Pa Pae is a tambon of Mae Taeng District, in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand
Off the Grid
I journaled as days passed that’s why there are dates.
20th December, 2016
Most of my travels consist of visiting tourist spots and going to shopping malls, but this trip was different. My sister and I made the trip in 2016 upon the invitation of a close Thai friend who lives there. We decided to take this trip for just the two of us instead of the usual big group that we always have to be able to bond as sisters, to do some soul-searching and to reflect on life away from the chaos of the city.
My daily routine has already been a series of constant rushing, being hooked to social media and not having the time to actually slow down and smell the roses. So this trip was a really good chance for me to just disconnect and be off the grid and reconnect with nature. It felt really good to wander away from the hustle and bustle of the city and just go back to basics and appreciate the simple things life has to offer.
21st December, 2016
We went for an ATV ride around a mountain. It was an exhilarating experience driving around in full speed. What started as a great adventure, turned into a short nightmare when my sister got into a freak accident, which almost costed her life. We are so fortunate that she was protected and got away with it with just a few bruises and scratches. I am not gonna go into complete details but it was one of the scariest moments of my life. Watching my sister lose control of her ATV and spiral downhill, eventually crashing into the mountain wall. I was driving behind her so I saw what seemed to be a stunt from a Hollywood movie. She was thrown out of her ATV while her ATV somersaulted above her. Her helmet came off as she landed, then her ATV landed on her but was safely positioned in the space between its big tyres. Had she shifted just a bit, she would have been crushed by those big tyres. The accident reminded us, once again, how fragile life is. We always think we have time..time to do the things we want, to spend with people we love. But to greatly appreciate life, we have to always tell ourselves that all we have is NOW.
22nd December, 2016
This trip surely allowed me to focus on the little things we usually neglect in the pursuit of superficial happiness in life. My mornings became more exciting with the soft wind kissing my face while listening to the chirping of the birds around. Having breakfast under the bright blue sky and being surrounded by trees has become the new definition of luxury for me. The feeling of happiness was just overwhelming that I often had to sit still for a moment to absorb everything before I could start eating. It reminded me that you don’t need to have everything to be happy in life…that life itself is a gift. I realised that as people grow older, we tend to complicate things and this has turned achieving happiness elusive.
If my mornings were filled with excitement, it was really nothing compared to how my evenings had turned magical. For the longest time, I have never imagined how amazing the sky filled with twinkling stars look like. Living in a city drowned with urban lights, I felt like a little child in a candy store staring at the sky with full amazement. Looking up and watching this phenomena made me realise how small I am in this universe and so as all the problems and worries I have.
P.S. At around midnight, I saw a shooting star while gazing at the Milky Way. I was sitting by the bonfire with my friend. He switched off all the lights nearby and the sky was truly a jaw-dropping sight. I quietly made a wish and soon after that we saw some fireflies. One of the best evenings in my life 🙂
23rd December, 2016
I left Pa Pae with a broken heart but a renewed soul. I will definitely miss the rustic life and the lovely people that we treated as family…including the dogs that we made friends with.
I came back to Hong Kong as a new and better person. I’m grateful for all the things that I have but most of all, I am grateful for all the wonderful people in my life. My dear friend told me he wanted to be an angel so that he could make a lot of people happy using some supernatural power. Before I left, I gave him a letter saying that ‘most of the time, angels do not have wings but they do have the power to change people’s lives. How do I know? It’s because I met one in Chiang Mai 🙂
Garland of Light 