Thursday
Celebrating Sophistication
Klimt Pattern. Photo courtesy of Joey Johannsen.
I write this from San Francisco, as a grand gathering of family and friends of the Au Clan draws to a close. Five generations have come together to celebrate my father’s 90th birthday, from his 96 and 93 year old Canadian Chinese sisters to his 14 month-old great-great grand niece. It has been a joyful occasion, full of heart connections, the poignancy of reunion, and the endless delicious feasts for which our clan is well known. To complete the opera, there was also the requisite tension and high drama during the planning and preparation of the week-long events.
Before the final festivities began, in the quiet of the restaurant banquet room, I finished a five-foot tall ikebana arrangement with five varieties of potted orchids. My son and I set out large trays of flat Chinese ‘donut’ peaches, which symbolize longevity. In the creation of these offerings, I reflected on the power of the mother lineage to bind clans and societies together. There is a sophistication in the continuity of tradition, developed from centuries of nurturance and celebration. Continue…
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no responses - Posted 08.17.09
Letter from the Editor, Sangyum Agness Au We are honored and delighted to present a glorious feast on the mother lineage, to commemorate the first anniversary of the Sakyong Wangmo Empowerment and the Investiture of the Druk Sakyong Wangmo. Last year, Lady Diana Mukpo and Khandro Tseyang ...continue