Life is what happens when words fail. Everyone has stories to tell, things to share, moments to cherish. Yet true experiences are never to be found in books or diaries. They linger in the minds and hearts of people. I must admit I am no big fan of internetblogs. They always seem to be struggling with their own existence (as do the people that write them, I suppose). But as it is impossible to talk to all the people you know at once, blogs are just the next best thing.
This may seem like a gloomy introduction to a new blog, but I just needed to get that out :) Anyway, this blog will be my personal attempt to record - as best I can - some of my experiences while working as a volunteer in the Philippines. From May onwards I will be staying in and around Davao City to work for a local organisation called 'Kapwa Upliftment Foundation'. Kapwa is concerned with supporting, building and sustainaing capacities - this is NGO language, sorry for that - for farmers who own plots of land on the slopes of Mount Apo, a volcano overlooking Davao City. Kapwa has a partnership relation with Broederlijk Delen, a Belgian NGO.
This will be only my second experience in development work. My previous experience in South Africa left me with a mind full of questions, experiences and unfinished sympathies. Sometimes, questions are best answered by posing new ones. When I tell people I will be working for Broederlijk Delen in the Philippines, they are usually quite excited about it. When I tell them it'll be voluntary work, eyebrows are frowned and eyes turn worried: "voluntary work? Again?". I could make ringing statements here about commitment and self-sacrifice, but the truth is I feel there is so much to be learned and so much to discover that I am willing to make the jump.
As you may have noticed, I chose not to continue the blog I started for South Africa. As I never intended to record my every move in life, I think it's a good idea to dedicate this blog to one specific experience. In following posts I will try to tell you more about the work I'll be doing and the country I'll be staying in. Of course I hope this blog will find a few readers and that you will be one of them :)
Oh, before I forget, the title of this entry is taken from a song by Tom Waits. The chorus struck me because it sounded so familiar: "I love you, pretty baby, but I always take the long way home". Those who wonder why I am leaving for a far-away place again, try not to look at it as 'leaving', but simply as taking a long way home...
This may seem like a gloomy introduction to a new blog, but I just needed to get that out :) Anyway, this blog will be my personal attempt to record - as best I can - some of my experiences while working as a volunteer in the Philippines. From May onwards I will be staying in and around Davao City to work for a local organisation called 'Kapwa Upliftment Foundation'. Kapwa is concerned with supporting, building and sustainaing capacities - this is NGO language, sorry for that - for farmers who own plots of land on the slopes of Mount Apo, a volcano overlooking Davao City. Kapwa has a partnership relation with Broederlijk Delen, a Belgian NGO.
This will be only my second experience in development work. My previous experience in South Africa left me with a mind full of questions, experiences and unfinished sympathies. Sometimes, questions are best answered by posing new ones. When I tell people I will be working for Broederlijk Delen in the Philippines, they are usually quite excited about it. When I tell them it'll be voluntary work, eyebrows are frowned and eyes turn worried: "voluntary work? Again?". I could make ringing statements here about commitment and self-sacrifice, but the truth is I feel there is so much to be learned and so much to discover that I am willing to make the jump.
As you may have noticed, I chose not to continue the blog I started for South Africa. As I never intended to record my every move in life, I think it's a good idea to dedicate this blog to one specific experience. In following posts I will try to tell you more about the work I'll be doing and the country I'll be staying in. Of course I hope this blog will find a few readers and that you will be one of them :)
Oh, before I forget, the title of this entry is taken from a song by Tom Waits. The chorus struck me because it sounded so familiar: "I love you, pretty baby, but I always take the long way home". Those who wonder why I am leaving for a far-away place again, try not to look at it as 'leaving', but simply as taking a long way home...
7 comments:
hi Pieter,
great to hear you found a new route to your way home, I hope it will be a long and intense experience. I kthink I kind of felt the same after my first India-visit: I just needed to journey again. After 8 months back in India now, I don't really feel like I'm heading home (or anywhere else for all it matters). Still, I'm not that worried about it, the long way suits me fine, maybe it's just what I need. To end with Tom Waits: "there's many, many more miles to go, but I'll be back some lucky day". Good luck in the Phillipines moat!
Ik ben al fan van deze blog en hij staat al bij mijn favorieten!
As usual your words come out as if you missed your vocation as a writer. I love to read your blog(s) for the simple reason that they sound so poetic. I hope your will be able to write regularly from the Filipines, and I hope I will be able to read from wherever I will be send.
It's good to question your own behaviour, your own motives to go abroad. Just as long as they don't disturb you in doing the things you think are good (it does not have to be the best, simply because there is no best).
way to go brother, groot gelijk heb je! Ik had zeker hetzelfde gedaan, maar tis nu een beetje veranderd met de baby op komst en alles. Wat ik je wilde zeggen : mijn peter woont nog tot de zomer in Manila met zijn gezin, als je graag een introductie krijgt, dan breng ik jullie in contact! Weet niet hoever je daarvandaan zal zitten, ik ben zelf niet in de Filipijnen geweest... good luck!
Hoi hoi,
Zou inderdaad wel leuk zijn mocht je me in contact kunnen brengen met mensen die er al wonen. Altijd interessant om hun verhaal te horen. Ik zit wel een eindje van Manila vandaan (Mindanao), maar al zwemmend komt een mens ver :)
groetjes,
Pieter.
Dag Pieter,
Succes met je nieuwe avontuur op de Filipijnen. Mijn kleine teen had al zo'n vermoeden dat het niet al te lang zou duren alvorens je opnieuw naar verre oorden zou trekken...
Deze blog wordt inderdaad de ideale manier om toch een beetje op de hoogte te blijven van je reilen en zeilen; en via een berichtje kunnen we je ook iets over ons laten horen...
Groetjes,
Liesbeth
Tom Waits. I'll get backt to you on that mate!
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