The band U2 dedicated a song to Aung San Suu Kyi, Walk On. This song celebrates the physical freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi after being held under house arrest four different occasions during a time span of 21 years.
"You're packing a suitcase for a place none of us has been
A place that has to be believed to be seen
You could have flown away
A singing bird in an open cage
Who will only fly, only fly for freedom"
An article refers to Suu Kyi's Reith Lectures, "Securing Freedom", and provides the following quotes:
"...she recounts an anecdote in which people
ask how it felt to be free after each period
of house arrest, to which she replied
"my mind had always been free."
"For her, freedom is not only a set of
institutions, laws and political processes,
it is also a quest of the individual spirit,
the struggle to free oneself from greed,
fear and hatred and how they drive
one's own behaviour. That is why she
always talks of a "revolution of the spirit".
You cannot have one without the other,
both are part of transformational change;
the individual and personal is inextricably
bound up with the political..."
Now, I'll be the first to admit that I'm not in a mindspace to think more fully about this;
just wanted to add another tidbit to the dimensions of my freedom collection, while I'm on this topic.
There is much to learn from all this,
Burma was introduced to me through a book I read by Amy Tan, Saving Fish From Drowning.
I loved this book. Set in Burma, it was my first exposure to anything about this place, its people and culture. Although fictional, I could imagine bits and pieces of reality strewn among the author's created elements. I wanted to meet the Burmese people this book introduced me to. I wanted to give them hugs.
My fascination for Burma has grown since then. I heard mention of the country on a teaching CD I was listening to, years after reading Amy Tan's book. The woman speaking was extremely emotional as she spoke about Burma. The plight of the country's people has been full of struggle as opposing forces are at war, and oppression crushes freedom.
By following up on the work of an organization she mentioned, I found the book Displaced Reflections, and the work of Partners Relief & Development. I try to keep up with what's going on in Burma through this organization's emails and website, when I can, and I am learning about the true struggle for freedom that exists in this world on many levels.
That's why I have to write about Burma here. That's why I admire Aung San Suu Kyi. She is a true freedom fighter from whom there is much to learn.
This here is just a tidbit, part of my collection, something to refer back to, as I continue to learn and search and research, throughout my year of freedom.
From Amy Tan's Saving Fish From Drowning: A pious man explained to his followers: "It is evil to take lives and noble to save them. Each day I pledge to save a hundred lives. I drop my net in the lake and scoop out a hundred fishes. I place the fishes on the bank, where they flop and twirl. 'Don't be scared,' I tell those fishes. 'I am saving you from drowning.' Soon enough, the fishes grow calm and lie still. Yet, sad to say, I am always too late. The fishes expire. And because it is evil to waste anything, I take those dead fishes to market and I sell them for a good price. With the money I receive, I buy more nets so I can save more fishes."
There's a freedom fighter I admire, her name is Aung San Suu Kyi.
One day, while searching for inspiration with the words "glinting light splinters" as I wrote the poem Shards Of Light, a satisfied smile came when I stumbled upon a poem - A White Architect of Light - all about Aung San Suu Kyi.
"She came back from the land of democrative destiny and dissolved
into the chaotic void.
Fighting for the freedom of reality
Building the light house in the darkest hours of life
Fixing up the spiritual essence through the existential nothingness
in the valueless zone
Layers by layers, realities of life theatre are turned into distilled light
out of trapped reflections
Mother of modern Myanmar honoured by consciencious tree of life
Curving away all the unnecessary parts
Curving away all the necessary parts"
It satisfies me to stumble upon finds like this, because Aung San Suu Kyi is well-known as a powerful, peaceful freedom fighter, she has a book published that is called Freedom From Fear and other writings, and this is my year of freedom.
And I will post bits & pieces I've gathered about her recently, here on my blog this week.
