Extension English-Literature Teacher
I take an extension English class within my high school - it's a smaller class compared to the normal class size with about 8 students who are personally selected for the subject as a result of exceeding their abilities in standard English. It has been an ongoing subject from 2013 for our final two years of school. One day in class last year, my teacher thought it would be a bit of fun to find us each a poem he thought would relate in some way to us. He spent the lesson scouring the library resources and internet whilst we worked on our assignments. At the time I was going through some very rough patches within my life.
The next time we had class, the teacher each handed us 'our' poem/song. The one I received was called 'Seven Bowls of Tea' by Lu T?ung, and I instantly fell in love with it - despite my hatred for tea! When I got home from school I decided to research further about the piece, and through my 1am searchings I stumbled across a link called '7 Cups of Tea.' Curious, I clicked on it, and decided to give the site a try. I soon started talking to a listener, and although I was feeling okay to begin with, I soon discovered there was so much bottled within me that I had to let out.
After frequenting the site from time to time, I felt a significant improvement within myself. When I found I was in a better place, I decided to sign up and become a listener and help people in the way I was helped.
To this day, I'm still not sure if it was a simple coincidence, or if the teacher had sent me a subtle message referring me to the website. But either way, I am forever grateful for it. :)
It seems to be an amazing coincidence!
That is a lovely story. Thank you for sharing it. I'm a big fan of the poem too. Do you like the translation we have in our FAQ? If not, do you have a better one?
There are so many different translations, and they're all so beautiful, aren't they? Whilst I absolutely adore the FAQ translation, there will always be a spot in my heart reserved for the original I received from my teacher:
The first bowl moistens my lips and throat
The second bowl shatters loneliness and melancholy
The third bowl searches the dry rivulets of my soul to find the stories of five thousand scrolls
With the fourth bowl, the pain of life's grievances evaporates through my pores
The fifth bowl purifies my flesh and bones
With the sixth, I find myself in the realm of spirit
One cannot finish the seventh cup, but feels only a light breeze spring up under the arm.
I just feel it holds so much depth, if one delves deeper into the words. The bowls/cups of tea, for me, are such powerful metaphors and the poem really did help me through quite a lot :))
wow! that is just such an awesome story! thanks for sharing it!