The work has begun up at the Stupa. The day before the work began I saw the first rainbow I’ve seen since moving here. After the first full day of work a golden eagle soared above the stupa. The sandblasters came in a long cavalcade of trucks and equipment Tuesday at 7 AM. They’ve worked 3-10 hour days and will resume on Monday. They are careful, conscientious and very reverent. One of the men asked about the prayer flags–he’d never seen any. I told him they were prayers and that the wind carries prayers and blessings to everyone. He was stunned speechless and then slowly smiled, “That’s wonderful,” he said quietly, “That’s really wonderful.” The work of sandblasting is noisy, but there won’t be any noise from tomorrow until they resume on Monday. It’s quite a sight to see this work unfold. Zoe
Here are photos of some of the damage to the stupa, taken before construction began.
