Patch's Diary
October 28, 2005
I sometimes think I live in a sweet fairy tale. In and around my true purpose, to build our fantasy hospital, I must chase the corners of the earth unsure where or when funding will come. My few days at home each year have a quiet excitement dancing around phone calls, faxes and mail with the world. Here is the juice of encouragement and thanks as countless people speak to me of our influence and ask for our input. By probing them and the 120 monthly magazines and hundreds of newsletters I digest, I find hope and connection in other people and projects. At home, I sit in my chair and the whole world comes to me. All the information screams the value of our directions and tells me of a level of social, political and environmental disaster that compels effort, joyful effort. Doing it as a tribe of deeply intimate, playful, thoughtful friends makes it feel like a constant delicious massage. We all hold each other up.
And most of the time I am going to the world to shake it up for peace and justice and care for all people. The variety remains enchanting. In the first week of October, Susan and I went to Chihuahua, Mexico for two days at their International Cultural Festival. Our tack was to meet with children of various age groups, 6-12, and through humor, music, play and film to plant an education for love, peace, joy and culture. Social philosophy to kiddies is a challenge.
From October 9-16, Bowen, Wildman, Kathy and I joined Ginevra, John, Steve, Mariana (Argentina), Adriana (Holland), Miyako (Japan), Glanco, Rosella, Mario, Monica, Roberto (Italy) (all who have clowned together before) in Cambodia. Twelve of us went to Cambodia in December 2003 (thanks to Angelina Jolie) and Ginevra returned to Italy and got a foundation grant of 100,000 Euros to take us back. In addition to clowning in hospitals, orphanages etc., she had used the money to build the first school ever in a rural, very poor village. I look at the photo of me on the ribbon cutting ceremony platform, in my underwear with the Vice Governor of the state. The school is to the right. We brought three years' supply of AIDS medicine for infants at the Maryknoll orphanage, and gave a week long clown workshop for street kids and NGO workers. Wildman taught tie-dyeing to 50 street kids. This is a country we hope to continue work in. The people are so beautiful. The poverty is painful.
I came home for one day and got my mail, did office tasks, and got back on a plane for Western Australia for 1½ days to lecture at their new Notre Dame Medical School (attended by Simon Clarkson, who was on last year's Russia trip) and three lectures at the Annual Western Australia Medical Society and a clown delight in the Princess Margaret Pediatric Hospital in Perth. I was home Friday night the 21st, having traveled 90 plus hours by plane in six days, which translates into seven books read. I have four more trips before leaving November 1st for the 21st annual clown trip to Russia.
This is living. Thank you, life!
Patch
