Bewitched; it's love.

Right now, I'd like to quote Mr. Darcy from “Pride and Prejudice” when he says at the end of the movie to the lovely Keira Knightley: “You bewitch me – mind, body, and soul.” And how every woman sighs a romantic sigh as she bracingly clutches her heart when she hears that line, I sigh a bittersweet sigh whenever I pause and reflect on my experience here.

Thailand has bewitched my mind, body, and soul.

At this point, I can easily confess that I love the Thailand that I've gotten to know. During my first month here, I was having fun and appreciating my experience, but I was still slightly homesick and would sometimes think about life back at home: how much I missed it, how happy I'll be to be back, etc. But something recently changed; I woke up one morning after Koh Samet and realized how hard I'm falling for this place.

It's hard to live in the present, for when I'm in it and am having the time of my life, I only think about the future and how much I'll miss this current life I'm leading. Does that make sense?

When I look at my students or pictures of my students, I get nostalgic and start missing them, even though I'm currently teaching them. I see them every day in the halls but am getting attached to their cheery greetings and how they'll drop everything they're doing just to run outside and yell “TEACHAH!” down the hall if they catch a glimpse of me. I'm getting attached to their exuberant cheers and the applause by which I'm greeted when I enter their classrooms. Attached to their high-fives, stickers, hugs (so many hugs), smiles; getting attached to singing “I want nobody, nobody but YOU!” by the Wondergirls (a famous song in Thailand right now) with my kiddos, and training them to do the “cha-cha-cha” whenever I say the word, “dance!” The other day after school, I witnessed the 2^nd and 3^rd graders practicing their dance for our upcoming Sport Day in January (these girls can dance, by the way, wow! Danger...haha). They are SO adorable shakin' their “thangs”, clapping and sweating as their braids bounce up and down, that I got teary-eyed at the thought of leaving them. Already they've taught me the importance of patience and not taking life too seriously (no one likes an angry teachahhh!). Let loose, have fun, and smile. I will miss them so when my five months are up.

Each week here flies by. If time here were the equivalent of an animal, it'd be a hummingbird, for it zooms about and pauses for a brief few moments – suspended in time as it forces you to think and reflect, as traveling/living by yourself often makes you do – but then it's moving, moving, moving once again. The past few weekends have been some of the most exciting of my life; the constant traveling and seeing new things with just one other (cool) person (Linnea) is liberating, exciting, eye-opening, refreshing, introspective, and fun. I get a high from it. On a Saturday/Sunday at home, I might read three chapters of a book, run, go to church, eat a good meal, watch a movie, spend time with friends and family (which is always awesome), and sleep in. Nothing special, nothing too boring, nothing too exciting.

But consider this: I write this post on a Sunday night back at my apartment in Phra Padaeng. Yesterday morning I woke up in this same apartment, left for Kanchanaburi (3 hours away), arrived, rode bikes in the countryside, visited a museum and war cemeteries, explored a cave, hiked to 7 different waterfalls, came back to Bangkok, and then sat in on a Swedish Lucia/Christmas festival. All within two days, one night. Brother Time must be impressed with how Linnea and I have made use of him during our travels.

There's still so much that I want to do while I'm here and I'm getting nervous at the thought of how little time I have left. In the meantime, I will continue to let myself fall in love with Thailand and all its natural wonder, historical stupor, personable charm, and culinary surprises. I'll continue to get lost in appreciative reflection during long bus rides overlooking Thailand's majestic mountains, greenery, and snaking rivers. I'll gladly continue to contentedly nap – full with fresh mango juice and papaya – under palm trees and the blanket of the sun, on Thailand's breathtaking beaches. Everything's awesome. Any foolish doubt that I may have had when entering this program and choosing Thailand over, say, a country in South America (I still really want to go there, though!), has been erased. I'm so glad I chose to teach, for it has been one of the most enriching parts of my experience here.

I fall asleep many nights thinking to myself, “if I died right now, I would die happy.” I'm blessed to have a supportive family and this fortunate opportunity. Not everyone can afford to do this, but I wish they could. Traveling with an open mind is the best education and the easiest way to fall in love with life.