Yesterday, one of our Fellows ran away. She had only arrived in Thailand two weeks ago, the last or our seemingly ever growing gaggle to join the flock. Granted, it was a bit of an odd time to join our team, as most of the crew was in Chiang Mai for the Burmese language course. But anticipating that, we asked her to come to CM first, where she met everyone and began orientation. We noticed quickly that although she is older than most of the Fellows, and had studied abroad in Thailand previously, she was having a very difficult time adjusting. She seemed overwhelmed by her new surroundings. Considering that Chiang Mai is easily the easiest place in Thailand to live, we began to be concerned. The plan had been for her to stay in CM for a week, then head to Mae Sot on her own, to get set with housing, bicycle, etc. before we returned a week after her, to finish orientation. She made it very clear that there was no way she would travel south alone. So later that week, I and another Fellow went with her, helped her settle into a guesthouse, met her for every meal, took her to buy a phone, and generally hand held her way through her transition in Mae Sot. Still, she kept speaking about feeling overwhelmed by the stresses of being there.
We arrived in Mae Sot on a Thursday evening. On Friday I took her to meet some of our local partners. She commented that they all seemed bored On Sunday I invited her to come to the reservoir to swim, but she decilned. Another Fellow came, and told me that in a dinner conversation the evening before the new Fellow had mentioned thoughts of leaving. I made a note, and made plans to talk with her the following morning, after our staff meeting. I did not get the chance, however.
Sunday morning Jade woke to find an email from her saying that she was making plans to leave as soon as possible. Jade immediately called me, and we waited until it was a reasonable hour, then tried to reach her by phone and email. Getting no response, we made a visit to her guest house, only to find that she had already left on the morning bus. She sent the email at midnight, and was gone before 7am. She hasn't replied to any attempts at communication since.
Now, I realize it can be challenging to turn up in a new place, that there is a lot to adjust to. I was just surprised that after having already spent time in Thailand, having been greeted on arrival and not having had to figure out anything on her own, that she still found it too overwhelming. She variously told me that she was "on her last nerve" (in reference to not knowing how to turn the hot water on in the shower, and to having to put air in her bike tire) and "just overwhelmed".
In the end, we all agree its better she didn't stay, as if she couldn't handle an easy entry, then she certainly wouldn't be able to handle the border craziness when it was in full swing, but it was still a shocking departure. I later found out that she had accepted this position after feeling that her job at the Baltimore Department of Health was "just too much" and that she wanted to "take a step back". But seeing as how she didn't even get into the work here, I guess she grossly overestimated her comfort level. She also confessed to be "biding time until [she] can get married and have kids". While thats an admirable enough goal, perhaps choosing a less demanding endeavor is a more appropriate way to "bide time".
At any rate, I guess we were just a little in shock, so I thought I would share the latest bizarre Mae Sot story.
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