Home Thoughts From Abroad

One downside to this way of life is that we always seem to be saying goodbye to someone that we’ll miss and may never see again. In this past year we have met and had the privilege of getting to know a really fine group of people.  Some of the most dedicated teachers you could ever hope to meet are working here in Kuala Lumpur. Some, like us, are staying on for another year, but most are going back to their lives in Ontario.

For the past year they have been our friends, neighbours, co-workers, travelling companions, support network and surrogate family.  We have experienced much that was new together, shared meals and adventures in several different countries, struggled through the frustrations of trying to live in the East, developed curriculum and drama projects, cleaned up the neighbourhood and just had good fun together.  Last night we even went bowling (not my personal favourite!) and then had another fun evening together at Bill and Kim’s apartment celebrating a couple of birthdays and my departure.

Many of them  will be gone before I get back to Malaysia in July.  We know that wherever they go they will take the richness of this experience with them to enrich the lives of others they teach. I will sure miss them but count it a blessing to have known them as friends.

Finally, after almost a month of discussion with our employer, we have a flight plan and tickets in place!  I will be returning to Ontario next Tuesday.  Steve has less than three weeks between semesters so will join me June 14th until we return to KL together on June 30th. 

Quick stopover in Ontario and then I will be flying out to Calgary on Thursday with my sister-in-law, Sylvia.  I am so looking forward to some uninterupted time with her as she is a precious friend and in many ways has enabled us to be here.  With her three teenagers and very busy life, uninterupted time is a real gift.

In my two days in Ontario, i will be picking up a vehicle that we have arranged to lease for the duration of my stay- a van so I can manage the moving of our possessions, which are currently cluttering up a friends basement.  Hopefully this will come in handy to help with Jon and Nic’s move home as well.

I will have five days in Calgary with Dave and Liz!  I last saw them April 23, 2007 and have never seen their new home or met any of their Calgary friends.  It will be awesome.  By the time I get back to Ontario, Nic, Ben and Abi will have made the trek up to Ontario to begin their move home.  I will finally get my hands on Ben and Abi and I can’t wait.

Our condo is currently occupied by Sara and Milan and little Mateo (who was born on Easter), so other wonderful friends have given me the use of their home while I am in London.  Al and Shelley have just accepted a position in Switzerland so they too are roaming the earth and we are so grateful for a Master Planner for all of our lives who looks after details in ways that we could never even begin to fathom.

But the first place I am heading is Tim Horton’s – I am sure there is one at the Toronto airport.

Fortunately, even here in Malaysia the March mid-semester break pretty much coincides with our anniversary.  We were looking for a unique holiday and came across an article in Time magazine entitled “Waves of Bliss”.  Sumba Island is one of the islands in the Indonesian archipelago and is about 400 km east of Bali, in the Indian Ocean.

The eco-resort, called Nihiwatu, consists of  only seven bungalows and three villas.  There is a cliff-top spa and dining takes place in a beach front restaurant and in open air pavilions. 

The resort has a neat relationship with the local island people and it has established a charitable foundation which has virtually eradicated malaria in the villages, built clinics and schools and provides training at the resort along with employment for about 150 locals.

Our stay on the island includes a flight from Bali, horse back riding on the beach, a massage at the spa, visits to a local village and a trek to a hidden waterfall. Apparently the surfing here is fantastic, but the waves look pretty intimidating!

We know that this is an extravagance, and this not something that we often do for ourselves. But thirty years of marriage is worth celebrating, don’t you think?

Malaysians went to the polls on Saturday and woke up Sunday in a democracy. No one can quite believe it. The ruling coalition, made up of mostly the Malay Party (UMNO) with a few token Chinese and Indian flacks, has ruled this country since independence in 1957. They own the media, both print and video, and have gerrymandered the electoral districts to ensure a majority even if they lose. In 2004 for example, they got 64% of the popular vote and 91% of the seats in parliament.

The only time they ever lost an election was in 1969, which was suppressed by a state-sponsored race riot resulting in a local bloodbath and a palace coup. The Internal Security Act, put in place in the late ’50s to deal with the communists, has never been rescinded and allows the governement to declare illegal any peaceful assembly and jail indefinitely without charge anyone they deem dangerous to the public good.

It is in this context that Saturday’s election took place. Without any support from the media, using only the internet, cell phones, and word of mouth, the word went out to give this arrogant, corrupt government a stinging rebuke that will rebound in this country for years to come. Democracy is coming to Malaysia. It will be messy and confusing, but it looks like it is going to finally take hold.

For a look at a local blogger who ran in the election – and won by 62,000 votes over the incumbent! – check out http://www.jeffooi.com/

A year ago today I retired. I spent a happy three months getting ready to move to and then settling into a new life in Malaysia. Basically just a summer holiday for a teacher, perhaps a little extended. It was nice, but it wasn’t real.

Then I started teaching. Again. I really don’t have to do this, you know. I could just retire. I wouldn’t make much, but it would be enough to live on. But I can’t; I love teaching. Yes, it is demanding and tiring and even on occassion, boring (very rarely). But it fulfils me in a way that I can’t easily verbalize or even rationalize. It’s like I’m wired for it. I’m hooked on the learning environment.

I do about three hours of prep for my classes each day, less if I have to mark. And its all fun. I read scores of online articles on everything that is relevant, and a fair bit that isn’t, but just interesting. Constructing a good lesson or a good test is like painting for me, as much art as science. Then I deliver the lesson. I’m like a kid unwrapping a birthday present. I bring out each little bit in turn, and like a bad comedian, internally giggle at each little success, each point that goes home.

When a student who has been struggling gets 90% on a test, it’s like I got it myself, I’m so happy for them. Marking bores me, and the hassle of dealing with admin who are only interested in making a buck off these kids is disheartening. But I love being in a classroom, and I love to learn, and so long as those things are true, I guess I’m stuck working.

If God has arranged some “Honourable Mention” awards in heaven, I am sure He has one in store for my friend Lalita for her faithfulness in leading our Friday morning Coffee Bible Fellowship.  This is the most unruly group of  women, almost impossible to keep on task as everyone loves to talk and everyone loves to have fun.  It is a never ending challenge for Lalita to keep us focused on Genesis when everyone knows that there is a Victoria’s Secret sale going on in PJ.  One person just needs to mention a physical problem and they instantly recieve ten diagnoses and treatment strategies.

I have learned so much from each of these women about the joys and struggles of being a women, wife and mother in their own culture and really look forward to my time together with them each week.  I am thankful to have had the support of this group for the last seven months. 

Oh, and another shared interest is food and there is always plenty of that.