Another Kintsugi Class
I left off last time with a report that Su and I had attended a class on Kintsugi and would brace ourselves for the second class the following Sunday, which we did indeed. But let me recall or record what else we had done in between, lest I forget.
On Monday, Su had a dental appointment at the Government clinic at Wanchai, These appointments are becoming oddities for one rarely would get one in 18 to 24 months. Su complained about her gum feeling somewhat numbed by the antiseptics afterwards. I went for my Rotary Club meeting and had a small surprise. At the last meeting – which was a joint meeting with RC of Tai Po – which I skipped because I had a touch of flu, Tai Po gave our club a memorabilia which was a card with a folder sent by me to their Charter President some 30 years before, or in short and putting it crudely, a returned gift. There was a letter within the folder neatly typed and signed by me, to Donald and Ann. I did not have time to examine the item in more detail, but I would do so at another meeting. It will certainly bring back old memories. The other thing I was asked to do – which I did – was to talk about a District Resolution on a Rotary Institute planned for 2027, which would be the second ever held in Hong Kong and the District, after the last one held in 2001 when I was the reigning Governor, but that would be another story.
The next evening, we had a dinner with Apple and Gary at a Chinese restaurant in Kowloon Tong. It was an overdue get-together. Apple ran a busy schedule with her professional work in clinical psychology, but she managed to sign up for that large-scale cross-border stress tests and drills at the New Huanggang Port which involved over 20,000 civil servants for evaluating peak passenger and vehicular capacity ahead of the impending opening. She enjoyed the experience. She had also participated in a smaller scale stress test at the Kai Tak Sports Auditorium. Gary is now very much into his stand-up comedy career. He has been visiting cities up north for more experience and has collected awards.
On Wednesday, we attended a good friend’s birthday party for which Su had helped book the venue, primarily because she liked some of the dishes on the menu, notably the Peking duck. Wine and bubblies were flowing and a guest insisted to pick up the bill after no objections were received. Joann and Ella came back to Mei Foo with us and we had more bubblies, so that I barely made the lunch appointment the next day. This gathering of the Class of 1963 Wah Yan graduates has now become a monthly meeting, always at the Sports Club in Central, and which I try to attend when it meets my schedule. I had formed views on the meeting, but again that would be another story. I also had an evening meeting at Zetland Hall, followed by dinner after which Bosco took Keith and me back to Mei Foo where we had more whiskey and gossips, including some rather topical and exceptional ones. All these eating and drinking were somewhat tiring for someone close to 80. Luckily, my diary for Friday was clean; and we ended up shopping for oysters and other household needs.
Saturday saw me attending our Lodge Past Masters Meeting at 11 am in Central followed by lunch which ended somewhat early for the next event, which was meeting up with Su for wine tasting at Mercato Gourmet. Su bought sufficient goods to justify calling a cab home for a small nap before taking my EV to Ricci Hall for the anticipated Mass at which our godchild Matt was allocated to do the First Reading, which was why we made the trip in the first instance. After Mass, we took Matt back to Chi Foo before heading home with Shirley for a homey dinner over which we all indulged ourselves with wine and bubblies until late, which brought me to Sunday. We stayed in bed late but were in time for a light breakfast before going for the second Kintsugi Class.
Su packed her works to the class to have some consultation with Enders after class. In this second and last class, Enders did most of the talking, beginning with checking how much of the first class we had retained, then working through some key moments and events in his career to become a Kintsugi master and expert. He dwelled extensively on the background of how he had taken up the art or skills in Kintsugi and the idiosyncrasies of the ceramic repair world – in Hong Kong and the Tea Ware community at least – and how he was denied of a second award but was recognized in a funny way, all rather interesting. I reckon that he is sort of a megalomaniac if not a narcissist and he was very likely brought up with a silver spoon in the mouth. But he is an interesting person, reasonably gifted and has the talent, determination and the means to pursue his goals in life. After an hour of talking, he went onto teaching us how to deal with the broken ware we each began with mending in the first class. Again, he is good and methodical. We both finished our job and took home the finished products. Su received the advice she came to get and was happy, which is vital. Enders left us with sufficient leads to take the skills or art further in whichever direction we might desire. Su and I had formed views on the matter. Again, that would be another story.
I had assigned myself to be the scripture reader at Ricci Hall’s morning Mass this week, which implies that I need to get up early and organize myself and my itinerary more carefully. Yesterday, for example, I had lunch at HKJC Shan Kwong Road Clubhouse with only Stanley and Hon Wah because Cecilia was in Canada and Siu Hing had a fall in the morning. We had this monthly luncheon for some two years now. Now, most regular luncheon meetings have begun for a reason, and this one is no exception. Again, as with most gatherings, the motivation of participants could vary, which in turn creates organization issues, but again, these are facts of life one faxes all the time.
Tomorrow morning, I will go for my quarterly medical and I expect an noneventful meeting so that I might be able to follow the CE’s addresses afterwards.
