First morning back

I’ve forgotten how jetlag can suddenly wake you up at the strangest hours and leave you wide awake, staring at the seconds and minutes ticking by till everyone else wakes up.

First night in Vancouver, staying at my relative’s place. The rest of the flight went by relatively quickly. I fell asleep an hour or so after getting onboard, and for the first time, I did not take the meal that was offered to me by the flight attendant, because I was still full, and didn’t want to feel even fuller sitting down for so many hours. I slept, woke up only a few times, and the next time I was wide awake, we were only two and a half hours from the Western coast of Canada, and I could already smell the next meal being prepared in the galley a few steps away. Perhaps it was travelling together, or the plentiful sleep I got, but I really cannot recall a ten hour flight that seemed to last so “short”.

Mum slept too, and she said relatively alright, even though the dryness of the cabin air irritated her throat. Ironically, the long flight somehow made her noticeably regaining her voice, but that of course does not mean she should talk and talk and talk. “We should be observing noble silence,” I joked, a reference to the self-imposed prohibition on speech (with the exception essential communications) when people enter monasteries to practice meditation.

It’s good to be back in Canada, to the much cooler climate (though I was told it can vary from day to day and also reach extreme highs…), to the cleanliness and orderliness that I have grown accustomed to. I was a bit apprehensive at the customs, fearing they would question me on my bags and what I brought into the country (a ‘bit’ too much, especially with a new laptop and tennis raquet…). But the guy at the passport check (“primary”) was extremely friendly and welcoming. I’m not sure if it is related to the fact that I said I’m taking my mum to visit me (when I said she’d only stay two, three weeks, he actually asked, to my surprised, “Why so short?”) or that at one point I actually asked him questions about renewing my study permit, which is due to expire in two months (that’s another complicated story worth another blog entry…)

So far, mum’s been well, and I think she is beginning to get used to and compliment the cleaner air, tidiness and all that green here. She was smiling a lot, and last night, she ate more than usual, which is a good sign that, except for the continuing inflammation in her throat, she is recovering well.

It is wonderful to see her happy, and I look forward to more of that.