Kop Khun Ma Ka Rotary!

There is an expression, “All good things must come to an end.”  I don’t particularly like this expression, nor believe in it, but at the end of September, I had to deliver my ‘farewell’ speech to my host Rotary club here in Bangkok.  I would certainly not call it a farewell speech and do not plan on my good times with Rotary ending at this moment, as I am still living in Bangkok and attending Rotary meetings and volunteering at Rotary events, but it was a unique opportunity to share my experiences with Rotary in the past year and thank Rotary for the opportunities it has afforded me.

While I have not yet had the chance to present at my home club in Foster City and other clubs in California, I did want to share a portion of my final speech here in Bangkok, as I spent a great deal of time thinking of what I could possibly say to the group of people who gave me the opportunity to follow my dreams and change my life.  The answer is most likely nothing, but the following is a portion of what I presented to the Rotary Club of Bangkok on 4 October 2012.  Titled “Ashley’s Nine Tales: Lessons Learned from One Year in Thailand” I spoke about the opportunities I had been given here, the friends I had met, and the important life lessons I had learned.  Thailand is known as the Land of A Thousand Smiles, but for me, it was the Land of a Thousand Life Lessons – it was difficult to narrow them down to a few!  Below are the nine that I would like to share with you in hopes that perhaps you already are wise and have acquired this information, or that you hopefully find these own lessons on your own soon:

 

1: Life is short.  This one year went by faster than I ever could have imagined.  So take that jump, quit your job, move across the world and make every single moment absolutely worth it.

2:  There is no reward or learning in life without taking a risk.  You can only grow once you step outside of your comfort zone.  So get out!

3:  Life is too short not to try the goat fighting ball stew in Myanmar, bugs on a stick in Vietnam, or your 50^th mango sticky rice on the street just to make sure it still tastes delicious.

Trying beetlenut for the first time in Myanmar!

4: Never doubt that the power of two small drops has the ability to change the world.  Big things always start with little beginnings.  So be the start of something big.

5: The more I learn, the more I realize how little I actually know, and how much more I have to learn.

Jon, Linda and I at a Rotary Polio Day in Thailand

6: Get some perspective.  When you become worried or obsessed over one little problem – like an exam, or an argument with a friend – you have lost your perspective.  So get back out there and gain it back, to understand the larger picture in what is truly important.

7: Never take for granted what you have, and never forget what others don’t have.  If you remember this – you will never lose sight of that perspective.

8:  The destination doesn’t matter.  The important part is the journey.

9: People will not change no matter how badly you want them to.  People will only change if they want to.  So instead of worrying about trying to change others, change yourself.  Change your family.  And with fellow your Rotarians, you can change the world.

Bangkok Rotarians at the District Conference in May 2012

I cannot thank Rotary enough for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime – to chase (and taste!) my dreams halfway around the world.  The education I have gained is unparalleled, the friends and contacts I have made are exceptional, and the experiences I have lived are life-changing and one of a kind.  Thank you so much for supporting me on this journey and making my dreams become a reality.

Thank you especially to the Club of Foster City, namely Jon, Linda and Greg.  Without you, I would not be who I am today, and I am not sure exactly how life led me to you, but I consider myself incredibly lucky and forever grateful.  At a later stage in my life, I sincerely plan on becoming a Rotarian myself, and can only hope that I am able to touch the amount of lives that you have in your time as Rotarians – all over the world!  I hope there are many more years ahead with me and the Club that Cooks!

Hanging out with the birthday boys of FC- September 2011