Week 3: Sweetness at the Bottom of Chai

Think of all the things that could go wrong for a foreigner in another country, divide that by half and subtract the possibility of anyone dying or work related issues and the total sum will be more or less equivalent of my week. Or it could be really off - my math hasn't been good in ages. And this is why I chose to be a social worker.

Kidding, totally kidding. I chose to be a social worker so I can slowly create a world where unicorns and rainbows fill the sky, duh. 

This may be a good time to mention that I am kind of an idealist. 

Speaking of kidding-ness, I realized that my sarcastic sense of humour is not so well received here. People think that I'm being serious and I may have possibly accidentally offended half of the people I have interacted with. Whoops. 

Somethings you can only learn by messing up. Thank God I did the messing up for those of you coming down here. You're welcome. 

This week has been horrific to the point where it feels so crazy that I can't help but laugh at it. I am being a bit of a drama queen here but this week really has sucked. 

Misery loves company and you might as well put misery in the company of laughter. 

If you were to ask me if I love Saint Lucia, my answer would be no. Truthfully speaking, I don't even know if I like it. I do know that I don't completely dislike it so I suppose I'm kind of stuck in the middle. 

I hate being in the middle. I want to either like things, or not like things. I hate gray areas (ironically enough, social workers will always say that we "work with the gray." Maybe I did pick the wrong profession -ha). But this is not about my job because my job is awesome. 

I know it will get better but I am feeling a bit inpatient. It feels like everyone around me is so happy to be here and that there is something wrong with me. Le sigh. 

Have you ever brewed a cup of chai tea with milk? It is one of my favorite things to drink. 

Whenever I make chai tea with milk, I always make a silly mistake out of habit. I put my sugar in last but I never stir it properly. I always tell myself that I am going to do it differently next time but this vicious cycle continues. 

When I take my first sip, my tea feels bitter but as I continue to sip, it gets sweeter and sweeter, until I reach the bottom. The tip of my tongue surrenders itself to the wonderfulness of sugar and tea. 

The condensed sweetness at the bottom of warm, heartful chai. Yum. Nothing in this world compares.

So, here to hoping that I have only tasted the bitterness with the promise of an incomparable sweetness that will follow. 

If not, I guess I could just stir my tea properly next time - but it would not be as enjoyable. 

After all, it is the bitterness of the first sip that makes the bottom of the cup so magnificent.

Until next time, 

-Ko.