Between Sangkhla Buri and Wang Kha

by Walter G. Allgöwer

Between the banks of the Sangkhla Buri and the Mon village of Wang Kha, the old wooden bridge spans the water like a silent thought. Plank by plank, it tells of encounters, of farewells and of paths that have connected people for generations. This morning, it becomes the setting for a special harmony.
Six young nuns stride across the Mon Bridge, as light as a prayer carried on the wind. Their white robes appear like flowing light, whilst the bright red parasols above them blossom like lotus flowers in the morning sun. The red cuts through the gentle greys of the landscape, lending the moment an almost dreamlike intensity. Every step seems deliberate, every movement filled with inner calm.
Beneath them, the water lies still and watchful, as if wishing to preserve the transience of this moment. The surrounding hills, the houses on the bank and the tropical vegetation blur into a tranquil backdrop, whilst the bridge stretches away towards the horizon. It becomes a symbol of transition: between places, between times, between the outside world and the stillness of one’s own heart.
Thus, the nuns do not merely walk from one bank to the other. They carry something invisible with them: serenity, dignity and the realisation that the true path rarely leads straight ahead. It unfolds step by step, in mindfulness, sustained by the balance between movement and inner peace.