in thoughts...

went to meet V and P just now for lunch...did some catching up... V went for this 23 day trip to a village in Chiang Mai Thailand to do some stuff with pipes for them... So she was telling us about the experience...

And somehow she's different... Happier... at least for now... Seeing a bit more of the world has changed her a little... working with the other people in her group has changed her a little...

and the little bits of change add up... and she's somewhat different... a "new" her...

thought about the time I went Thailand to do volunteer work too... Seeing how different the lives of people there are... the different pace, the different priorities, the different sources of happiness... Seeing how different we were from them, and yet feeling like we're the same in a funny sort of way...

V was saying her group had designed some very very simple games for the village children... and they had such fun playing, games that Singaporean children will find uninteresting and boring... and seeing how happy they were, it just touches something inside of you...

I remember when we were handing old clothes and old toys to the Thai kids, they gave you that look of gratitude and happiness... will never forget... that kind of happiness is just contagious... it feels as if a very small effort met with unexpected great appreciation... it makes you feel like there are so many things in this world that matter.... so many things that REALLY matter...

and 3 years later back here in Singapore, I must remind myself to attend to those things that REALLY matter...