It’s almost as if the last four years never happened. Did I really travel by myself through 11 countries? Did I really live and work in Thailand for two years? The day to day memories of the rigors of independent travel and the frustrations of living in an alien culture, which I regrettably emphasized in my early writings, are long gone. As I go about my busy life working 40 hours a week as an engineer at the largest corporation of its kind in the world, there’s not much time to dwell on the past. But perceptions remain.

Perceptions that the world is full of people who are hard working and ambitious, but will never be able to raise themselves from poverty because they are from countries that are hopelessly isolated or marginalized like Burma or Laos. Even those who are better off in modern countries like Thailand can not aspire to better jobs, because their societies are stratified and the family they are born into determines their fate, so working hard is pointless. Most of the world’s people would jump at the opportunity I have to live in a classless society, work hard, and be rewarded both financially and through increasing opportunities. I am incredibly fortunate.

I believe living in the Far East helped me become a better person by making me internalize some aspects of the culture. The mai bpen rai (it doesn’t matter) and “don’t think too much” attitude prevalent in Thailand could be infuriating, but now it helps me live a low stress life. If I have a bad day at work, I just don’t think too much about it, because, yes, in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter.

Living in a Buddhist country also helped me appreciate that everything is temporary. Maybe I’ll lose this job, but something better will eventually come up. But the most temporary things of all are, well, things. After selling most of my things, and living with practically nothing, I found that it’s not things that make one happy. It’s experiences. This means that instead of spending my money on toys like PDA’s and DVD’s, I save it. However, Buddhism does stress moderation, so I will eventually buy that mp3 player I’ve been wanting.

So as I begin this period of hard work, I am glad I did what I did. I feel refreshed, and ready to put my nose to the grindstone. However, my traveling days are not done. I still feel an inexorable pull towards China, where much remains to be seen and to do. Like hitchhiking to Mount Everest, studying Chinese in Beijing, teaching in Shanghai, …

THE END

for now