This is from 2007, my second visit to Kim Son Monastery as driver for Janey. It is now a 1 1/2 hr drive to pick her up in Healdsburg and another 3 hrs to Watsonville, and back the same day, 10 hours total. We arrive at about 10 minutes to noon, have a few sips of tea with Master Tu, and then his people ask him to come to the dining room and ring the bell so lunch can begin. So all that driving for just a 10 minute visit, but their lunches are worth the drive. They have a delicious vegetarian buffet, all you can eat, with a donation box inconspicuously off to the side, and four lines of tables, one each for the monks, the nuns, the laymen, and the laywomen. After the leisurely and silent meal, conversation slowly starts up, and after a while Master Tu rings the bell again and departs. Janey is now over with the nuns, and they are having a great time, laughing and talking, and she snaps some photos. The rest of us, after finishing the meal and conversations, all wash our dishes and depart, and I sit back down at the table, alone, waiting while Janey and the nuns finish their visit, which is another half hour or so. This elderly monk, Master Lee, seeing me sitting there, comes over and introduces himself and asks me some Dharma questions, which led to his very helpful teachings to me on how to overcome anger. Aside from the lunch, this advice was also worth the long drive. And then Janey, having finished her visit, came over to Master Lee and myself and asked one of the nuns to snap more photos.
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