I thought one more post might be warranted as I ponder and plan. My blog posts seem somehow left dangling with my thoughts about leaving and no mention of how life has unfolded returning home after 26 months. When I undertook volunteering in Cambodia, one of my curiosities was to know how it would feel coming home after such a long time away. Well, it wasn't at all what I had anticipated as quite often is the case. And, has my time away changed me? Most definitely!
Nine years later:
Arriving to the orderly boarding at the Vancouver International Airport then to the quiet streets of Kelowna were very weird indeed. After the chaos of SE Asia everything in Canada looked clean and empty. The streets were void of traffic and for the most part there was no litter to be seen. Walking into my house was so strange as everything was exactly like I had left it thanks to my house-sitters. It felt great to be in my lovely home again nestled and comfortable. I got it to just how I wanted it with a beautiful garden, new wiring, a new septic field and tank, a new furnace and hot water tank...then I sold it!
Reintegrating into Canadian life was much more difficult than I expected. I missed the close connection and the inclusion that the folks in Cambodia offered so naturally. I had changed! It has been a struggle psychologically and my sympathies still side with the disadvantaged. My heart aches for the people around the world who are dying to change their lives and the lives of their countrymen and women for the better. I certainly have a much more intimate insight into what life is like in a developing country. I try not to criticize what I don't understand.
It is hard to believe that I've been home almost nine years and Cambodia is still very much a part of me. I miss all the connections I had, the wonderful people, and the extraordinary resilience of a country struggling to move forward. Savann my trusted assistant, has gotten married and has a son Oudom, and together with Smey, they live with her parents in Sisophon.
As for my life...
I decided to take up back-country ski touring which has become my very favourite activity. There is nothing better then getting into the mountains, away from the crowds, and making turns in the deep powder. Snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and downhill skiing still play a part in my most favourite season, winter. In the summer, I hike and backpack trying to get to parts of B.C. and the world where I haven't been.
My travels have taken me to Norway to visit my dear long-time friends Elisabeth and Kjell-Fredrik for a winter adventure, to Scotland with Elisabeth and Kjell-Fredrik hiking the West Highland Way, to Botswana (South Africa, and Zimbabwe) on a safari. I finally made it to the Vowell Glacier, spending 4 days mountaineering in the Bugaboo Mountains of B.C. This year I backpacked in the Yukon, in Tombstone Territorial Park, and rafted the Grand Canyon for 7 days before hiking from the bottom to the top of the South Rim. Ski trips to the backcountry are in the offing this winter, and in the summer I am hoping to visit my niece in Greece, and rendez-vous with Elisabeth and Kjell-Fredrik for a backpacking trip somewhere in Europe. Perhaps I'll even fit in visits with other friends and relatives in Europe while I'm there.
My beautiful home and acreage in Grand Forks were sold 5+ years ago and I've relocated to Nelson. I definitely miss my friends and the lovely community of Grand Forks but moving into a condo in Nelson was a good move as it gets me closer to my much loved mountains and to like-minded folks.
Who knows what the future holds? My goal is to live what is left of this wonderful life to the fullest. My time in Cambodia has taught me so much about kindness, generosity, and love. My connections to Cambodia will remain a piece of my heart.
Here's to more adventures and a celebration of life-time of experiences. Signing off.
Andrea
