White Pelicans

Sunday, 6/24/12

I have to urge myself to slow down...  I NEED to understand that there is a difference between "living life exhaustively" and "living an exhaustive life!"

Spent 10 hours shooting white pelicans by the Mississippi River under the extreme heat and resulting in severe sunburns -- pretty crazy stuff, and I still feel like there is so much I need to do, and I am never good enough!!

Happy Father's Day!!

In the spirit of Michelle's recent college graduation, I dug out a picture of Rudi and Michelle taken 21 years ago on June 9th, 1991 -- the day when Rudi and I graduated.  Little Michelle was wearing my graduate cap...  Yeah, that's how young we were back then -- young and hopeful and full of dreams... -:)

Happy Father's Day!

  

Tranquility

Yeah, it's about time to bring some sanity and tranquility to life...

Conquer Fear

Sunday, 6/3/2012

For those of you who really know me, you know I fear height to the extreme end.

Well, I visited the Horseshoe Band in Arizona this weekend and realized that this might be one of the best ways to "conquer fear."  I climbed up to the cliff not once, not twice, but 3 times to take the final shot (see Picture 3).

Picture 1 shows you how steep the cliffs are to the river bank.

Picture 2 shows you how crazy some of the photographers are when it comes to getting their shots.  Look at the guy's tripod.  If this is not insanity, what is???

Picture 3 shows you how I need to crawl up to the edge of the cliff, set up my tripod, hold on to my camera and take the full circle shot of the "Horseshoe Band."  The image is not perfect, but the effort to challenge my fear must be recognized.  This was one of those 4 AM deals again, and I actually made 3 separate trips to the place this weekend to take this shot!!!

 

Page, Arizona

6/3/12

Friday, 6/8/2012

Aside from risking my life on top of those cliffs, I also tried to get down to the deep underground canyons formed by desert flash floods...  At the bottom of the canyon, when I texted an image of the Antelope Canyon to Michelle, she texted back with a warning message saying....

Picture 1 = Rocky Mountain Sunset

Picture 2 = Desert Flash Flood

Antelope Canyon, Arizona

6/2/12

The Graduation

Michelle graduated today with Summa Cum Laude, and delivered a graduation speech with deep philosophical reflections....

Philosophy means, literally, “love of wisdom”. So what kind of wisdom have I gained from my education in philosophy, and why is it valuable? Well, I can tell you this much – I still don’t know why we’re here, I can’t tell you what happens after death, and I am no closer to understanding the meaning of life. In fact, if anything, I am more confused now than I was at the outset of my college career. But this confusion no longer feels disorienting or overwhelming; rather, it feels like guidance. Ultimately, I haven’t developed a ‘philosophy’ of life; I haven’t discovered rules by which to live. Instead, I’ve come to realize that it is precisely a life rich with unanswered questions that has the most direction.  

What does it mean to have lived well, and how do we do it? Do we devote ourselves to acquisition and development of virtues? Do we live in accordance with a categorical imperative? Do we work to maximize the happiness of those around us? Or do we work to maximize our own? To me, these all seem to be compelling suggestions, and four years of philosophical education have brought me no closer to singling out one particular answer. Perhaps only living will teach me how to live well. But philosophy has given me prescriptions with which to experiment: for example, Aristotle’s belief that excellence is not an act, but a habit; Kant’s command that we must never treat men merely as means, but rather as ends in themselves; Peter Singer’s challenge to recognize our moral obligation to perform so-called “acts of charity”. I don’t think any of us can say for sure how we ought to live now so that in the future, we’ll feel confident that we’ve lived well. But these are starting points from which I can develop my own vision of how I’d like to live, so that in my future, I’ll have fewer doubts, if any, about whether or not I’ve done right by myself.

Courses in epistemology and skepticism have led me to questions regarding knowledge. What constitutes ‘knowledge’? What does it amount to? What are its limits? Philosophy has taught me that our knowledge rarely, if ever, satisfies the criterion of certainty. Though we go through our daily lives taking numerous facts for granted, I’ve learned that it doesn’t take all that much of a change in our way of thinking to throw all of those facts into question. I don’t take this to mean that we ought to go around tip-toeing, fearing that the very ground beneath us might cease to exist, but it does mean that we ought to practice humility. We should allow for the possibility of being wrong, even – and especially –  when we’re absolutely sure of ourselves. In the field of medicine, I’ll be working with hard facts, proven procedures, and verified treatments. I trust that the concrete confidence of science will give me the necessary confidence to become a great doctor. At the same time, I trust that the perspective that I’ve gained from philosophy will keep me in check, reminding me that I am fallible, despite all my certainty. I have no doubt that our knowledge can amount to a great deal, like the prevention and treatment of disease. But I believe also that humility – acknowledging our personal limits, respecting the opinions of others, recognizing the possibility of alternative answers – is just as important, if not more.

Philosophy of mind is a particularly audacious branch of philosophy because it aims at questions that we might be fundamentally barred from answering. What does consciousness consist in?  How do we even begin to investigate something from which we can’t detach ourselves? Through the very process of observing consciousness, we invariably invoke consciousness. We can’t separate ourselves from our own mind in order to objectively observe its function, but we also can’t access someone else’s. This is certainly a cause for frustration. But rather than throwing our hands up and calling it quits, philosophers embrace this challenge and strive fervently for answers. We team up with cognitive science, psychology, neurobiology, computer science – a number of different disciplines in an attempt to solve the ultimate mystery. Hard questions don’t deter us. On the contrary, they invigorate us, excite us, and push us to test the limits of our capacity for understanding. As human beings, we are gifted with a mind so brilliant that it is unparalleled by anything else we’ve encountered. Though we’re still far from unraveling its mysteries, we nevertheless do justice to this gift by tenaciously facing some of the most daunting puzzles of our time.    

Wisdom, perhaps, is not knowing all the answers, but rather, having the right questions. What philosophy has given me is the ability to develop more questions for every answer that I come across. I believe that the best education is not the one that gives you a full and complete account of something, but instead, the one that teaches you how much more there is to learn.  

Thank you, everyone, for giving me the opportunity to share my reflections with you. I want to acknowledge my parents, who have always understood, supported, and encouraged my fascination with philosophy. I want to thank all of my amazing professors for making my time in the classroom more inspiring and intriguing than I could have imagined. And to my fellow graduating seniors, I wish you the best in all your future endeavors, and may wisdom always guide you on your journey.

 

Congratulations!

Dear Chelle-chelle,

Congratulations on your college graduation, congratulations on receiving the award and high honors, congratulations on all the A+s you've earned over the past 4 years, congratulations on getting into your favorite med school, and most of all, congratulations on becoming wiser and more mature...

As we turn the page, I hope you can take a minute to review the blue lines I wrote for you in the email below from 4 years ago.  They remain to be very true...  In addition, a few more lines for you to carry with you into the future -

1.  Learn to live a simplified life -- manage and organize all aspects of your life effectively.  Simplicity is the key to a clear mind!  Simplicity is the key to focus!!  Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication!!!

2.  Learn to live a modest life -- never become a slave of materialism.  Live a simple, comfortable life for yourself, not for anyone else.

3.  Learn to be precise in everything you do.  Being a doctor is not easy, it requires years of training to become absolutely disciplined and precise in everything you do at all times.

4.  Learn to cherish every opportunity in life and take full advantage of it.  Attached is the final transcript for your career at Tufts.  Read through each grade from each semester and think about what you've learned from it.

5.  Learn to develop real-world survival skills to support yourself financially.

6.  Always, always, always remember the importance of your family.  

Love,

Mom

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Pei Tang <tang_pei@yahoo.com>
To: Pei Tang <tang_pei@yahoo.com>
Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2008 6:05 PM
Subject: The little bird's gotta fly...

Yeah, I know, the little bird's gotta fly... We are heading out to Boston first thing tomorrow morning and will get to Tufts University by 1 pm on Saturday.   We packed a piece of Naperville in our SUV, and that's all Michelle can hang on to as she moves on with her life.  We also packed a copy of the 70-page book I wrote for Michelle when she graduated from high school.  As I read the ending of the book again, I realized it still accurately captures what I would say to her today --  Do you still remember the long conversations we had in the car during our road trips to NYU and Tufts?    I told you to take good care of your health and safety.  Your future will depend on your physical and mental health.  You are the only one who can really take care of yourself.   I told you to focus on self-development to become a kind, loving, caring, considerate, tolerant, humble, passionate, disciplined and devoted person with bigger and deeper capacities to meet the challenges of the future.   I told you to keep challenging yourself to become a well-balanced and well-controlled person with a noble goal to contribute to human society in your lifetime.   I told you to truly understand the importance of managing human relationships.  Your IQ can only take you to a certain level.  Your EQ is what makes the difference in your ability to achieve success.   I told you to cherish and nurture friendships in life.  Good friends are the best resources to help you grow healthily into the future.   I told you to remember how much Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa love you.  Never forget, life can take you to many unexpected places, but love can always bring you back home.   I told you to call me anytime when you need me.  I told you to call me anytime even if you don’t need me...      Chelle-chelle, tomorrow is full of promises.  You are the only one who can realize your own dreams and fulfill the promises life has to offer.  Keep your dreams alive and pursue them with passion, determination, confidence, persistence, discipline and hard work.   There is so much more I should or need to tell you.  But I know it's time to let you go and let you fly...  Be safe, be wise and be well.

Happy Mother's Day

5/13/12

Michelle Zhang

Dear Mom,

I hope that you have had a good time in China with Grandpa!

It's Mother's Day, so I thought that I would write you an email to show you my appreciation for everything that you do for me: 

Thank you for being the most inspirational figure in my life. I know that I'm not always very responsive when you tell me about the strife that you went through in order to get to where you are, but I want you to know that I am always, always continually impressed. Just the fact that you had the courage to leave everything you knew in order to start a new life here in America is incredible. I can only hope to one day be half as courageous as you have been. I know that you have kept your head down and worked extraordinarily hard to get to where you are today, and this inspires me to develop a strong work ethic. It makes me realize that America still is a place where hard work pays off. 

Thank you for showing me that independence is a blessing. I know so few people who are so comfortable being on their own, but you have taught me that being independent is one of the greatest catalysts for personal development. I, like so many people around you, think it's amazing that sometimes you take your photography trips and explore the world on your own and love it that way. Because of the way that you have lived your life, I will always remember the importance of being independent. 

Thank you for always supporting me in everything I do. I know I threw you for a loop when I told you that I wanted to go into medicine, but look - now I'm really doing it! And I couldn't have done it without your guidance. Thank you for always being able to provide everything for me; I have never felt like I would have to compromise the quality of my education because of financial reasons. I know that a lot of other kids have, and I am thankful every day that I don't have to worry about that facet of my education. Fear not - I promise that I will do justice to the vast amount of money that you're about to spend on Boston University! 

Thank you for always trying to teach me. I know that your wisdom comes from years of experience and learning, and that I would do well to take your advice. Sometimes it seems like I don't listen, but the important stuff - I always remember it. I am thankful that I grew up with your guidance, but also with your trust. I think that the things that you have bestowed upon me are the truly important things, and the things that you have allowed me to do (which you haven't always agreed with) have resulted in me becoming my own person, with my own passions and direction and convictions. You have handled parenting perfectly, and I hope to prove that to you one day. 

I know that you have many doubts about your parenting. But trust me, you have done better than anyone else I know. I am so thankful to have you as my mom! Happy Mother's Day, I love you!

- Chelle Chelle