Trade-Ins

I've surpassed the two-month mark of being back in Wisconsin now. That's enough time to begin to find some normalcy in daily living. As the daily habits of life in Chiang Mai have faded, I've traded in for some new ones in Milwaukee. Here are a few:

Trade-In #1: No more delicious Thai cooking made for me every day. Instead, I've had to cook regularly for myself for the first time since...well, since I was born. I've had enough opportunity to witness the art of good cooking, and now it's my turn to give it a shot. So far so good: I've only eaten one store-bought frozen meal in my two months back.

Trade-In #2: No more convenience store iced coffee for me. Instead, my place of employment has a hot coffee machine always ready to serve, and for free! I generally find myself drinking one tall mug in the morning during classes, and then again one tall mug during the afternoon classes. Hey, it's probably healthier (or shall I say less detrimental to my health) than 7-11 and Jiffy iced coffee!

Trade-In #3: No more living in a foreign language environment. Sure, I've heard a bit of Spanish spoken in the neighborhood, and the church down the street has a Chinese service, but I'm not tired at the end of the day anymore merely due to my brain having been constantly processing foreign language input. I try to keep up with foreign languages by watching the Spanish channels on TV, as well as switching off each day reading in Thai and Spanish.

Trade-In #4: The daily namasakan (worship) and Bible study opportunities I was richly blessed with while living in the tight-knit church mission setting have morphed into daily chapel at the college and new opportunities for Bible study there. One of the things that I've welcomed back is the singing of traditional worship hymns. I've also joined the Lutheran Chorale of Milwaukee, which has been the largest choral group I've been a part of since the days of the traveling A Cappella choir in high school.

Trade-In #5: I do miss my motorbike, but I'm very pleased with my current transportation situation. Many places, including my job, the grocery store, and a place of worship, are all easily within walking distance. I can ride my bike to get to many more places. I even have my own set of four wheels to get me further out of town when necessary.

Trade-In #6: Flip-flops are no longer my only footwear. Now I have to wear “real shoes” to work, and I don’t get to take them off once I get to the door. Plus, the weather won’t allow me to wear flip-flops year-round in this neck of the woods. It’s still September and I’m already finding it necessary to wear a hat and gloves in the mornings and evenings. It may be a really rough winter for me!

Indeed, there is an awful lot that I miss about Thailand. There are plenty of things that can have no substitute. And that's fine, because the people, places, and things that stand out in my mind about Thailand will continue to be outstanding to me throughout my lifetime. It's similar to the impressions that Lake Mills, Eau Claire, Costa Rica, and camp have made on my life. All of these places are my home, and I wouldn't trade that for the world.

Love,
Eric