ITS ABOUT TO END...

This is it. The journey of “sharing skill, changing life” is about to end. One more month and it will be a different story. Many things had happened since my last post that change my way of thinking and how I see my placement. At the end, I am happy that I will leave this program without bitterness and grudge.

This change of course will not possible without help from many amazing people who share their spirit with me. My family in Karonga is endlessly giving me supports and lessons. Shannon, the cheers leader and captain eating (how do you stay slim with all those eating??), Patrick, the perfectionist and the best organizer (thanks for making sure all those glamour trips happened Papa P..you still owe me Nyika or Tanzania :P), Tendai, the sweetest and kindness Malawian (or should I said Zimbabwean?), Raphael, our baby  and growing boy (hey..dont forced me to sing German song again ok…), and of course Gustav, (oh Gustav I will miss you badly…thanks for being so strong taking us everywhere in Malawi. Those trips would have been different without you). I am so blessed to have been sharing my life with this family which at the end teaches me to appreciate more than to complain.

The 21 days holidays around Malawi with the WATERS team also gave me extra power to finish my placement. I would never imagine that we could share that much fun together. I found myself smiling every time I remember our craziness and yet we still can have some constructive meetings in between our hangovers. Who would finish two bottles of water from heaven in some hours? Who would swim and play “Truth or Dare”  in the lake after midnight where there might me some crocodiles looking for food? (Oh..who lost the pants again? lol) Who would sleep in the non-waterproof tend and get soaked at the mountain? Who would constantly hop on and off minibuses for 21 days with all those smells of armpits, sweats, chickens, and fishes? Who would get on to the truck sharing spaces with dead animals, 20 plus other people and luggage not to mention pouring rain?  Who would stay under the rain and help the driver to get out from the muddy road for almost an hour? Who would keep our bottle of vodka under the skirt in a café because we are all running low? Who would dance two nights in a row just because we find a real club to dance regardless the unpaid allowance? During the day we behaved normal, sharing thoughts and idea, talking about life and discussing about works, but during the night we behaved abnormal.

BUT guess what, THAT’S WHY I LOVE you Doris, Florent, Brenda, Esther, and Marije…you taught me to see my life from different angles.  You taught me that I shouldn’t focus on my misery and not to always think about it. You taught me life must go on regardless what has happened and I am the only one who decides how it must go on. You taught me to keep friends for life and YOU ARE friends for life.  I am so proud of this team and so glad that I am part of it.

I am looking forward to give my last workshop to my communities sometime this month. I will be savoring my last moments with them. They are the reason of my existence here in Malawi. They are the reasons I stay. They are the reason I am able to fight the demons inside me and win the compassion.  I really hope that my time here changes their life somehow even in a smallest way. I will treasure this experience with them. I will value the love they given me. I will always keep them in my heart.