Epilogue

So we now have arrived home. Since the last posting we have flown to Hong Kong, visited a giant buddha via cable car, spent the evening in the Kowloon district...the old city across from Hong Kong metropolis. It has been exhausting these last several days but the encounters have been well worth the adventure. It will now be time to digest this experience, sort the photos, and resume our lives here in Rhode Island.

Many years ago as I was ending an Outward Bound sailing experience in Maine... as a team we engaged in processing our 30 day sail along the coast line. The trip was impactive in many ways.

Our team leaders facilitating this process would pose the question..."so what...you've been on this trip...how will it make a difference in your life...?" Over the years there have been many instances where that particular experience wove its way into my life, my work, my role as a parent, husband, and friend. And now I begin to ponder how this trip...the return to 'Nam will weave its way into my contemporary world.

What will be everlasting will be the encounters, the faces, and the interactions with the people of Vietnam. We had not one negative encounter. We experienced a population that seems to have resolved any ill feelings towards the states. As Americans we seem to be in good standing in the eyes of the people. Quite an irony really considering our role in their recent history.

That is about as prophetic as I can be for the moment. What just comes to mind now are Bob Marley's lyrics.."one love, one heart...let's get together and feel alright..."

I think these lyrics initially sum up what we shared with the Vietnamese people.