It was Friday morning, and we had packed our lives into canvas bags, and stored memories onto flash drives, and burned those memories into the deep hidden parts of our hearts, hopefully for later retrieval. We loaded the van for the movement to Vavuniya, where we would catch the train to Colombo. The trip to Vavuniya takes over two hours over rough roads lined with banyan trees and teak. The tone in the van is subdued. I am leaving the project after nearly two months in the field. Kim, the VOG, is leaving the project 2 weeks early, and is being sent to Nigeria to fill in a gap in VOG coverage. Charlotte is getting a long overdue break in her work as acting FieldCo and Psychologist, and will be diving with friends in the Maldives. Ayumi, our OT nurse, is taking a break to visit Kandy in the mountainous region of Sri Lanka.
We get to Vavuniya, and have lunch, before catching the train. Our tickets, up until this morning, were third class. However, we just found out that we got moved up to first class. I'm not sure that there is much of a difference, really. The train trip is over six hours of lurching, jerking and pitching back and forth. It is difficult to rest, and is so loud that it is hard to even talk.
Arriving after nightfall in Colombo, we stand together at the station. I think that we all realize that this is the end of this chapter. But we also realize that the world has become smaller, and we hope, a little better. Our efforts, at times, seemed to be so insignificant. But the smiles of our friends in Mullaitivu, and the efforts by everyone to tell us 'good-bye' before leaving, makes me believe that in some small part, we have made a positive difference.
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