Ani’S Asylum

By Marian Prentice Huntington

Anis Asylum is a true story about a Tibetan-Buddhist refugee fictitiously called Ani. After escaping from Chinese-occupied Tibet, Ani eventually arrives in Northern California to seek refuge for herself and her daughter. Anis teacher, the eminent Arjia Rinpoche, introduces her to the author. The two women travel the path toward asylum together.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 8, 2018
• ISBN: 9781984531858

Marian Prentice Huntington

MARIAN PRENTICE HUNTINGTON se dedica a servir a inmigrantes y a familias pobres en su comunidad y trabaja para mejorar la salud de chicos sin hogares y vulnerables a través de una obra de caridad que ha creado, NOVATOSPIRIT. Anteriormente, era periodista de investigación para el periódico ganador del premio Pulitzer, Point Reyes Light, y profesora de periodismo en la Universidad Sonoma State. Ella también es la autora del libro Ani’s Asylum, el cual trata de ayudar una familia inmigrante conseguir asilo político en los Estados Unidos, y ha sido nominada para varios prestigiosos premios, incluyendo el premio World of Children´s Humanatarian Award y el premio Marin County Women´s Hall of Fame.

Book preview

Ani’s Asylum

Marian Prentice Huntington

Copyright © 2018 by Marian Prentice Huntington.

Library of Congress Control Number:         2018906479

ISBN:                       Hardcover                           978-1-9845-3187-2

                                Softcover                            978-1-9845-3186-5

                                eBook                                   978-1-9845-3185-8

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 06/06/2018

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CONTENTS

Ani was easy to spot

Chunpay called

The American celebration of Christmas

Ani’s visa document is almost complete

Jack, our immigration lawyer, guided Ani’s visa

Ani said she’s quit

Ani is living with friends

The Dalai Lama has invited Arjia Rinpoche

Ani is learning to drive

Ani can legally drive a car

Ani never gives up

Because of her temporary immigration status

Ani’s got wheels

Ani had a car accident

Ani’s daughter won first prize in a math competition

Ani’s not engulfed by her suffering

Ani represented herself in a court of law

Ani came to visit us

Ani’s father died suddenly last week

Time is not on Ani’s side

Ani has a pair of advocates

Ani asked for freedom this week

Ani and I are sharing a bottle of Tylenol

The immigration judge issued an oral decision

As the opening date approached for the 2008 Olympics

When the Olympic torch passed

PRC officials moved earth, water, and air

Ani shared the good news

When I pray each morning

The doorbell rang

Afterword

Bibliography

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to the memory of my grandmother, Marian Prentice Huntington (1883-1973), who helped foreign-born orphans and refugee families settle safely in the United States and in other countries around the world. Following her death, I searched for sources of her altruism. Looking through her treasured books, one caught my eye. The book was My Land and My People, The Memoirs of His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet.

This is a true story about the author’s friendship with a Tibetan Buddhist refugee fictitiously called Ani. Ani’s name and the names of some of the other people appearing in the book have been changed for their protection and privacy. The author has also altered some details to ensure the safety of several people mentioned in this book.

ANI WAS EASY TO SPOT

A NI WAS EASY to spot. She was clearly the most miserable person in the room. I saw her standing in front of the fireplace after meditation practice one day. She had dark shining hair and strong features. Lines of strain crossed her face, but her beauty was unmarked. She darted around the living room, serving people tea and food, light on her feet. But she seemed weighed down.

I was introduced to her by my teacher, Arja Lopsang Tupten Rinpoche, known affectionately as Arjia Rinpoche, and by his attendant monk, Chunpay Jumai.

Arjia Rinpoche is the founder and director of a Tibetan Buddhist cultural center in Marin County, and I feel fortunate to be among his students. He practices within the Gelug Yellow Hat tradition of Tibetan Buddhism—the same as His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.

Arjia Rinpoche said that Ani had recently come to the United States. She was a single mom, and had left her parents and her daughter behind in India to seek a safe home here. He asked me if I could help her find a job.

I walked up to her and introduced myself. She smiled easily and was very warm. She told me how much she missed her daughter. She said that she felt alone and that her daughter also felt alone. Her daughter was in a boarding school for Tibetan refugees located in a remote region of India that was far from where Ani’s parents were living. Since Ani’s parents were elderly and disabled, they could not travel to see their granddaughter at school. Ani knew she would never again see her parents and she feared losing her daughter forever.

Her sagging shoulders and downcast eyes compelled me to do something. I decided to help her find employment and move her daughter to the U.S.

Ani had a part-time job at a deli in my hometown—about 20 miles north of her home. While this distance was a short drive in a car, it was a long ride on a bus. Since Ani couldn’t drive a car, she was taking the bus to work every day. The bus ride was a 4-hour trip each way, since she had to change busses. All this, just to make a grand total of about $30 per day.

So over the next few weeks, I drove her to work when I could. But she still had to take the bus most of the time.

Chunpay told me that she was looking for nanny and housecleaning jobs, so