December 5th, 2009
From my understanding, Buddhists believe that if you are born with great privilege, then you are deserving because you have earned it through much merit in past lives. Not being Buddhist myself, I don't have such conviction and therefore often spend time contemplating this concept.
Last year, I spent some time living with a family and volunteering in the school of a hilltribe village in Thailand called Ban La Oop. Upon return last week, the family again warmly welcomed me into their modest home without a moment of hesitation. I brought with me armloads of groceries, but even if I hadn't the seven of them would have gladly shared their meals with me.
I learned that the school had recently been closed for a month due to a "government inspection". Even now there are not many classes in session because the teachers need to catch up on missing paperwork. The children have a couple of classes throughout the day but spend a greater amount of time playing in the yard or doing independent study.
I imagined back to my days in school and how excited I would have been, as many of the children in La Oop are, to not have to go to class. Janjira, the eldest daughter of the family I stay with, is perhaps a bit wiser than I was and feels differently about the situation. Education is something that she greatly desires and she is willing to sacrifice for it. This year, at the age of thirteen she will graduate from the highest grade at the La Oop school. At this point, her family must decide if she will go on with school or not. Janjira, unlike some children, has a great desire to go on with school. However it is not so easy for her as it was for my classmates and I in the US.
To continue her education she must commute one hour each-way in the back of a pick-up to a private school in the nearest town. Being the eldest child of five, she is expected to help with the expenses of the family. Although the monthly tuition is not much by western standards, it is not an easy thing for the family to pay for.
Even after spending much of her day studying, doing chores and watching the baby, Janjira musters enough energy to practice her already beautiful English. Always pausing over the words she doesn't know and asking me to spell them out. She has encouraged her whole family to do the same and now they all have by far the best English in the village.
The night before I left, the second eldest, Om shyly admitted that her and her mom share one pair of sandals. The type of sandals they wear literally cost less than I spend on a beer, so I spoiled her a bit with paying an extra dollar to get the cute ones with the flowers.
Despite all this, the family is far from a charity case. They are grateful for all that they have, a healthy loving family, rich soil to grow their food, plenty of clean water, a solid hut and a lovely simple hilltribe village filled with their family, friends and rich traditions.
Not all in this region are so privileged. The road south from La Oop traverses the western rim of Thailand, bordering Burma.
Yesterday, I traveled for nine hours down to and along this road in a songthaew (a pick-up with benches in the back that serves as a taxi.) There are no other public transportation options from La Oop to Mae Sot and the ride can at times be slightly miserable but is always an intriguing one.
I know this ride well from doing it several times last year in order to renew my visa in Mae Sot. There is a constant fluctuation in the number of passengers. I have been the only one and I have been one of 28. Only once have I seen any other foreigners aboard this particular route.
Just being born in the US has given me the privilege to cross almost any border I choose. It is easy to become frustrated with visas but it is so small an inconvenience in comparison with that of so many. As I become too familiar with in San Diego, people sacrifice life savings and jeopardize their lives and freedom to cross a border. If they make it, there is often no chance to make it back to visit the loved ones they left behind. Honestly that's enough for me to really question how it came to be that I was handed so much. The scales are so far tipped that it can become something that I forget to even feel grateful for.
I was reminded as I saw a nervous family being pulled across the border river in a large innertube as I stayed dry and worry free walking across the bridge, American passport in hand.
Aside from just the legal aspects, I have been allotted much more in order to travel. Technically in the US, I am considered to fall just about at the poverty line. This of course I could change at any time and is only because of decisions I have made and my freedom to choose my own lifestyle. I have lived mostly out of my truck for the past year and a half to allow for mobility and to save my limited income for adventure and a little volunteering.
Many people even in the US find this strange. They perhaps feel I have my values out of order, not striving for money and stability for myself. Most Thais feel that it is strange for someone without much money to travel simply because they've never been free of the pressure and desire to provide for their families.
For myself, I have been granted with the stability of a family that does not need to rely on me for financial support and that is lovingly supportive of me leading my adventure filled positive life. If the Buddhists are right, I can't even imagine the merit I must have done to deserve so much privilege.
I passed one of the poorest sections of the region on my songthaew ride. It is filled with refugee camps that some Burmese families have lived in for generations. The simple flimsy bamboo huts seem to fill every available space in some areas. Many of the people that board the songthaew have only dirty and tattered clothes clinging to their skinny frames. Despite the efforts of many NGOs, the refugees from Burma's brutal regime don't have adequate food, healthcare or education.
One mother boarded with her two small children in one of the hardest hit areas. The beautiful little girl and her toddler brother stared at me with curious but unsmiling faces. I'm sure it was as difficult for them to imagine what my life is like as it is for me to comprehend what they must go through.
I tried smiling at them, but I was returned with only heart-breakingly sad eyes and slight, yet solid frowns.
They rode for awhile before ringing the buzzer to get off. A man was standing on the other side of the two lane highway. The children called out excitedly for him as they disboarded. The mother struggled with a rice sack.
Suddenly the woman across from me let out a bloodcurdling scream. Then I heard the squealing of tires. I looked up to the road to see the little boy being narrowly missed by a truck that then began careening out of control. It was up on two wheels now, sideways across the road. A motorbike with two men were unable to stop on time and were forced into a ditch, the man in the back getting knocked off by a branch.
The father ran across the road, scooping up his son and bringing him back to safety. Miraculously, the truck stayed upright, the men from the motorbike hopped right up and the family remained intact. Despite all their hardships and perhaps lack of privilege I saw at that moment the faces of people whom were unmistakably happy to be alive. I hope I never forget that.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
American Whirlwind
Nov. 8th, 2009
Three weeks, 3,000 miles in my truck, one flight to the east coast and back, one ride to Vegas and one blown out tire. That is the basic summation of my time spent between finishing work in Washington and flying out to Thailand. It's no wonder I ended up sick as a dog the day before I was supposed to leave the country.
I finished my last Outward Bound course for the season at the end of September. It was a sea kayaking course in the San Juan Islands that was specifically designed for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.
The course was a great success, very rewarding and a lot of fun. Afterwards I took a day off to get my Myanmar visa in order (which is not an easy feat when you are living in a "2 stop sign town"). I then spent my remaining couple of weeks in Washington working every day as a logistics coordinator.
The evening of my last day of work was spent locating all of my stuff that I had stashed in various locations around basecamp over the last five months and then stuffing it all back into my truck.
The day before, my friend asked me what I wanted to have for my last dinner on base. I was super tired and trying to take a nap so all that I had answered was "pie....pumpkin pie...." "And..." she pried. "and.... whipcream" was my only response. From this my few co-workers left on base, created an early Thanksgiving celebration. This was really lovely for me because I will be in Asia over the real holiday.
I then began my whirlwind visit of friends and family all over the country. (If I didn't see you, hopefully you will understand the reason after reading my itinerary.)
I spent a night in Seattle, a lunch date in Olympia, a night in Portland, a night on the McKenzie River, a lunch date in Brownsville, a night in Eugene, back to the McKenzie, a night in Chico, a lunch date in Sonoma, a night in Halfmoon Bay, a couple nights in San Diego. I then flew to the East coast to spend a few nights in Baltimore, a night in New York City, and one more night in Baltimore before flying back west. I spent my birthday in San Diego before catching a ride from Barstow to Vegas where I spent two nights with some friends from Texas. I caught a ride back to Barstow, then blew out my tire (luckily within cell phone range this time) on I-5 on my way back to Halfmoon Bay. I stayed there for a couple of nights where I became ill, battled it and willed myself to recover before flying from San Francisco to Bangkok.
Phew, I am currently swaying in a hammock, under a palm tree, along the river Kwai in Thailand and a new wave of exhaustion hit me just thinking about it.
Oh well, I wouldn't have changed a thing, it was so amazing to see everyone that I was able to see, and hopefully I'll be able to see the rest of you on my next adventure in the States.
Until then, I plan to travel at a much more leisurely pace.
Three weeks, 3,000 miles in my truck, one flight to the east coast and back, one ride to Vegas and one blown out tire. That is the basic summation of my time spent between finishing work in Washington and flying out to Thailand. It's no wonder I ended up sick as a dog the day before I was supposed to leave the country.
I finished my last Outward Bound course for the season at the end of September. It was a sea kayaking course in the San Juan Islands that was specifically designed for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.
The course was a great success, very rewarding and a lot of fun. Afterwards I took a day off to get my Myanmar visa in order (which is not an easy feat when you are living in a "2 stop sign town"). I then spent my remaining couple of weeks in Washington working every day as a logistics coordinator.
The evening of my last day of work was spent locating all of my stuff that I had stashed in various locations around basecamp over the last five months and then stuffing it all back into my truck.
The day before, my friend asked me what I wanted to have for my last dinner on base. I was super tired and trying to take a nap so all that I had answered was "pie....pumpkin pie...." "And..." she pried. "and.... whipcream" was my only response. From this my few co-workers left on base, created an early Thanksgiving celebration. This was really lovely for me because I will be in Asia over the real holiday.
I then began my whirlwind visit of friends and family all over the country. (If I didn't see you, hopefully you will understand the reason after reading my itinerary.)
I spent a night in Seattle, a lunch date in Olympia, a night in Portland, a night on the McKenzie River, a lunch date in Brownsville, a night in Eugene, back to the McKenzie, a night in Chico, a lunch date in Sonoma, a night in Halfmoon Bay, a couple nights in San Diego. I then flew to the East coast to spend a few nights in Baltimore, a night in New York City, and one more night in Baltimore before flying back west. I spent my birthday in San Diego before catching a ride from Barstow to Vegas where I spent two nights with some friends from Texas. I caught a ride back to Barstow, then blew out my tire (luckily within cell phone range this time) on I-5 on my way back to Halfmoon Bay. I stayed there for a couple of nights where I became ill, battled it and willed myself to recover before flying from San Francisco to Bangkok.
Phew, I am currently swaying in a hammock, under a palm tree, along the river Kwai in Thailand and a new wave of exhaustion hit me just thinking about it.
Oh well, I wouldn't have changed a thing, it was so amazing to see everyone that I was able to see, and hopefully I'll be able to see the rest of you on my next adventure in the States.
Until then, I plan to travel at a much more leisurely pace.
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