I arrived home in one piece, thankful to be safe and sound and home with my family.  After the hugs and kisses from my two young children, my mother and my wonderful husband who allowed me to leave him for 17 long days half way around the world, I unpacked my suitcases and tried to settle back in to life at home.  For some reason, I found it hard to readjust.   Everything back home seemed so over the top.  The house felt too big, my closets of cloths felt too large, the cupboards of food felt too full.  The house felt claustrophobically full of too much stuff.  Too many things.  Guilt and shame spread throughout my body like a chill.  How could life here be so incredibly different than in Nepal?  How could we have so much, too much, when people in Nepal live happily and peacefully with nothing.  It didn’t make sense. 

I realized immediately that I was going through a reverse culture shock similar to what I had experienced after returning home after eight months living in France.  But this time it was different.  This time it motivated me and inspired me to do something about it.  I had changed, that is for sure.  Now it was time to do something about it.   

Over the last few months I’ve been in contact with HANDS IN NEPAL and other non-profit organizations in hope to someday help make a difference.  It is hard to say right now exactly what I’ll be able to do and when, but I’ve promised myself that I’ll do something whether it be fundraising for a school in Nepal or even volunteering there in the future.

For now, I try to keep myself abreast of news in Nepal by following the news, keeping in touch with Hari and reading books on Nepal.  I recently picked up a book titled “Little Princes” by Conor Grennan, which is a phenomenal, highly inspirational read about a young, American man’s attempt to find the families of trafficked children in Nepal.  It is an unbelievable story and beautifully written.  Proceeds of the book sales go to the non-profit organization that Conor started called Next Generation Nepal (NGN) (www.nextgenerationnepal.org).  I highly recommend reading this book!  Here is a link to the review on Amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/Little-Princes-Promise-Bring-Children/dp/0061930059

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Now that I am finished telling my travel stories of Nepal, I am next moving on to the other part of the globe, Central America, to discuss my recent volunteer trip to Costa Rica, another highly inspirational experience that taught me a lot.  I hope you enjoyed my Nepal entries and look forward to writing about Costa Rica!  Pura Vida!