7 May 2013
Friends and acquaintances used to envy me when they learned that my job required me to travel extensively. For 14 years, I was mostly in the air; or in different countries, meeting people of all races and cultures. I would be in a plane every week, and sometimes, twice a week if I cover the South East Asian region. "Don't envy me" I would tell them. First, you would have to live off the suitcase. I used to reach home, unpack, and at the same time, started packing for my next trip! I remember my children's remarks on a few occasions when I return: "Oh, you are back! When are you leaving again?" Second, you have to put up with the disorientation of time and space. Many times, when I awake and open my eyes in the morning, I would look towards the window and try to figure out where I was. Am I in my own room; or am I in Bangkok, in Berlin or in Ethiopia?
A business trip is far from being a leisure or a holiday trip. Your mind is all charged up, meetings have been arranged, so all your time is consumed in discussions, planning, decision making. Even lunch breaks offer no relief, no matter how good the food of that country is, as you are with clients and have to be sociable and make small talks. Then when you are taken to see a popular tourist attraction which your client insists you must not miss, having traveled all the way there, you cannot absorb or marvel at the beauty in sight, because your mind is cramped with ideas and materials to deliberate at the next meeting.
I am so glad all that is behind me now. All I want now is to spend time alone, at home, in the sanctuary of my own study room, surrounded by my books, my favorite music discs and my craft materials which I use for 'scrap-booking' the hundreds of photos of family, friends and of my travels; a hobby I enjoy as it gives me a chance to pen my thoughts on what I remember of a certain place or an occasion, in the caption for each photo. A picture they say, is worth a thousand words. Mine have all the wonderful memories that I want to compile and cherish as a keepsake. My friend SN puts it very aptly: "Having given all that energy into your work, it is natural that you want to retreat inwards, to re-charge and consolidate your energy for your own self now". Yes, energy to relish simple pleasures and nourish my soul.
Home sweet home! You never know how good it is until you are thousands of miles away and no matter how grand the hotel that you are staying in, it is never like home, where you can be truly yourself; where you can kick off your shoes, change into something comfortable and really relax! What a luxury it is to have all your personal things and all your clothes within your reach! How wonderful it is to be able to walk into your own kitchen and make a cup of coffee in your own mug; and/or have that piece of cheesecake cake in the fridge! For me as well, I treasure being able to have meals with my children; it is not the food that is important; but the time together.
Now in my sweet home, I find solitude, comfort and joy, just doing the things I love... and somehow, the silence helps to sharpen my senses, and gives me that perfect chance to connect with the Divine...
"Where we love is home - home where
our feet may leave, but not our hearts."
-Oliver Holmes-
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