Scandal and Reiki

This morning I went to the cinema by myself. This is probably quite a strange thing to do at 10am on a Sunday morning, but if I looked like a wierdo I'm not too concerned. There were only two other people there to judge me. I went to see Scandal, a Vietnamese film that I had seen advertised on the little screens in taxis around the city, and was interested in. The film, directed by Vincent Vu, followed the escalating conflict between two beautiful model-actresses, both in the centre of the Saigon celebrity world. They compete firstly for a man, and secondly for the lead role in an upcoming blockbuster, using the media as a way of undermining each other in a series of revenges. The plot was dark, incorporating black magic, frightening hallucinations and violence. As the plot develops, it is revealed that the rivalry between the two has been manipulated by the producer of the upcoming film, in order to promote the film through a public scandal. But as the plan spirals out of the control of the plotters, it is too late to save the lives of the vengeful women. The film was set in Ho Chi Minh City, and the final, bloody episode was actually filmed a little bridge in our neighbourhood, something I found quite exciting. I cycled over this bridge on my way home and found myself looking expectantly down into the water below…

Jessica is healed

In the afternoon Jessica was visited by a mentee, a young Japanese man called Yoshi. He had lunch with us and updated Jessica on how things are going in his life; he is currently studying yoga and zen at a school in India. His particular interest is reiki, a Japanese healing practice, and is looking to develop his own client base while he develops his skills. He practiced on Jessica and I, although reiki is really intended for those who are unwell, as a way of restoring the damaged ‘energy flow’ in their bodies. Yoshi claimed that he can feel a disrupted energy flow by holding his hands above a sick person; sometimes, a form of electricity is felt, he said. In turns, Jessica and I lay on the sofa as Yoshi moved his hands in circular motions over our bodies, and held his palms flat against our backs for long periods. Apparently, it is possible to ‘sense’ his hands moving over and above your body with your eyes closed, through a heat that is omitted. I fell asleep. Yoshi said that this shows I am healthy. The unhealthiest of the bunch is Happy the dog, who is becoming deaf and has problems with her liver. Yoshi was ready to perform reiki on Happy in an attempt to cure her, but she clearly thought this was ridiculous and struggled out of Jessica’s arms to run away downstairs.

Happy is not convinced

Tea was really nice tonight. We ate hotpot, (Asian, not Lancashire), a broth cooked on a portable stove that was placed in the middle of the table, to which we added crab, squid, green leafy vegetables, corn on the cob and onions, and ate with noodles.