Time. It streams in what seems forward to our human perception, a steady march into the future. We humans have a hard time detaching the meaning of our lives from time. How old we are? How long have we known somebody? Has it really been that long? I should be married by now! How much money should I make at 30? It seems to be tightly integrated into how we exist. The natural cycle of the earth’s rotation about the sun drives us to mark things by the year, in what is really an arbitrary excuse to revisit some meaningful event.
Unfortunately, this means marking sad events as well as happy ones. For me, this may make January a challenging month for a few years. January 2014 took my young friend and neighbor Vincent Keating at the young age of 26, and my Father on the 31st in what would be a day that changed the game for me forever. My mother also celebrated her birthday on the 15th of January, and passed away just two months after my father.
To commemorate these events as we spin into the new year, I, as you all know, have found my way to the other side of the world. Does it change anything? Do I really feel different? Not really. Time heals all wounds, and we ain’t quite there yet. However, I do have the luxury of taking it in stride with some beautiful friends, old and new, and in what most people would consider paradise.
We found our way to Ubud, a quaint little village in central Bali, most known for the book/movie Eat, Pray, Love. It has become quite a mecca for both legit and wannabe yogi’s, trying desperately to find some peace of mind, and maybe find some meaning in the continuing cycles around the sun.
For me, I had been here almost 4 years ago on what was a very different tour through the paradise of Bali. Not much had changed. Just a few more shops selling expensive clothes to stretch and sweat in. The local vibe was a nice change from Kuta. Just the odd yell of “taxi!”, instead of “Valium!”.
Julie had registered for a yoga retreat, and I was looking forward to taking in a class or two. We had traveled with our new family Chehab, Lucie and Nicolas and settled in. The next morning we decided to take in the Mount Batur volcano trek. You leave Ubud at 2 am to get the volcano and hike up to see sunrise. As a little twist, we decided to rent bikes, and drive ourselves there, a bit adventurous for those that have seen Bali roads :). I sadly was burned out from partying, could not sleep that night at all, and had done this trip 4 years ago, so I bailed to sleep and regain some sanity. The others had a fabulous time, albeit a few bumps along the way.
Over the next couple days, Julie would finish up her retreat, and also her vacation would come to a close. Coincidentally, our other 3 friends were all leaving to make the journey home on the same day. We had a good bye, and off she went to find the skies and eventually Vancouver, after a very long flight.
I can’t say enough about how great a travel partner she was. Always considered in everything she does, well tempered, and also out going and up for whatever adventure presents itself. Thanks so much for sharing the journey Julie, it will feel strange without you for a while!
Thats that, up next the trials and tribulations of bad decisions and life on the road….