Travel and Discovery

‘Come, don’t be afraid’ he said. He carried a machete which glinted in the patchy sunlight. Dusk was beginning to fall like thick dust and I could no longer see the blue ocean to regain the overgrown path that followed it. I was lost. I was a little afraid but had no choice but to follow him.
'Be very careful put your feet where I put mine. There are many things that nip,’ he said it like warning a child playing with an irritable little dog. He smiled broadly, his face was pleasant and soft.
Eventually we arrived at a hut of rough slabs of concrete and a corrugated roof.
‘There,’ he said pointing towards the village sparkling like a nestling of stars against the ocean and the sky. ‘But first it is time for tea’. He disappeared inside. I took off my shoes and followed him. ‘Sit!’ he said. He introduced me to his wife, Kae, a pretty woman with almond shaped eyes and told me his name, Hem. He took the small child that was in her arms and held him close, the boy laughed happily. Kae bowed towards me her hands together shaped like a temple.
‘Saawat-dee kha,’ she said. The closest translation is a blessing of good fortune.
‘So why did you come here to our country?’ Hem asked as we sat crossed legged sipping the bitter tea. I told him I wanted to discover more about myself. He asked me if I was finding myself very seriously with his eyebrows knitting, his forehead a criss-cross of lines. I was embarrassed by this belief in England but he took it as the most natural concept in the world like hunger. I told him I thought I was beginning to. Hem translated the conversation to his wife and they spoke quietly for a few seconds. He cleared his throat.
‘My wife says that when she was a teenager leaving school she told her mother “I do not know who I am and what I want” her mother had replied you must go and speak to your grandparents and then you will know who you are,’ he looked at me intently then relaxed the look.
After we finished the tea he insisted on walking me back to the hostel. As we parted I tried to push some money into his hand.

‘No. But if you like come tomorrow evening to the beach you can bring your money and see me swallow fire’ he laughed. I told him that he must enjoy such an exciting job. ‘No,’ he had replied shaking his head ‘That is what I enjoy that is what I love’ he nodded his head towards his home and family. He disappeared into the thick gathering of coconut trees which made a sound like bongos being beaten in the wind.