Beautiful Sunday: sunset and living in Bangkok.

In monsoon season, the sky in Bangkok was often very cloudy and gray. We could hardly see colourful sunsets or take photos of golden hours. The gray clouds didn’t look striking or dramatic either, so I couldn’t find the chance for taking photos of spectacular clouds for ‘love the clouds’ community. So, when I saw a nice sunset I would get very excited and rush for my iPhone. I still couldn’t afford a decent camera as other priorities would come first; expensive gadgets or toys would be the last on my list.

So, I tried hard to stready my hand while taking photos of sunset in Bangkok skyline. Looking towards the city center where new and modern skyscrapers crowded together for a sense of community, I thought I was very lucky that an old college friend invited me to her apartment in this building. It took me two years of looking around various condos and apartments around the city before the right place happened to appear in front of me.

My old friend was very kind and patient with my indecision and excuses. I told her I never lived in small spaces before and I doubted if a small apartment would suit my needs. I was also thinking about town houses, but cheap ones were located too far from city center. My friend was very wise and asked me to stay in her apartment by myself during one weekend. She had to return to her house and looked after her elderly mother at their big house in the suburbs.

I realised that this could work for me as it reminded me of my college days of sharing a flat with a friend. But those flats were in houses with gardens and in quiet locations. The problem for me was to find the right design of internal spaces and the location of the apartment unit. I preferred afternoon sunlight so the options facing north and east wouldn’t fit my conditions. My friend tried so hard to convince me to move into the same building so that I could become her buddy.

We looked at several old and new apartments but I always found some weak spots or drawbacks in those units. My friend was amazed by my sharp eyes and knowledge about potential leaking of rain water in rainy season. During my years of living abroad, I had accumulated lots of people’s bad experiences with house repairs and water problems. I thought I could never find a living space which was meant for me within her vicinity. So, I told her I would have to look at other options by myself.

Another year passed by and I still couldn’t find the ‘right’ place. I was almost desperate as I could no longer do house sitting for my elderly relative any longer. I had a very nice time in that big house with a gardener. The house was ready for moving in, but my relative were ill and the house was too far in the suburbs for his family. They couldn’t drive and the location was too isolated being far away from markets and hospitals.

So, I looked after the big house with five stray dogs and I found a gardener to feed the dogs for me. That was a nice and peaceful moments in my life when I could do gardening and plant lots of trees and shrubs around the big garden. But one day, my relative family wanted to sell the house. That’s why I needed my friend’s suggestions on living close to city center. My friend phoned me to see whether I had found a new place for myself.

She invited me for dinner at her place and told me about new units available at her building. It seemed some company with several rental units wanted to sell some of their stock. So, I could find some spare time for viewing more choices. This time, I was quite impressed by the qualities of designs, spaciousness and directions of these new units. But I didn’t get that ‘click’ inside me telling me that a unit was just ‘right’ for me. My friend sensed some hesitation and indecision inside me. I became very sober and quiet, not knowing what’s the right thing to do. So, I thanked her for all the trouble and help.

As we were saying goodbye at the door, my friend told me to wait. She phoned for a bunch of keys from downstairs, my friend happened to know the owners of this building and they were related through their grandparents. So, we coukd see all the available units privately. She got those keys and proceeded to lead me to a newly finished unit. I was impressed by the compact size which reminded me of my old flat during my college years. The location and direction were acceptable from a feng shui perspective. I walked around the three rooms and a long veranda. The view from the south should good for watching sunsets. But the ‘click’ came to me as soon as I saw the virw from the bathroom. That was the view I saw in my dream a year ago.

I often prayed for guidance when I had to make important decisions in my life. Sometimes I would about meeting strangers and going places in foreign lands years before these became reality. So, in my dream I saw myself standing by a big window looking at the view of the city. That same view appeared before me! So, I knew it was waiting for me. I told my friend I liked this place and wanted to reserve the unit straight away. She thought I was joking as it took me less than fifteen minutes to make my decision.

It took me several weeks to organise for a mortgage and to get all the official documents in order. One day I found myself with the keys to my new apartment so I could start moving boxes of my belongings to my new place. My elderly relatives were quite glad that I could move to my own place within less than a year. I felt sorry for them as the old uncle was negatively influenced by his young wife. They didn’t have a chance to live in their big house at all. Later on I studied feng shui in greater depth so I realised the unfortunate aspects of the location and design of the house. I could hardly believe that they didn’t bother to consult a respectable feng shui expert. Most wealthy Chinese businessmen would have some rudimentary knowledge on feng shui. The tycoons would pay a hefty sum of money for expert advice on feng shui.

Looking at the sunset and view of many skyscrapers, I realised that changes in the landscape have continued quietly through time. Some old houses have been turned into new blocks of skyscrapers. The city must be sinking much faster than before due to several new skyscrapers every year. A new condo has blocked part of the view of sunset and blocked the display of fireworks by the river.

I had dreams or visions of something unpleasant happening in the future, it’s connected to some natural disaster. But I couldn’t tell the causes of the dramatic event or how it ended. I caught a short episode or video recording of this traumatic incident. The city wouldn’t be a safe haven in the future, but I didn’t know the exact timing. That dream was a shock to me and I dared not even describe it in details to my friendly monk. But I told him to be ready to leave the city when the crisis arrived. I have been trying to mske a move with much difficulty; it was as if I was meant to face the crisis with other human beings. I wondered if I had the duty to give some people warning, may be I had to help saving as many people as possible before I would be allowed to let go of my comfort zone.

All my friends and families ignored my warnings and my advice not to put money in long term investment projects. I had done my best in helping people detoxing the poisonous jabs and saved a few lives; I have given friends warnings about kenetic conflicts in the near future and possible natural disasters. But I felt alone like an outsider, I used to be able to talk with some exceptional people who were psychic though they had professional careers. They also couldn’t get my message; they were too busy making lots of money.

They employed psychic abilities in their profession and wanted to recruit me as a member of their teams. But I was not supposed to make money out of this gift. My old friend told me I could make so much money with my reputation in this field, she offered to be my manager! Such crazy idea! So, I remained a loner with very little practical skills for making a living during this phase in my life. It’s time to be quietly praying and observing my mind with total attention. Perhaps I would discover my path to enlightenment one day.

Wishing you peace, good health and prosperity.

Stay strong and cheerful.

#beautifulsunday hosted by @ace108