I’m just wondering if you had a professional career while back in America or you just grew on Tibetans by practizing your skills on us?
I heard your podcast, a friend of mine who is a friend of Jampa told me how to get that and I wanted to learn the hidden things behind the so called interviewing.
Any way, happy to see you in town as someone to have been seen so many times, but we hope that you leave no influence and leave us do our jobs, please. My both hands are joined together.
Sincerely yours,
Tashi
(PS If I find this post here when I come in a couple of days, I may talk to you when I see you walking in one of the streets, thanks again.)
March 21st, 2006 at 2:31 pm
Hi Tashi,
Well, what a surprise to find your message. It’s actually the first negative message I’ve received in a long long time, so I can say that it is certainly refreshing. However, I think that this blog is not the place for personal attacks (calling me a ‘Tibetan blood sucker’ is certainly a personal attack). Generally, my opinion is that people who write such negative things on a blog are themselves very negative people. I often wonder why people become so negative and then feel the need to go further and express it on a blog. You write ‘we’ and I suggest you use ‘I’ next time, as others with similar feeilngs could be more effective when they speak for themselves.
As for me, when I have negative feelings I always try to find some way to make my attitude more positive — thinking about the good things in your life, your potential as a human being and all the good things you can do with your future. As you know, His Holiness and other great spiritual people have wonderful teachings about overcoming internal negative feelings. Many of these teachings focus on the idea that the answer is within yourself, not somewhere else. I like the principle that ‘your enemy is your best teacher’ which I think is a part of Tibetan Buddhism. So, Tashi, if I am in fact one of you enemies, perhaps your relationship with me (and others you don’t like) can be beneficial to you?
My email address is on the website here and please feel free to send me any messages or comments. I think my Engilsh-learning blog is not the proper place for further discussions about this.
I really have to tell you though, I’m surprised that you didn’t take the time to find me while I was in McLeod Ganj. If you really want to solve problems that may exist, then why not confront the problems directly and talk to people face-to-face? I think there are many people who talk about all the negative aspects of people (usually OTHER people) and the human condition, but there are few people who really look to solve these problems.
If you did try to find me, then I’m sorry that I didn’t have the chance to speak with you directly. I think that if you really have thought about the issues of Westerners/Americans in the Tibetan exile community, and are serious about an open discussion, then please email me as I’d be very interested in your opinions.
Tashi, I spent about seven years working with Tibetans in McLeod Ganj, and I went to Tibet four times. I don’t claim to be any kind of special person but I do value the times I spent teaching English and computer skills to (mostly) newcomer Tibetans. They were good times and I think the benefits of what I did (and continue to do on a smaller scale) certainly outweigh any negative aspects of my volunteer work and presence in McLeod Ganj for all those years. I often thought about this issue of the pros and cons of Westerners and others bringing both their help and influence into the Tibetan community. It was often a topic of discussion between myself and my foreign, Indian and Tibetan friends. I still continue to think about these topics.
Again, thanks for your boldness but I suggest you think twice (or three times) when you publicy call people ‘blood suckers’ and assert things like ‘Tibetans are getting a little tired of westerners.’ Do you speak for all Tibetans in exile? I think a better statement would be, ‘I’m getting a little tired of westerners’ or ‘some Tibetans are getting tired of westerners.’ These could be the truth or close to the truth. In the end, my opinion is that some Tibetans are getting tired of Westerners and some aren’t. Foreign people and organizations are bringing both positive and negative influences to the Tibetan community and I think it’s a great topic of discussion.
Please feel free to send me email and respect that my English-learning blog is not the proper place for this discussion.
Tashi delek!
John
ps. about your question regarding my career prior to volunteering in McLeod Ganj: I have a bachelor’s degree in Engineering with concentrations (minors) in Computer Science and Accounting. Before coming to McLeod I was a computer programmer, project manager and consultant. I was never an English teacher before coming to McLeod. I am now an English teacher in Matsumoto, Japan, teaching part-time at a Japanese university as well as private lessons.
pss. Tashi, you write: ‘leave us do our jobs, please.’ I’d like to ask you a couple of questions: 1. what is your job (employment)? 2. what is your mission or goal? (which I think is your meaning of the word ‘job’ in the above quote.