Reflections on a journey:
I have been and seen many wondrous sights. I have tried many new foods and made many new friends. I have stopped at many ports and have heard many tales to pass on to others. I am proud that I made that journey and I am a better person for it. I have found out things about myself that perhaps I was not fully aware of. I have learnt many lessons and faced bridges that I never thought I would be able to cross – but I did. I am proud of what I have achieved and will never forget the experiences: the good, the bad, and the different. I will take all that has been given to me and I will continue on my journey; learning, discovering and playing along the way.
When I began my journey I had a poem in mind. It is a poem that means a lot to me and has had a huge influence on my life since it was introduced to me some three months ago. The poets name is Constantine Cavafy. I hope to live to this poem and to continue my journey in life with this in mind. While I was away, I kept a copy of this poem in my wallet and would think of it when things went wrong, or I was scared, or if I didn’t know what would come next. I did not let the Lestrygonians, the cyclops’ or the gods (the monsters of ages past) of my own mind stop me from experiencing life. I kept Ithaca in my mind and refused to let my mind set up barriers. And, while there was fear at times, I refused to let it rule me. I held my head high and as my cousin Jill so aptly said, was as a swan: calm and serene on the outside and full of panic on the inside.
I would like to share this poem with you.
(And for those of you who do not know the story of Odysseus, the man fought at Troy for 10 years and then spent the next 10 years trying to get home but was thwarted often by the gods, by monsters and by foreign people. His home was Ithaca.)
Ithaca – Constantine P. Cavafy (1911)
When you set out on your journey to Ithaca,
Pray that the road is long,
Full of adventure, full of knowledge.
The Lestrygonians and the Cyclops,
The angry Poseidon – do not fear them:
You will never find such as these on your path,
If your thoughts remain lofty, if a fine
Emotion touches your spirit and your body.
The Lestrygonians and the Cyclops,
The fierce Poseidon you will never encounter,
If you do not carry them within your soul,
If your soul does not set them up before you.
Pray that the road is long.
That the summer mornings are many, when,
With such pleasures, with such joy
You will enter ports seen for the first time;
Stop at Phonecian markets
And purchase fine merchandise,
Mother-of-pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
And sensual perfumes of all kinds,
As many sensual perfumes as you can;
Visit many Egyptian cities,
To learn and learn from scholars.
Always keep Ithaca in your mind.
To arrive there is your ultimate goal.
But do not hurry the voyage at all.
It is better to let it last for many years;
And to anchor at the island when you are old,
Rich with all you have gained on the way,
Not expecting that Ithaca will offer you riches.
Ithaca has given you the beautiful voyage.
Without her you would never have set out on the road.
She has nothing more to give you.
And if you find her poor, Ithaca has not deceived you.
Wise as you have become, with so much experience,
You must already have understood what Ithacas mean.
So, I am back in NZ and I have been and seen, but that is not the end of my journey.
Ithaca is many things to me. I look forward to seeing more, stopping at many ports, sampling many ‘perfumes’ and of learning from many people.
I would like to thank you all for your support and for putting me up, for feeding me, for listening and laughing with me.
I have always known that I have family, but I now know you that much more because you opened your homes and your hearts to me unreservedly. To my family in the UK: you have given to me something so important, something that I hardly knew was missing until I arrived in your homes. I know now that it is not just me, Cherie and Billy, mum and dad, in our little corner of the world.
Thank you.
