Among what manner of people...

Not quite the twenty years that Ulysses was absent from his beloved Ithaca, I find myself on the cusp of a twenty-four hour flight that will set me once again on the sweet and foggy shores of Seattle. I have been too long away from my culture of comfort—yet, this day is the last.

Yesterday, Wednesday in Southeast Asia, I began the long process of packing, repacking, and shuffling those belongs that must make the journey with me. The power was out, of course, so as a grimy sweat began to show beneath my Sasquatchian arm hair I heard a faint knock upon my door. I quickly moved across the room and answered; it was Roat (the student I tutor).

“Hey, Roat,” I said.

“Cher, I wanted to make the thanks to you for teaching me individually this whole year.”

“Oh yeah, well—it was no problem,” I replied.

At this, he slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a small gift wrapped in bamboo. Grinning, I took the gift and opened a small silver ring-holder engraved with an image of Angkor Wat.

“Thank you Roat, this is amazing. I really appreciate it.”

“Cher, the thing is,” he began, “today is a very sad day for me. Oh, Cher,” he spread his arms wide, “please hug me.”

Obviously, as an American male, I was a bit discomfited by this offer, but what could I do—I hugged the little guy. He cried on my shoulder.

“Roat,” I said patting his back, “I will miss you friend.”

It was a difficult parting; a parting of a lifetime.

I closed the door.

I decided to postpone packing for a bit in my now melancholic mood, and instead picked up the last book I had hoped to read before departing, The Classical World. Before Andrea had left she decided to surprise me with hidden notes riddled throughout the books I had yet to read. So, as I picked up The Classical World, I opened to the chapter that held my secret note and pulled it out. Scrawled in the hand of my illiterate infant (Mommy’s hand over Regan’s) the note said: Dad, mommy misses you. Please come home soon.

There is so much I am leaving here in Cambodia; there is so much I am coming home to in America—what a beautiful and mysterious world in which we live.

I look forward to seeing you soon,

Ben

Missing the Shoolies meter: I watched an eleven second video that Andrea's sister sent me of Regan giggling forty-seven times yesterday.