What I’ll Miss
[gallery ids="16602,16603,16604" type="rectangular"]Tim Connors, TESS 130I’ll miss waking up on a one inch mattress laid on the floor beneath a mosquito netI’ll miss the lizards, spiders, ants, and cockroaches skittering across my wallsI’ll miss my neighbor hocking loogiesAnd the toddler next door babbling and wavingI’ll miss riding my bike through rice fieldsThe dogs that bark and snarl as I passI’ll miss motorcyclists grazing my elbowWhile the village leader’s announcements boomI’ll miss the reliable weatherThe chill of an open house in “Winter”Bucket showers in frying pan SummersThe rain falling like bullets or spitting all dayI’ll miss Tesco LotusThe bevy of Seven ElevensI’ll miss haggling at marketsAnd noodle shops on front porchesI’ll miss sticky rice and laapI’ll miss Kaao SoyAnd Kep MuuAnd Nam Prik NumI’ll miss pretending spicy food hasn’t set fire to my insidesI’ll miss the smell of cooking rice wafting from every domicileCurries cooking over open firesAir after heavy rainLivestockI’ll miss the music, even our school songAnd the karaoke keeping me up at nightI’ll miss learning the meaning of songsThe dance showsFolksy songs crooned over loudspeakersI will not miss squat toiletsThe bike rides in the rainThe staring eyesOr the jokes at my expenseWill I?I’ll miss three hundred students packed into 1,000 square metersI’ll miss the morning announcementsI’ll miss the waiAnd all the children laughing at my ThaiI’ll miss the teachers who giggle when I say helloAnd too shy to say anything elseI’ll miss the math teacher making dirty jokes, the Thai teacher flirtingI’ll mostly miss my counterpartsOur weekly meetingsOur daily greetingsOur Struggles to communicateWaiting for themLaughing at slangSharing storiesI’ll miss almost all 300 students at my schoolStudents playing in the vacant lotMatayom students fighting their nervesPbratom students saying “hello” and slapping my handAnuban students sprinting with precocious legsOk, I’ll miss all 300 studentsI’ll miss the orange farmI’ll miss my host familyI’ll miss fruit with flavorI’ll miss the workers’ children, who gave me snacks on Children’s DayThey were my first friends at siteI’ll miss Krim’s tenacity, Toon’s bravery, Sua’s calm, Jam’s recklessness, Yun’s gentleness,Cram’s excitement, and their drooling siblings jabberingI’ll miss the days I felt frustrated, unappreciated, unloved, uselessI’ll miss children pestering me into a smile when I felt emptyI’ll miss knowing other volunteers understandI’ll miss the fifteen hour bus rides to meet themI’ll miss the peopleThe people, the people, the peopleTheir laughterAnd curiosityI’ll miss the parties next door“Don’t be serious” next to riap royThe generosity and politenessThe never-ending meals in friends’ homesI’ll miss the person I am hereI can only take so much backThailand, I wish I had more timeBut there’s so much experience toRememberReflect onFeelI’ll be thinking of youGoodbye, see you againYours truly,Tim C.
Read Tim's previous articles and contributions.