There were many times over these past eight months when I would be sitting in a taxi and forget where I am, lost in my thoughts, and suddenly I would see something unfamiliar,
or the taxi driver would say something I didn’t understand, and I would remember with a jolt “oh yes- I’m in Thailand!”
I think that when I go back to Canada I will experience this- but in the opposite sense, like when I say (and I know I will) kup khun ka to the person at the grocery store, or the
ticket collector at the movies and they give me an odd look.
I know that every time I step outside my door (at least for the next few months) and I am hit with a chilling cold and a nasty wind, I will have to close my eyes and conjure up the
warmth of this country.
I think the saddest moments will be when I am missing all of you, and realize that I can no longer just walk one street over and find you typing furiously at your computers,
making your morning coffee in the kitchen, or discussing what good movies we should go see this weekend.
Nope, for all that I’ll have to cross an ocean…and cross it I shall! (hopefully sometime soon, because if not I will be very sad). Don’t forget though, you all have an open invitation to come to Canada-I promise to show you all the important human rights related sites;), and off course take you out for a little fun too. I once wrote to my family and friends this about working at FORUM-ASIA:
My workplace is a house of characters so diverse and refreshing, that everyday I am so excited to see them in anticipation of what quirky and interesting things they will do or say. Our office is much too small for the amount of traffic it attracts; it’s like a funhouse with distinct, and yet extraordinary characters who pop in and out of its doors, and sometimes decide to stay awhile. I love the dynamic energy, the passionate spirit, the immense dedication, and the heartfelt kindness that all the staff seem to embody.
I will miss, ever so much, lunches together, special dinners at ZAP, the thrill of ordering food, and actually getting what I want, and the very special talks over coffee or drinks, and sometimes dessert. I am not sure how to express what my time here has meant to me, short of saying that it was, remarkable.
There are also moments with many of you that I will not forget, like the IDP conference at Pak-Moon Dam- visiting the devastated communities, the dam site, and my own personal “trips” into the rivers (yes plural); the first day of ACSF, the KL “experience”, the second day of ACSF, the Where is Somchai? protest, the third day of ACSF, the weekend at Hua Hin, the last day of ACSF, and so many other unforgettable moments…
Please keep in touch, and if there is anything I can do for you, know that I would be thrilled, and flattered that you would ask.
