i sit beside the fire and think

I sit beside the fire and think
Of all that I have seen.
Of meadow-flowers and butterflies
In summers that have been.

Of yellow leaves and gossamer
In autumns that there were
With morning mist and silver sun
And wind upon my hair.

I sit beside the fire and think
Of how the world will be
When winter comes without a spring
That I shall ever see.

For still there are so many things
That I have never seen
In every wood in every spring
There is a different green.

I sit beside the fire and think
Of people long ago,
And people who will see a world
That I shall never know.

But all the while I sit and think
Of times there were before
I listen for returning feet
And voices at the door.

(The Fellowship of the Ring, Book II, Chapter 3)

in a little under 12 hours, my butt will be on the next SQ flight bound for home. this was the quote that i promised to pen down in the last exchange post that i will write on this blog. it struck me the first time i read it in LOTR because it encapsulates everything that i would like to say or wish i could say at the end of this very exciting, dramatic, mentally and emotionally enriching one year.

well, tolkien has articulated my thoughts.

i doubt i'll be able to see everything in my lifetime, not that i really want to scour every inch of the earth to begin with, but for what ive seen and experienced, i thank God and my parents for this chance that will never come my way again.

i'm so happy i took it. i'm so happy for friends who took it with me and for those who are about to embark on similar, if not more exciting journeys overseas. thousands of students head for an exchange or overseas education every year (think of all those erasmus students!), and i'd like to think that all of us have been positively transformed in some small measure. whether it's being less ignorant, more enlightened, more appreciative, less xenophobic, anything.

i've learnt so much in my time overseas, about myself, about people, about what is truly important to me and about how i want to live my life from hereon. like i tell everyone, my future is more or less rather vague and misty, but i know i will value the quality of my life above all else.

as jess asked so astutely, how do you pack one year of life into your luggage? it is done with alot of heartache, deciding what will go back with you and what must be discarded. but ultimately, it really cant be done. because even if i bring back physical objects via trinkets, souvenirs, clothes, books, and my precious photos, i cant bring back my life in context back home. neither can i pack up the friends ive made from all over the world and shove them screaming and kicking into my luggage.

still, we must all move on don't we. and one cant exactly escape from the reality of final year of university, pupillage and actually entering the working world when you recieve daily nus emails even if you're miles away from home.

a new chapter opens as one chapter closes.

ps: this blog will stay for as long as blogspot will host it. i'll try to archive it somewhere, otherwise, its back to my old blog as of when i'm home. it has been a great joy writing this blog and getting to know so many people in the process through links and tagboard stalking :). i will miss hej-kobenhavn. boo.

right now, its hej hej kobenhavn!