Dharamsala evokes in me the same feelings that the chalet I visited as a kid used to. We used to go up to the cabin in the Rocky Mountains in Canada once a month growing up. It was a German-style A-frame cabin, with no electricity or running water. To get there, we had to drive 12 kilometers up an abandoned logging road, and then hike or ski 2.5 kilometers to the chalet. I always felt a sense of anticipation going up there, looking forward to being reunited with an amazing community of friends and a sense of being at home.
I have the same feelings returning to Dharamsala after being away. And my most recent return was even more powerful since I knew my friends from the March would also be returning.
I was always sad leaving the chalet. Even though I knew those people would always be there for me, and that I would eventually see them again, I hated leaving behind that sense of community. Unfortunately, we don’t visit the chalet anymore and my childhood community is scattered. I haven’t talked to some of my “aunts” and “uncles” in years. But they will always be with me, in my thoughts and in my heart, because they were such an important part of my life.
Just like leaving the chalet, when ever I leave Dharamsala, I’m overcome with an intense longing to go back again soon. Leaving this time was harder than ever before. This will be my longest break from Dharamsala since I first visited. But I have also gradually realized the fluid nature of the town – people will constantly be coming and going. A lot had changed over the course of the March. Some of my friends went home to the west and I made some new friends. Before I return, more friends will be leaving. My group of friends will never be the same as it was when I first arrived. But like the community at the chalet, I know these friends will always be with me.
I try to remind myself that impermanence is a part of life. But I still can’t wait to get back to Dharamsala.
I have the same feelings returning to Dharamsala after being away. And my most recent return was even more powerful since I knew my friends from the March would also be returning.
I was always sad leaving the chalet. Even though I knew those people would always be there for me, and that I would eventually see them again, I hated leaving behind that sense of community. Unfortunately, we don’t visit the chalet anymore and my childhood community is scattered. I haven’t talked to some of my “aunts” and “uncles” in years. But they will always be with me, in my thoughts and in my heart, because they were such an important part of my life.
Just like leaving the chalet, when ever I leave Dharamsala, I’m overcome with an intense longing to go back again soon. Leaving this time was harder than ever before. This will be my longest break from Dharamsala since I first visited. But I have also gradually realized the fluid nature of the town – people will constantly be coming and going. A lot had changed over the course of the March. Some of my friends went home to the west and I made some new friends. Before I return, more friends will be leaving. My group of friends will never be the same as it was when I first arrived. But like the community at the chalet, I know these friends will always be with me.
I try to remind myself that impermanence is a part of life. But I still can’t wait to get back to Dharamsala.
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