For the past couple years I have been involved with a community of adult third culture kids (ATCK's) who all attended a Chefoo School or lived in some sort of dorm/boarding home/ hostel run by OMF, the organization most of our parents worked for in South East Asia. We call this community Chefoo Reconsidered - and it is just that - a reconsidering, a re-looking and examining our childhood experiences. Most of us were sent to boarding school as young as age five. Older generations often experienced several years in between seeing their parents as they were sent back to their passport countries at age twelve or so for secondary school. All of these, as you can imagine might have a profound life long effect on someone. It's with the hope of reconnecting and finding healing where needed and remembering amazing adventures we shared together as well as deep deep pain that we keep gathering. We have had two gatherings at the last
Chefoo School in Malaysia that closed in 2001. I wrote about that experience last year
here. We also have had gatherings in the US, the UK and Australia. One of the most amazing things about these gatherings is the age range. At our most recent gathering, we had those who were close to 80 and the youngest who was 26. Our shared experience truly spans generations and such a gift!
At some point I began to volunteer on a planning committee for a different kind of CR experience in the Philippines in July. All the previous CR gathering have been held at a retreat center or the original school, but the challenge in planning a return to the Philippines was that there was a Chefoo or OMF boarding facility in at least three places. Long story short, we decided to go to all of these places on a bus tour that turned out to be even more special than I think anyone anticipated. I won't share individual stories as they are not mine to share, but I want to post some of my favorite photos and experiences. I shared more on facebook but if for some reason you didn't catch them there, I hope you enjoy.
Our starting point was the Kabayan Hotel in Manila where we departed for Baguio for two days followed by our return to Manila with a stop at Faith Academy on our way south to Calapan, ending at Puerto Galera.
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| Manila waterfront...every city has a wheel! |
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| Yummy Filipino food |
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| The first of many gatherings... |
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| Our wheels for the week |
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| Room to spread out |
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| Stories could be told using the mic and PA system |
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| The group at a former home |
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| Former boarding home transformed into a beautiful B&B |
Some things don't change in the Philippines...
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| Delicious mangoes |
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