Days on the Journey Back to Paris
If Paris lacked the Eiffel Tower, would it still be Paris?





Images and text / Chen Chi-Hsiang. Whether embracing Paris or embracing Taiwan, I am ultimately embracing life and existence. Here is not there; "there" is forever out of reach. My existence is only here. "There" is imagination and memory; "here" is the present site. Returning to one's own state, moving back and forth, one embraces oneself according to conditions.
On April 19, I brought a few Qigong friends from Chiayi back to Paris. As soon as we put down our luggage, without stopping, I accompanied them on their Paris tour. Guiding my friends through the days in Paris that I cherish allowed me to once again carefully savor the aesthetic beauty of Paris, treasuring the sweet moments spent with friends. It felt as if I were still in a state of travel. In these nearly twenty days of enthusiastic sharing, things unfolded naturally as they were.
These days brought not only new mind-body-spirit experiences but also much learning. I hope my friends will never forget this trip to France. I thank my friends and my wife for giving me this opportunity, cherishing every moment of existence and every encounter, and expressing gratitude for the karmic gathering of this life.