A local story from the Saturday Sept 5, 2009 Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The paper had a picture not shown in the link. From the cutline: Hundreds of statues of Pak, the monk who brought Buddhism to southeast Asia from India, melted in the fire...

Little statues of the monk sitting in the lotus position, hands folded, all charred and melted. Very sad. I hope they restore the temple quickly.

Lao-American Buddhist community working to rebuild burned temple

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Watch video | Temple fire unites community

By DIANE SMITH dianesmith@star-telegram.com

FORT WORTH — Wat Lao Thepnimith looks like a postcard from Southeast Asia planted in a suburban patch of houses nestled in northwest Fort Worth.

The Buddhist campus is the heart of a Lao-American Buddhist community that began resettling in North Texas in the mid-1970s. Many of the estimated 11,000 members are refugees of Communism who fled after the Vietnam War — a conflict in which many Lao were allies of the United States.

On Aug. 24, a fire destroyed the campus temple, the Sim Building. Rebuilding is the only option for a structure described as a labor of love. "We are really so, so sad," monk Kommana Vongphakdy said. [more...]

They started out like so many faith communities as a house church, in a trailer. I feel a kinship for this, as it mirrors the origins of Quakerism. Small groups worshiping anywhere they could. Today Buddhists and Quakers both turn inward to listen to the "still small voice" speaking to us, in our worship, in their meditation.

Outwardly quite different, as we have no temples or rituals (in my form of Quakerism), and temple and symbols are quite important to these Buddhists--gold tiles and mirrors of Lao architecture. And the little statues, thank-you gifts "given to people who donate to or volunteer with their Buddhist community."

Ten years ago there was a rash of church fires nationally, and here in Texas. Quaker workcamps were organized to help some of them rebuild. Perhaps they can help again.

My WWWW bracelet

Last weekend I made a bracelet with black beads and four white ones with the letter "W" on them. No, I didn't make a typo with the beads; it's not a WWJD bracelet. But it kinda looks like one.

A bag of all "W" beads at Hobby Lobby was cheap. I proudly wear my WWWW bracelet now. Wore it to court and made sure it was visible, just in case it might be mistaken for a WWJD model.

What does it mean? Quakers will get this one. It stands for What Would Woolman Wear.

John Woolman had a revelation that slavery was wrong, and henceforward he sought to eliminate products that involved the use of slave labor from anything he purchased. That meant foregoing clothing dyed with indigo grown by slaves in the Carribbean. With off-white clothing he stood out in a crowd. Part of his witness against slavery. He had more than that, but the clothing was his hallmark.

Don't buy Chinese. Really.
What my WWWW bracelet means to me is a reminder to look to the conditions that produce the goods I consume. For years I've been careful to NOT purchase anything made in China. Selfishly because China's slave-like wages put my Indian-import company out of business ten years ago. Then it put my start-up company with a made-in-the-USA product out of business a few years later. Altruistically because our dollars flowing to China only help keep people enslaved there.

Sometimes it isn't possible to avoid buying Chinese. Look at the labels when you go shoe shopping (everyday sensible footwear).

I can throw a really good fit over this situation. More later.