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I am trying to live a balanced life, with room for family, friends, sports, recreation, learning, and work.

"The bonsai in me" always tries to take more time at the expense of the rest, but I don't allow it. I find that I enjoy bonsai the most when the other areas in my life get their fair share. So, I consciously empty my mind of any bonsai matter for a great part of a given day. Then, I return to it with anticipation and full of enthusiasm. My best explanation is that balance and moderation is the key to enjoy everything to the fullest. I would hate the day when bonsai became a compulsive activity. To me that's the death of creativity and mental sanity.

Yesterday I went to the yearly show of Descanso Bonsai Society. I was just about to buy an ivy with a spectacular, 7" nebari, when someone who looked like a novice interrupted me for advice. I turned away from my tree for about 3 minutes, and when I turned back again, the tree was gone. I was slightly furious, since it should have been obvious that when I am handling a tree for examination, one shouldn't just snatch it while I turn my back at it for a minute. It was clear that I took it from its place and put it next to me for a reason.
Anyway, it turned out that a gentleman who bought it was the president of another bonsai society in the Los Angeles area. When I walked up to him and explained what happened, he told me off with a "tough luck buddy". I was in a mixture of shock and anger, and realized that this is how it looks when bonsai takes over your life (not mine, but the other gentleman's). You lose your sense of decency and fairness, greed and selfishness takes over. Everything goes, "for the higher purpose" of the art. The goal justifies the means.

At that moment I felt that bonsai meant nothing to me, compared with the values I was brought up with. And I didn't even want to be associated with these maniacs.

Just when I was about to leave the show, he ran after me and said, "you know what, have another look at the ivy and if you still want it, I will sell it to you for the same price". It was a close call, but the world turned back to normal again.

At the end, I passed on the tree and left it to him. And that was a blessing, because shortly after, they rolled out a 400 year old (estimated of course) california juniper with a trunk that I would only dream on having. I was the first who saw it and two minutes later it was in my car. I couldn't believe my luck: it cost me $50, the seller was a sick man who couldn't take care of it anymore and was virtually giving away this world-class material.

The moral: when bonsai takes over your life, there is a great danger of losing touch with the rest of us humans. It's a lonely place. What's the point?

20-Jun-2005	#17
Attila Attila Soos Join Date: Jan-2002 Location: Los Angeles, California Country: USA Posts: 2,003	I am trying to live a balanced life, with room for family, friends, sports, recreation, learning, and work. "The bonsai in me" always tries to take more time at the expense of the rest, but I don't allow it. I find that I enjoy bonsai the most when the other areas in my life get their fair share. So, I consciously empty my mind of any bonsai matter for a great part of a given day. Then, I return to it with anticipation and full of enthusiasm. My best explanation is that balance and moderation is the key to enjoy everything to the fullest. I would hate the day when bonsai became a compulsive activity. To me that's the death of creativity and mental sanity. Yesterday I went to the yearly show of Descanso Bonsai Society. I was just about to buy an ivy with a spectacular, 7" nebari, when someone who looked like a novice interrupted me for advice. I turned away from my tree for about 3 minutes, and when I turned back again, the tree was gone. I was slightly furious, since it should have been obvious that when I am handling a tree for examination, one shouldn't just snatch it while I turn my back at it for a minute. It was clear that I took it from its place and put it next to me for a reason. Anyway, it turned out that a gentleman who bought it was the president of another bonsai society in the Los Angeles area. When I walked up to him and explained what happened, he told me off with a "tough luck buddy". I was in a mixture of shock and anger, and realized that this is how it looks when bonsai takes over your life (not mine, but the other gentleman's). You lose your sense of decency and fairness, greed and selfishness takes over. Everything goes, "for the higher purpose" of the art. The goal justifies the means. At that moment I felt that bonsai meant nothing to me, compared with the values I was brought up with. And I didn't even want to be associated with these maniacs. Just when I was about to leave the show, he ran after me and said, "you know what, have another look at the ivy and if you still want it, I will sell it to you for the same price". It was a close call, but the world turned back to normal again. At the end, I passed on the tree and left it to him. And that was a blessing, because shortly after, they rolled out a 400 year old (estimated of course) california juniper with a trunk that I would only dream on having. I was the first who saw it and two minutes later it was in my car. I couldn't believe my luck: it cost me $50, the seller was a sick man who couldn't take care of it anymore and was virtually giving away this world-class material. The moral: when bonsai takes over your life, there is a great danger of losing touch with the rest of us humans. It's a lonely place. What's the point?