a miracle, almost

It's my third day of work and today I was stationed in some of the Asian art galleries along with another officer. I enjoyed the dimmer lighting and more comfortable color on the walls compared to the all white and bright contemporary gallery I had been in the two days before. Later in the morning, we had a rather large group of Chinese visitors come through a few galleries and then make their way to the Silk Road/Buddhist area. We did our rounds and a few of them unexpectedly told us "God bless you" as they passed. As we were making out way out, we saw a group of them gathered around an American gentleman in a wheelchair being pushed by a woman. At first I thought they were sharing a map, or looking at an iPad together. Then I noticed the Chinese visitors each had a hand on him and were speaking in Chinese. No, I don't speak Chinese, but I can recognize it and even I could surmise they were praying. (There's nothing against praying in the museum, as people often come in for prayer and meditation in that area anyway with it housing a large section of Buddhist temple.)

The other officer and I decided we were going to witness a miracle. All of a sudden we heard someone behind us in a loud whisper directed at us: "WHAT are they doing to my father??" This woman, the 30-something-year-old daughter, looked mortified and confused. She didn't interrupt the event taking place, but told us 1) her father had a leg problem and 2) that she had no idea who the other people were. Well, after they were done praying, they stood the guy up, who already had a cane in his hand, and he shuffled around a bit. Even though walking was nothing new to him, he seemed to be enjoying the attention anyway. Eventually he decided it was time to sit back down and go on with his day.

As part of my training, I was told it was alright to take photos if visitors asked us to do so. When another one of the Chinese visitors asked me to take a photo, I said "sure" and then she grabbed my arm, all ready to pose. Ohh... I get to be in the photo... (which is also acceptable, if the officer is willing). I felt like I was back in China.

Needless to say, it was an interesting day, and a very long one at that. I'm not used to being inside so much, especially without being able to see outside. Evidently it rained all day!

The Guanyin sculpture, in the gallery I was in today.