As a TCKid (Third Culture Kid), growing outside my native and passport country, Australia, my biggest culture shock in my life was being sent on my own by plane to Sydney to attend an all boys boarding school. It was so surreal being surrounded by 90 odd boarders of similar appearance. I had always grown up being a minority. It was all of a sudden, I had brothers which I never had before.
However, as soon as I graduated school in Australia, I went off to work with the UN as a Volunteer in the Central Pacific island nation of Tuvalu. I knew from that moment I got onto the plane to Tuvalu via Nauru and Kiribati that my life was destined to be abroad amongst people. As the plane touched down on the compacted coral runway of Nauru, I just felt in my heart I was complete.
As it is rapidly heading towards 10 years since I have last lived in my passport country and being a TCKid, I am blessed to have friends all over the world, however, sometimes they are just not close enough. I experienced one of those moments yesterday where we all have peaks and troughs and I was really having one of my trough days. Then all of a sudden, one of my closest friends called me and we ended up having a video call. My sadness of me questioning where is truly home was, was overwhelmed by a simple call of hello. I may not have many friends, but the friends I do have are lifelong true friends.
This come to the point of the topic which I started to question myself. Where is truly home?? I am often challenged on this question and people ask me “Do you see yourself living forever here in the Philippines?” and my go to answer which is from the heart is, I haven’t thought of where I will end up as plans seem to always change. I am preparing for the future, however, I have options. The true answer is, home is where the heart is. My heart is in a nation of where there are so many ups and downs, where you are often questioning peoples intent why they want to connect with you. I am in a city that never sleeps, that is dynamic, fast growing and continually improving.
I was so blessed and I was reminded last night by two Balikbayan (two men who grew up as kids in the U.S. who have subsequently moved back to the Philippines) twins who took me out to a place (which I will review shortly) called Central BBQ Boy Grill. The comradery and friendship was just what the doctor had ordered.
Earlier yesterday, I was almost brought to tears not feeling home sick, but a missing feeling similar to home sickness. I was missing friends in my heart, someone to talk to other than loved ones in my life. I was in that mode that I just needed a mate. Then my best mate and the Twins saved me last night. Saved me from a feeling of not having friends nearby, to a feeling where I was reminded of who I was and all the goodness inside of me and I was surrounded by people laughing with me and ended up having an awesome night with new and old friends and with loved ones.
I was reminded I have friends all over who I love and they love me. As the Yuletide is rapidly approaching, I have something to ask you who are reading this emotional blog from my heart. Please reach out to someone today that you haven’t connected with in a while. Remind them why you love them or miss them. Re-connecting with someone unexpectedly can have the same experience of what I went through yesterday when someone Skype’d me to say hello and they were thinking of me.
