The Ties that Bind

After being away from my family and friends for nearly five weeks I have come to the safe conclusion that the vast sum of any emotion can bring a person to tears. More importantly, any strong emotion will bring Yours Truly to tears. I have felt angry, sad, homesick, happy, welcome, spiritual and calm; at each peak I have opened the water works and let them pour. On the other hand, a colossal feeling of some emotions can only shock you to your inner core and though you know you should be crying, and that your mind and body want you to, it’s virtually impossible to shed a single tear. Today was such a case. Never in my existence have I been to a party more spectacular than the Welcoming party Piyamaharachalia School threw for me today. It was magnificent in every aspect.

None of the holidays, birthday parties, goodbye parties, anniversaries or baby showers can compare to this event. Not to say that all those parties weren’t wonderful, but my welcoming party today was a mixture of the things I love and believe in the most. Peace and Love and Happiness. I wish I could have invited all my friends and family just to watch the celebration; it was like no other and yet it felt so normal for me. There were tables piled with all my favourite Thai foods: Khao Niao, Moong Satay, Dragonfruit, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Noodles with two types of Curry, Som Tam and more. This food didn’t remotely come in small portions, we had 14 bowls of dip and 14 bags of pork for the Moong Satay, there were giant urns full of curry, large bowls full of Vietnamese spring rolls and 10 plates of my favourite fruits. I set up a table with Canadian souvenirs, my Rotary jacket and four albums of pictures. My Thai friends and teachers loved it. All of the English teachers were there along with the Director, my English/Drama class and my good friends in my Math/Biology/Chemistry class.

When we were ready to start the ceremony all the students sat in a semi circle facing table that the teachers and I sat around. On the table was a big cup of banana leaves that were cut and shaped really nicely, with candles and incense sticking out of them. There were also small wooden bowls around the cup that had eggs, bananas, desserts wrapped up and sticky rice in them. First one of the English teachers said some stuff in Thai that I didn’t understand. And then the Director got up and lit the candle and the incense while we all prayed. [At least that’s what I assume we do whenever we Wai at ceremonies]. Afterwards he tied a piece of string around another English Teacher’s wrist and she said a bunch of stuff in Thai as well. She said that she would translate it into English for me and give it to me tomorrow maybe.

Have you ever made “Warm Fuzzies” before? The pieces of paper you hand out to your friends where you write down something nice about everyone? You get to see all the nice things people said about you, and they make you feel happy to know that everyone has something good to say. I always loved those, they make everyone feel so special and no one is let down. In Thailand, instead of paper they tie string around your wrists and wish you good luck, happiness, or a healthy life; some people wish for you to stay beautiful forever. After the candles and incense had been lit, after we prayed and people made speeches, everyone took turns tying pieces of string around my wrists. They wished me good luck, hoped that I will enjoy Thailand and they washed away the bad luck from my life. Some of them wrapped money in the string; some people took the eggs/bananas/desserts out of the wooden bowls and lay them in my hands as they tied. Some people trailed the string across my wrists in one direction to rush away the bad luck and in the other direction to bring good luck. The Director started, followed by my Host Mom who placed an envelope in my hand, and after all the teachers had their turns, my friends came. Some of them couldn’t tell me anything in English so the muttered in Thai. Some of them could wish me some things in English, and others only said “Happy Happy Happy!” It was splendid. After they had all tied string around my wrists, we took turns tying the string for all our friends and teachers.

I left the ceremony with 7 eggs, 3 bananas, 2 desserts and over 1000 baht. But I left with more than just gifts. After the ceremony, we tucked into the hoards of food, I made a speech [in Thai] and played my piccolo, Kate made a speech [in English] and we took too many pictures to count. I’m pretty sure Keng has at least 30 pictures of him and I on his camera. After we finished eating we took pictures anywhere and everywhere. We ran out onto the garden and took pictures on the lawn, we took pictures with my Rotary jacket, we took pictures in front of a painting. It was the first time I’ve ever really shown them my truly wired self. I hope I didn’t frighten them with my energy. We joked around about everything, took pictures holding eggs and oranges, and we ate until we literally could not move. A bunch of us had to sit down for a bit before we could exert any energy. This experience was more than just a Welcoming Party, it was the most memorable three hours of my trip so far. I never want to take the many pieces of string off my wrists. I know I will have to eventually, but when I do I will keep them safe and treasure them forever. These small pieces of string are truly “The Ties That Bind”.

Koon Mae tying my string

Keng tying my string

ALL THE STRING!!

<3 6/6 <3

6/6 Lurking on the lawn

"We are the living, the breathing, the fighting - We are the magnificent"