In search of more – why we blog

It’s hard to believe it’s two years since a life-changing conversation on a friend’s back deck steered our lives in a new direction.
In pent-up frustration at a job going nowhere and with limited opportunities the Joker made a rash and off-the-cuff suggestion that we uproot our lives and move to Asia for a year. I didn’t need to be asked twice. It took a few more weeks for the decision to sink in, followed by four or five months of research and planning. After all, there’s a lot of things to do before you move overseas.

And so here we are, on our second stint in Cambodia, in search of more. More fulfilment, more adventure, more challenge, more rewarding work, more time for us – and yes, let’s be honest, the Joker was looking forward to more beer.
But it’s fair to say we were also searching for less. Definitely less stress, less clutter, less stuff. Less of the superficial. We were looking to recharge the batteries, seek inspiration, learn more, see more and meet different people.
And we got all of that and so much more.
And because of that, a blog was born.

I’ve created a little video to share our blogging story, thanks to the team at Shoebox Timeline, who have developed this cool software. Check it out and tell us what you think.

Stories to tell — why we blog

There were so many stories to tell. In fact, there are still so many I can’t keep up. There’s amazing Maggie, who took on a life of adventure when she started back-packing at the age of 60 and now at the age of 79, along with her partner Rollo, is teaching music to poor students.
There’s Hong, a young businessman, who’s made quite an impression on the local bar scene with his innovative ideas. Then there are the business students we spent two weeks with, who are so pumped about their future opportunities and want to learn everything they can. There are also plenty of characters, like the Australian monk, who was practicing at a local pagoda and Jack, the Aussie Vietnam Vet who has contributed to landmine detection.
There are the stories of adversity and poverty. The horrors we can’t begin to imagine. The young lady whose mother left her when she was two and she doesn’t understand why; the yay (grandmother) who lost her entire family — husband and seven children — when a bomb hit the trench they were sheltering in; and the children who started their young lives as street beggars and are now reaching for the stars. And there is the warmth, gratitude and thanks at a house blessing because a family with next to nothing has been given a new house to live in.
There have been cultural events like Khmer New Year and Phchum Benh, which are so much more rewarding when celebrated with locals.
We’ve made wonderful friends including local tuk tuk drivers and teachers and the entire team at Two Dragons, which has become our second home. And of course we’ve had our own adventures and experiences and explored new places.

This. All of this, is why we blog. Thank you for sharing our journey.

 

This post is written as an entry in a competition sponsored by ProBlogger, Shoebox Timeline and The Good Guys for ProBlogger Event.