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Something More Important Than Politics

It's two days after the elections, and instead of rambling on about this or that candidate or measure, or the still-President Bush, or anything else political, I thought I'd share with you all a story I read in my city's newspaper this morning.

The article appeared in the business section, and it's about a new store in Eugene run by a man from Tibet. That country, as I'm sure many of you know, was taken over by the Chinese government and the Tibetan religious leader the Dalai Lama was forced to flee to India for freedom. Well, the man in the article is named Lobsang Gyatso. He was a monk in Tibet, and in 1991 decided to make a trip himself to India. He was not allowed to tell his family for fear they would be punished because he left the country. He made his way with a group over mountains into India during winter and faced very harsh conditions. The trip took 29 days, and the group ran out of food. Lobsang's shoes were torn apart and so he had to wear clothing on his feet to protect them.

Lobsang did arrive in India, and practiced as a monk there for eight years. He met his wife there, and she is from Eugene (my hometown and current residence). They live here now, and Lobsang was encouraged by friends to take up painting and then encouraged to open a store here to sell his art. His store, called Key To Tibet, is now open and he sells his paintings, greeting cards, and many products from Tibet and Asia. He's definitely living the American dream and I'm glad he has found freedom and success for himself.

I'm sure I'll try to get over to Lobsang's store sometime during the holiday season. Of all the local businesses, Key To Tibet is one that greatly deserves support and many customers. Lobsang deserves that support because he has made sacrifices to get to where he is today. I thought his story was very inspirational, and I wanted to share it on my blog. In these divided, politically-charged times, it's important that we remember people like Lobsang who are just trying to make it in the world.

The original article can be found here until the 10th of November.