Internal Whispers

In time together
Same direction
Pace if found
Many tribes
Mystic drum beats
Sacred ripples sound
tic, toc, tick, toc
Millions of lost souls to link
No diviner moment
than when
every heart beat is in sync
In conscious opposition
Seen is a painful truth
The bridge mending duality
for most
is shattered during youth
Oh seer of wisdom
sage of the gracious living elm
with faith
frailty
and ultimate surrender
to the eternal realm
for I am you
and you are me
In this moment
We should all see
Yet, those who flee
Only need help to see
to flee is hardly free
selfish are we
who indulge in peace
and harmony
as others are convinced
time is only a lease
for a lifetime
and many to come
call us to duty, to battle
with innocent dreams from
an indestructible heart
dancing and singing in
the land of love and art
compassion is the gift
to make whole each and every
blessed immortal soul
 

Stuart Ziegler wrote this poem at Petals of Compassion art auction event for Nepal

HOW TO BECOME A RED ROOMER

HOW TO BECOME A RED ROOMER

There are no strangers here;
only friends you have not met yet – W. B. Yeats

Red Room began with the first Stage Time & Wine in November 2009, a monthly event that has become a cornerstone among Red Roomers, each carrying a communal bottle of wine and a small portion of something to add to the ‘stone soup’.

During Red Room’s seven years of existence, it has expanded from its core platform, Stage Time & Wine to other events like Red Room Radio Redux, Aside @ The Red Room, Stage Time & Juice, Sunday Afternoon@the Red Room, Spirits of the Night and Visual Dialogues.

Red Room is not a community, an idea or a venue. It is all of those things. The Red Room provides a place to share and truly be heard; to experiment and be truly supported; to come in a stranger and find friends.

“Dedicated to those who….continuously [create] the space that holds those who came and those who will come, brimful to explore their own creativity and share in the joy of listening.” – Co-founder, Ayesha Mehta

The Red Room opens its doors to all who are seeking a place to explore and find a home at the same time. Over the years people of different nationalities and artistic interests have stepped onto the red rugs that adorn Red Room’s floor and we all benefit from what they have created. The Red Room accommodates them — accommodates us– because together we are the Red Room. Together we innovate. Together we build new spaces for those who will come.

So how does one become a Red Roomer?
It’s simple: Be present, Be open, Be welcoming. After that, well, we can all create together.

by Leah List, Editor for the Red Room. 2017

Red Room is a not for profit, predominantly volunteer run organisation.

如何成為一位紅房人

此處無陌生人;
僅有你尚未結識的朋友 ——W. B. 葉慈

紅房在2009年11月開始第一屆Stage Time & Wine,這個每月的活動成了紅房人聚會的奠基石,每個人都帶了酒、食物和才藝前來分享。
紅房六年間,擴展了它的核心平台,推出其他如Stage Time & Wine的活動,像是Red Room Radio Redux、Aside @ The Red Room、Stage Time & Juice、Sunday Afternoon@the Red Room、Spirits of the Night靈魂之夜與Visual Dialogues視覺對話。
紅房不單單只是一個社群、一個想法或是一個聚集點,它全都是。紅房提供了一個地方,讓人們分享與真誠聆聽;體驗與真心支持;並結識朋友。

「獻給那些……持續地創造空間讓來的人與將來會來的人,發掘他們豐沛的創意,並分享聆聽的喜悅。」
共同創辦人Ayesha Mehta

紅房同時也為那些尋找發掘自我與家的人們敞開大門。多年來不同國籍、興趣的人們踏入紅房,替紅房增添許多色彩,我們皆從他們的分享中得到了獲益。在紅房我們彼此包容,因為在一起我們才是紅房,我們一起創新,一起創造為將來會來的人創造空間。

所以該如何成為一位紅房人呢?很簡單:參與、開放、歡迎一切。之後,我們才能一起創造。

by Leah List, Editor for the Red Room, 2017

紅房是一個非營利、志工主導營運的團體。

Moments from Stagetime & Wine: An Apology Letter to My Body

An Apology Letter to My Body

Dear body,

I am sorry

For once hating your small Asian eyes

And your mildly yellow skin color

because everyone around you, was white

I should have been proud of my own heritage

 

I know that mom taught you beauty

is defined by society

There is a certain way

Of how we, as women, should behave

And to conform is the only way

I am sorry,

that I believed her​,

for so many years

I looked at you

And saw nothing but flaws

 

I am sorry,

that I didn’t know how to nourish you

for starving you on

gave you half an apple a day

I am sorry,

that I put you through

eating disorder for so many years

for feeling guilty to eat

and for being scared not to eat

see,

My mom ate from a plate

that was as small as your palms were

the more she shrank

the prouder she became

so I thought

that’s what a woman should be like

I learned, to see a woman’s

through her eyes

 

I apologize,

for letting the numbers on the scale

to define your worth

and that I started to lie about your weight

before having your period

I thought a size zero was the only definition

of beauty

The only way to exist

as a woman

 

I am sorry,

That I tried to make you look attractive

Before even understanding the reasons why

A short skirt and lip gloss

was the only way to attract boys at age nine

I am Sorry,

That you have been sexualized long before

understanding what being a female really means

You, are a human being

Blood and flesh

You are not born to please

Sorry,

That I compared you

with the models on front page magazines

And blamed you

for not looking like them

You should know

There is not a standard for beauty

You, can just be you

I am sorry,

That I always wanted to change you

didn’t appreciate you

didn’t want to live inside of you

 

I am sorry, that I unlearned all this too late

that I never thanked you,

for being here for me

all this time

even when I tried to hurt you

You, always took your time

To forgive me

and you never stopped holding me up

 

You, are my body

Not someone else’s property defined

by the norms of society

you, are my body

You are sacred

You are enough

And from now on

I am going to love you

 

Sincerely,

Vanessa

 

 

A note from the poet: I find it very hard to put the story behind the poem into words. But in a way, this is also a letter  I wish the teenage me could have grabbed a chance to read, and a letter to all the amazing women out there.

As women, we face the problem of body image all the time. Sexism, the objectification of women’s body and patriarchal norms of society seem to be transparent in our daily life yet sinking deep into our conscious minds.

I wrote the poem simply because I’d like to remind whoever is reading/listening to the poem that it’s okay to be different, awkward or whatever it is that they want to be. Society seems to have a tendency to attach values on all things and all people. I’d just like the ones reading / listening to my poem to know that they are all unique and valuable, no matter what others say.

Vanessa is originally from Chicago, studying Chinese here and tracing her roots, exploring the country her parents speak so highly about. Being in Taiwan has been a bliss. She am grateful for both the eastern and western sides of culture I have in her.
Vanessa has a profound passion for literature and spoken word poetry. It’s a way for her to understand the world and express myself creatively.

And she hope Taiwan continues to bring me more joy and adventures!

 

We Are Vessels, Emily Loftis, November 2015

We Are Vessels
We are hungover
from Soju, the foreigner bars in
Sokcho, lank bodies on the bus
to Daecheong Peak, when you pick at
nicotine stains under my fingernails
say hey d’you ever think about what the
atoms we’re made of once made up
before we were here? And I’m thinking of your
North Carolina dirty in my cuticles, the woman
nodding waygookein across the aisle
the Korean word for foreigner precise as the oral pucker
of her molar-less mouth. Ask me again,
I’ll measure out molecules from her baby teeth
in the insect twitching there green against glass.
This is the newness of a window. These, our bodies,
asleep every night on different floors without bedsheets,
carrying the thin breath of bored locals and fumbling
tourists as we travel. Anyoung-haseyo.
Anyoung-haseyo. We
bow low like the pumpkin flowers
heavy-headed on their vines but parting their legs,
rubbing roots under cover of mountain soil
it’s the stir of sweat-damp thighs in this East Sea heat,
the frothy tinge of tidal sockets at the cusp of root and riot.
Ask once more, you’re carrying me in your
lungs even as you read this, understand me. You are my
crippled yellow of displacement, the dust settling
on Hangeul-scribed bus seats you cannot read.
And I’m licking all the dry edges, sealing every envelope
with salt-chapped lips,
thick spit like steam that was here
in the beginning.

Emily Loftus
Red Roomer


 

This piece was inspired by what I experienced while living in my first home abroad. I was living in the Northern Province of Gangwon-Do, South Korea, in a small village near the sea. Though South Korea is among one of the world’s most homogeneous cultures, living in such a rural area exaggerated the divide between locals and foreigners even more. I was one of the two foreigners in my area of fishermen and farmers, quite isolated from the nearest city, and far from the closest bus station, and supermarket.

Yet, even while I was often treated as being markedly different, and at times felt markedly different, I also experienced great moments of community and inclusiveness with the families in my village, passing travelers, and other expats. This dichotomy between being a part of while also apart from became central to my life there; this poem attempts to capture those moments of flux and balance.


Emily Loftis is from the Midwest in the US, now based in Taipei working as an English Writer/Editor.

A New House, The Same Home STW71: September 2015

A week before Stage Time & Wine, the room at the TAF sat open, a yawning white space. It felt impersonal and held the aged emptiness only abandoned buildings can carry. At the front of the room stood a woman; she held a microphone and bore an expression of deep solemnity.
stw 71-1 “This space is asleep” she informed us matter-of-factly. “We need to wake it up.”

She opened her mouth and suddenly the entire room seemed to vibrate. For ten minutes everything and everyone was arrested in the sound. A week later I re-entered the space and found it completely transformed. After decades of slumber, the room had sprung back to life, vibrant and energized. Inside, people mingled together under a warm glow. Though they stood next to unfamiliar art pieces, under unfamiliar lights, nothing felt uneasy. The room felt incredibly familiar, like a home full of family members exchanging stories, advice and love. chad andy stw 71 In one corner a group laughed over paper napkins filled with delectable snacks, in another two friends sipped brew from a Ragal, a traditional linked drinking cup, unique to the Paiwan tribe.

At the far back the red rug present at all Red Rooms spread itself across the worn floor, welcoming listeners to sit. Soon, listeners filled the space and their soft chatter fell into a hushed silence. Beneath two orbs stood 巴奈拿 (Ba Nai Na), the same woman from a week earlier, dressed in loose clothes and wearing a gentle manner. Next to her a man with a guitar and colorful garb leaned into the microphone. She and her brother had travelled from Hualien where they lived and created music inspired by their Ami tribe heritage. They had graciously offered to activate the space with this music, to ensure the Red Room’s new home would be just as alive as it’s last one. Adjusting their instruments and picking up a microphone, the two said only this:

“We all want to believe. We all want to be loved. We are sharing our hearts, please be ready to receive it.”

IMG_1297We received many recognizable, friendly voices: Max Power shared his story, Daniel Black his poetry, Lizzy Mew her openness and Daniel O’Shea and Victoria their music. Added to them were new voices, with new stories, music and poetry to be welcomed. Before our very eyes, a new home was created for old and new members alike. One new Red Roomer shared his voice, another his instrument. A third told an encouraging story of acceptance, and inspired us to move forward.

One long time listener, Johnson, stepped forward to tell his story for the first time. He spoke of how Red Room changed his own outlook. Wayguoren, he told us, is the word for foreigner in Chinese. For years he used this apparently innocuous word to refer to his friends from other countries. It wasn’t until he tried to organize his own gathering, inspired by the Red Room, that he came to realize how that wayguoren acted to separate people. “I don’t want to be your Taiwanese friend, or your Asian friend.” He told the audience, “I just want to be your friend”.

So great was our enthusiasm that Jimbo, the MC of the night, requested we show our appreciation in alternative ways. We raised our hands, wiggled our fingers and snapped, showering our performers with quieter appreciation. Our quiet could not be sustained though. Each performance offered a unique experience to the lively room. “That one deserved applause. How can I not clap for that?” a listener commented over animated applause while the MC attempted to quiet the effervescent crowd.

All qualities displayed that night: acceptance, openness, enthusiasm and inspiration are needed for our healthy, thriving community. They are what make a home, not four walls and some concrete.The Red Room was never fixed, was never a room. What makes the Red Room, what it is are the pieces of love, passion and support each member adds. This is how any room can be painted Red.

by Leah List
Editor for the Red Room

Sunday Afternoon @ the Red Room, September 2015

RR Sunday afternoons SARR 0915

September 27th was the first meeting of the family centered arts activity, Sunday Afternoon @ Red Room. Fifteen people participated : families, children and adults. Together we created a back drop for Stage Time and Juice. It was a laid back and enjoyable afternoon. Roma Mehta was an invaluable paint mixing colorist and everyone helped with the clean up.

image7On October 25th, for our second meeting, Roma and I will lead the participants on a visual treasure hunt of the TAF grounds and document or discoveries digitally. Please join us, bring a camera or cel phone with camera.You may sign up before the date so that we can be sure to have enough supplies prepared.

Constance Woods
Coordinator for Sunday Afternoon @ the Red Room

The Juicers, September 2015

Our September Red Room had the challenge of hosting two different activities: our third musical open-mike fundraiser to benefit The Playing For Change Foundation, and warming up a brand new space in the Taipei Air Force base for the evening Stage Time and Wine. Our objective was to fill the space with music, rhythm, color, and life.

The Red Roomers had done a beautiful job of putting the enormous room together on such short notice. We now have a new cash bar area, which is primarily for the evening events, but Stage Time and Juice continued its tradition of encouraging participants to bring food and beverages for our community table. I am pleased to say we had a very generous spread this time, with even newcomers pitching in.

We were happy to welcome back many Juice performers that we had not seen in a long time: a pair of siblings played the saxophone and performed a challenging vocal solo from a musical. We also had two other pairs of siblings return to the stage, who delight us with their performances quite frequently. This time there were some handbells and an advanced version of a popular hand game: scissors-paper-rock-Spock-lizard that they wanted to introduce to everyone. There was also a violin performance and a song.

Our new performance area is about twice the size of the old Red Room on Da An Road. We had no problem filling it with a circle game of “Who Stole the Cookie in the Cookie Jar?” led by Catherine Daigle. Julian banged on the traditional drum as he tried to trap the Juicers in a percussion version of Musical Statues.

After stage time was completed, the Juicers had some quiet time folding origami cranes and other flying objects which were then floated to the 5 meter high ceiling of the space on big red helium balloons.

Photos courtesy of Carol Yao and Feebe Ng

Here is our impression of the event from some of our Stage Time and Juicers:

“I was surprised that the Red Room was so big, and I never knew that they SELL drinks. When I saw people doing their show, I felt nervous, and I didn’t think my show was good enough. I am looking forward to the next Red Room to perform a better show.”
–Michael.

image5At Stage Time and Juice, our motive is to produce collective happiness that we hope can touch the lives of the participants when they leave the room. And sometimes we try to reach just a bit further. In this case, we donated half of our ticket sales to the Playing For Change Foundation: US $100. The Executive Director sent us a personal email to thank us for the amount:

Dear Carol,

When we join together, so much more is possible! Thank you for participating in a global celebration of music and love. Your recent gift of $100.00 in support of the 5th annual Playing For Change Day will bring music into the lives of children who will learn, grow, and discover their potential.
Earlier this year, the students and teachers of the Khlong Toey Music Program in Thailand joined together for a meaningful benefit event. They organized a concert to raise funds for their fellow PFCF students in our Nepal programs in order to help them recover from the recent earthquake. Now, these students know that they can make positive change in this world through teamwork. We are so proud of the loving commitment they’ve expressed through music and during this event.
The Khlong Toey program actually grew out of a PFC Day celebration. Two women working in the Khlong Toey slum met while planning the event and started a program to bring music into the lives of these vulnerable people. The Ripple Effect of that partnership and cooperation is moving out in all directions, through the recent benefit concert to the children in Nepal and around the world. And last year, PFC Day celebrations in Curitiba, Brazil involved more than 80 performances and laid the foundation for the new Cajuru Music School, which is opening this summer.
Thank you for being a part of this year’s beautiful unfolding, with over 300 events in 52 countries! The Ripple Effect of music and love is moving out from so many communities and into the hearts of so many children. We are deeply grateful for your support!
One Love from all of us,

Elizabeth Hunter
Executive Director

Fire, Aromas, and Comfort: Aside 10, 29 August 2015

The food trays were lined with banana leaves and Red Room volunteers poured the wine as guests rolled in for a very different evening at the Red Room. The kitchen became the stage for Aside 10, Red Rooms’ last event at the Learning Kitchen, our home for more than five years.

Aside 10 was in full heat as the chefs dazzled the audience with food, fire, and comfort inspired recipes.

26sThe audience was seated in front of the kitchen, huddled around the crackling of oil, browning of pans and savory aromas. Andrew Chau the master of ceremonies introduced Ping Chu, who gave us inspiration and encouragement to take on the world with our visions. Pierre Loisel, a French Canadian who owns an organic farm in Toucheng, spoke about the benefits of composting from kitchen waste while handing out fresh green leafy vegetables from his farm for everyone to try. Pierre is also known as the ‘master of waste composting’ in Taiwan.

more photos can be viewed here

8sIvy Chen, a Taiwanese chef, lit the wok and began frying up one of her favorite dishes: three cups chicken, while she spoke about her choice of comfort food. Our staff passed around bite-sized crackers topped with Ivy’s signature dish and a chili for garnish. Smiles were contagious as everyone licked their fingers, eager for one more bite. For the vegetarians in the audience, Ivy fried up three cups mushroom. Ivy provides cooking classes for anyone interested in learning how to create scrumptious Chinese and Taiwanese dishes from scratch. 超級美味!

35sOur next chef Mayur Srivastava, originally from New Delhi, owns four Indian restaurants in Taipei. Mayur’s mother taught him everything she knew and his love for good food began at a very early age. First he served up an Indian snack, golgappas, crisp hollow pockets of wheat flour, filled with Indian condiments and topped with spiced tamarind water, fresh coriander chutney and yoghurt. Just pop them in your mouth and experience an explosion of taste! Mayur then demonstrated his version of vegetable Biryani, a rice pilaf prepared with many aromatic spices and vegetables or meat. This was served on fresh, green banana leaves, with natural yoghurt on the side. Plates clanked and smiles took over the kitchen as everyone enjoyed the complex flavours of this traditional Indian dish. Masha’Allah!

54sJustin Robinette, our final chef, fired up the oven and began preparing his comfort food: French toast topped with caramelized apples and whipped cream. The audience crowded around the kitchen as Justin whipped cream and flipped syrupy apples. Mayur and Ivy hopped into the kitchen and became Justin’s impromptu sous chefs while the audience awed at the flames and golden aromas filling the kitchen. Justin served up the French toast doused in hand-made chocolate sauce and sprinkled with apples and powered sugar. Finger-licking good!

The audience cheered on as all three chefs cooked together in the kitchen and concluded another successful night of laughter and sharing. With the kitchen as the stage, Aside 10 challenged how we view and interact with art forms as all three chefs came together to create lasting memories and comforting meals.

Many thanks to our partners whose support helped this evening happen. Canmeng Aveda, Nonzero, Gourmet’s Partner and Granola House.

By Alex Gilliam

max power, august 2015

20702906792_b167c84170_kbrass tacks

When I was a teenager, writing started like having some spiny, lionfish-looking thing stuck in my throat that needed to be expelled.  At the time it was mostly frenetic noise, but before I knew what was going on I had a little readership.  These days I think there are better things to write about (although some days I’m still hazy on what constitutes ‘better’).

Therein lies my personal thorn — the hardest part of my own practice has been sustaining a sense of purpose, followed closely by remembering to sit myself down and put in the time.  I make an idea of what should be there, and I write (or paint, because it’s this way across arts) without thinking about it too much.  In my experience, it produces more living results.  If I’m sitting there actively trying to make decisions instead of flowing, the results will be more like a bird’s nest than a tapestry.

In bringing a long project to conclusion, one is gifted to remember that it will change over the course of its creation.  This must be so with any thing in human affairs.  Forgetting this will make things stale and stagnant.  This is why people say, “Kill your darlings.”

‘Kill your darlings’ is just one part of being able to get beyond our ‘self’, which is necessary to create works to which others can relate.  Our works have to have relevance, like teeth for the gears of narrative.  If nobody can relate to it — as a boy, a girl, a teenager, a parent, whatever — nobody’s reading it.

Writing down notes on thoughts, sparks or fragments of anything throughout the day in a journal, and maintaining it with any regularity whatsoever, is just about sure to produce seeds.  In art school, one learns to do at least ten thumbnails (one-inch sketches) before starting any project.  Deliberately making lots of versions of an idea makes picking a path much more leisurely.

In beginning, often the hardest part is simply starting.  We’re so used to hearing it that it sounds drowned, but there really isn’t a wrong place to begin.  It’s effective to keep a major defining idea for major projects, and use it as a yardstick while one works along.  When it becomes

necessary to trim down, this is where the thesis of the work can be used as a yardstick.

Every writer is going to have some thing that causes them to halt — beginning, editing, cutting, finalizing — and so every writer is going to have to make their approach for getting around their particular creative vice.  Technique is infinite, and any style can produce admirable results.  It’s very easy to say “don’t do this,” or “don’t do that,” but sooner or later each of us will run into someone who does the opposite of what we do, who can rock us out of our chair.

Pretty much all of us have the time to be a writer, but feel that we lack some other piece of the puzzle.  Whatever challenge one is dealing with now in one’s artistic progression, there will always be another, because the rabbit hole of craft is deep, spiraling and without end.  ‘Perfection’ is never going to make itself clear.

The most useful and practical advice I ever got about writing was to write 1000 words a day (and it’s the same for drawing or any other discipline, if you can break it down into a number that’s just uncomfortable enough to be correct).  Any other advice may be useful, but even the best advice is still just talk.  Results come from time spent.


 

Max Power is a Taipei local artist who writes and illustrates bittersweet dreamland fairy tales and histories of far-off worlds. his illustrations can be seen at facebook.com/seenerie .

(c) Copyright 2015 Red Room.  Material on this site is the property of contributing members of the Red Room Community. Please do not copy any part of this publication. Thank you.

Jeffrey Lee, August 2015

這次的Red Room Aside真的非常成功

氣氛好沒話說

何況是最後一次在Learning Kitchen舉辦活動

 

真是想像不到對吧

好幾年的時間就這樣過去了

我在這裏學到的事物真的比想像中的還要多

 

這個月

先是ST&W再來是Aside

好像冥冥之中也是劃下一個完美的句點

 

人們都一樣沒什麼變

變的是這空間內的氣氛

而朱平先生也回來分享許多關於夢想的藍圖

 

希望未來也能繼續在這裏當一塊用功的海綿

吸收有關於台灣的一切

噢不

是這個世界

(c) Copyright 2015 Red Room.  Material on this site is the property of contributing members of the Red Room Community. Please do not copy any part of this publication. Thank you.