“I am poor…As a little girl I remember attending a friend’s birthday at a local tea house. They dressed us up in floor-length Victorian gowns, served us scones…but I am poor…”

This is a digital story by Caitlin Barber produced in our Digital Storytelling Workshop, 17-19 August 2010 in Colorado Springs, USA. Working on her story together gave us a unique bond that will stay for a long time. Caitlin is now in Thailand serving an orphanage centre, or something like that. I wish her the best!

I LOVE watching musicians on their rehearsals. There’s something so beautifully raw and organic about it. I get to see them not as performers trying to please an audience, but as unique human beings bursting with their music, their creativity. I get to see their mistakes, their pauses, their laughter in between, how much work they put in to master a piece…I love the intimate, invisible connection among them – just by the look in the eyes, a smile or a grimace on their faces, the sighs, the frustrations and wow moments, their familiarity of every note, every word of the song, etc. Seems like there’s a halo that binds them as they play.

For one thing, it also reminds me of my childhood days. My family used to own a music band. I remember our home being always filled with music and people. Perhaps that explains my natural high and fascination over recording studios. I love the sight of the big microphones and headsets, the clutter, the cables, the instruments, the speakers, the artists on their jeans and shirts, etc. But best of all, the feel of being back home.

Recently, I found some favorites.

“Each day from my office window, I look at the ridge where I last hiked with my 12-year-old son, Ian…” A digital story by Dave Lyons, produced in our Digital Storytelling Workshop, 17-19 August 2010, at Colorado Springs, USA.

“There’s one advantage to being 102. There’s no peer pressure.” - Dennis Wolfberg

On our day-long drive to Estes Park and the Rockies in Colorado, we stopped by some places where my friends and I had a treat of seeing the wildlife in the mountains.

I was speechless many a time. Imagine a thought balloon over my head with the word – WOW! –  when I saw for the first time a moose!

But one of the sights that I also didn’t want to let go was this: an old woman who seemed to still have the energy and the eyes to see and enjoy beauty. And yes, she’s using a digital camera. I think I will be just like her in my coming older years. Haha. Mark Twain said, “Age is an issue of mind over matter.  If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” ;-)

I was at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Manila) last week. While waiting for my flight back to Singapore, I saw this:

“FREE WIFI. Some of the best things do come free. For a minimum purchase of P300.”

“I can still recall fond memories of Birdie sitting on my shoulder…It will fly away to some distant tree, but will fly back everytime I whistle…” A digital story by Leonard Thong. One of the stories produced in our workshop last July this year in Singapore.

“The alpine tundra is a land of contrast and incredible intensity, where the sky is the size of forever and the flowers the size of a millisecond.” – Ann Zwinger, Land Above the Trees

Enjoyed a drive to the Rocky Mountains in Colorado last August. We parked at the Alpine Visitor Center –  some 11,796 feet above sea level. Two miles from the center was the highest point (12, 183 feet) on Trail Ridge Road. The distance wasn’t bad, so I began to climb the trail. But soon enough, altitude sickness (usually occurs above 8,000 feet) got me. Started panting for air. My mouth was partly open as I pulled my steps; my throat and lips were dry. I began to hesitate. But then I saw these people on the road and they kept me going.

This lady on crutches made it to the top and she’s on her way back to the center. And yes, she’s smiling!

If your feet can’t move you anymore, use your knees and hands! Haha. Crawl, baby. Crawl!

“The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places.”  ~Author Unknown

Well, I finally made it! Yes, I stood and smiled, and took a photo of myself at 12,183 feet above sea level. Yay!