I am the Thai pirate

Related stories

• The poem by Adolf Hitler

  In brief: In Opening the Door of Your Heart he included a beautiful poem about a son's unconditional love for his demanding mother — and only…

  Read full story▾▴

  Have a read of that book “Opening the Door of Your Heart” and there you'll see a poem of a mother's, of a son’s love to her mother. I forget exactly how it goes but it's something like “when your mother grows old, when her eyes are dim and her hands become very weak, when she asks you for a favor reply in kindness, if she asked you again, reply in kindness the second time and a third time, please help her because the time will come, the terrible time when your mother can’t ask no more, so, and every time she asks, give time to her. It was something like that. But when I read first read that poem I couldn't believe it was written by Adolf Hitler!

  Open story page·Watch this telling

• Still in the POW camp

  In brief: Two Australian veterans who were captured at the fall of Singapore and held in prisoner-of-war camps meet at a reunion. One asks the other…

  Read full story▾▴

  this was the story of those two Australian soldiers meeting together in a reunion, they'd both been in the Second World War, they'd both been in Singapore, the fall of Singapore, and both been put in P.O.W. camps. Well, one met the other, and said, "Have you forgiven the Japanese yet for what they did to us and our friends?" "No! Never! How can you forgive that??" said one of the soldiers. "What about you?" His friend said, "I forgave years ago. But you, my friend, are still in the P.O.W. camp." I love that story, simply because until you forgive -- until he forgave what those guards, those soldiers, did to him and his friends, in the camps in Changi on the Death Railway in Thailand on the Burmese border. Until they forgave, they were still being tortured. They're still in the camps. They can never be happy. His friend had let go and therefore he was free.

  Open story page·Watch this telling

• Can we build that hall your way — and can I be the builder?

  In brief: Ajahn Brahm's last real argument was with then-abbot Ajahn Jagaro over the design of Bodhinyana's meditation hall — notes left outside…

  Read full story▾▴

  and the last real argument which I had are very proud of this argument that's why I keep telling people about it words with the former output of voting the other Monastery because I didn't I was always there but there was another Monk who was my boss when I first went over there and for those of you who see our meditation Hall in bodinana Monastery that was his design my design was much better much cheaper much to this day I still think that he was his he wanted his way I wanted my way and I wasn't going to give in no this was important this is a monastery it's really important the buildings are going to be there for years we've got to get it right and so for a week we argued but we didn't the way we argued is actually instead of actually looking at each other we would just like man or wife I think just you said no's to each other you know I don't know this is the reasons why we should build a hall this way and I left it outside his Hut and next a few hours later I got another night if I had to buy that all these reasons what we should do his way it's crazy stuff there's many many years ago and in the end you know hopefully you do come to your senses the conflict what are you doing that for and that's what I came to record this is ridiculous and I'm a monk I shouldn't be doing this so actually I went to his Hut instead of actually putting a note in front of his store I knocked on his door come in and I said sort of I I'm sorry I asked forgiveness and I did the full ceremony bowing offering flowers and incense and Buddhist ceremony of asking forgiveness and he was very touched by that and he thought wow this is beautiful this is what monks should be like and then you know there's some making up and then we didn't kiss no we don't do such like that we just you know do the same thing so afterwards and I said to him and said once we did a sermon he said and he said oh that's really beautiful what you said that's very high minded of you and said oh thank you can I ask for two favors and that's where he he stopped and thought what's he up to is this going to be another argument and what I said next I'm always very proud of you know I don't mind saying the good things which I've done I say the bad things what you do but the good things are inspiring and they so inspire me I told him said now I've asked forgiveness so far I can read through my first favor I want to ask of you can we build that Hall your way they said yes or that very quickly I said my second favorite is can I be the Builder I want to spend about a year and a half which I did building that place your way I said wow that's really inspiring and inspired me as well it wasn't just okay you do it your way you know I'm out of here I'm not going to help you that stupid hole so I built that hole my name's actually on the building license on that Hall and I spent a long time doing that because I thought that's a beautiful thing to do because the harmony the peace the inspiration was something more important than arguing with people and having conflict they're learning how to work together yeah you can have differences of opinion you can talk it out and you know find a sensitive Moment by really listening deeply and finding out the right time to talk about these things and then actually just amazing the right time and place you can have this beautiful beautiful outcomes because for me you know what is a monastery anyway s not the buildings it's a people you know if you go to boating down a monastery I'm sure you can find more inspiring buildings in other places but it's the atmosphere it's the people the monks that's more important this place over here not a marvelous and I'm sure you can find a much more comfortable place to spend the Friday evening than just sitting on the floor with your legs aching now squash in the chairs not trying difficult to find power parking there's many more comfortable places to come but there's something else happening in the atmosphere the goodness the kindness the people that is what makes a monastery so I got my priorities right a marriage

  Open story page·Watch this telling

• I'm leaving — but there's only ocean

  In brief: Janice and her husband, finishing a mining contract in WA, sold their house, bought a yacht with another couple and sailed for Vancouver.…

  Read full story▾▴

  Janice was uh from Canada came with her husband he was working up in the mines somewhere some engineer here on a contract when it finished they had to go back home to Canada the young couple and they were very smart very wise instead of doing what most people would do get an air ticket they decid no no let's sell the little house we have and use the money to buy a boat so they got a yacht idea let's sail to Vancouver in Canada when we get there sell the the yacht we got our deposit for the next house a brilliant idea you have an adventure of a lifetime imagine that my sailing from Perth you know over to the north of Australia and then through the South Seas over to you know maybe up the Atlantic coast eventually up to Vancouver like a journey of a lifetime and on the cheap too because you know you buy the boat you sell it when you get to the other end brilliant idea and of course you know they wrote to us when they arrived safely back in Vancouver but what Janice said in the story you in a letter a brilliant thing happened in the middle of the ocean their engine stored that actually I should have said that Janice and a husband they teamed up with another couple two married couples you know to help on the journey so in the middle of the ocean so the engine store they will be calm they couldn't go anywhere now this was 26 years ago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean you can't call up the RAC you're stuck you have to fix it up for yourself no satellite phones so you're in big trouble but you know they had a good tool kit and they knew what they were doing and so the two guys went into the engine room to sort out the the problem with the engine the two girls apparently were on Deck reading magazines sexist but that was 26 years ago so two guys in the engine room now any of you guys who've ever tried to fix up an engine you know that sometimes as I said in the book it just does not want to be fixed up and they were getting more and more frustrated maybe you haven't tried to fix up an an engine of a boat but maybe you try to fix up your computer and you start swearing that's what these guys did they started swearing cuz they're getting frustrated and frustration led to blaming each other it's your fault stupid and blaming each other soon led to a full on argument and the argument got to such a high level of conflict that one of them threw down their wrench in anger and said right that's it I'm leaving and this actually occurred he was so mad with his rage he went to his cabin he actually changed cleaned up he's all dirty changed into his best clothes packed his bags and appeared on Deck carrying his two suitcases and the two women almost fell off the boat laughing cuz he looked around and there was ocean in all directions as far as you could see there's no place to go so he had only one choice red in the face with embarrassment he turned around went back to his cabin got back changed back into his work clothes back into the engine room to help out and they ended that Voyage as they began the best of friends I love that story CU that's like our world we like a boat in the ocean there's nowhere to go you may think right that's it I'm leaving where you going to go to instead go back into the anent room help your enemy fix up the problem

  Open story page·Watch this telling