On a trip to Morocco, the Holy Grail learns the power of personal rituals and purposeful reflection. As she deals with her grief, she connects with other travelers who have their own ways to honor those who have lost.
The seat in front of us sighed loudly.
“Does anyone know origami?” John asked.
John and his wife Julianne are travelers for my group trip MorrowCCO. I went with my partner and best friend. Dan, Zoe and I occupied the back row of the minibus like naughty elementary school students. John often sat in front of us – maybe because we were the only ones who laughed at his father for joking, maybe because he was also a naughty kid.
“Oh yes, I’ve been making paper hangs!” Taia was her first solo trip abroad and volunteered to participate. She seems to have about a million talent. In hiking, diving, baking and shooting perfect iPhone photos (if you want a good Instagram I recommend you to be the smallest trip on the go), this is just another welcome challenge.
“You think you can do one in time Sahara? John asked. Angry but hopeful, he raised his phone and showed her a Google search crane template. “Often, my sister gives me one because I’m useless, but I keep it at home!”
Seeing that we were about an hour away from the desert dunes, the task suddenly felt serious.
Clockwise from the upper left: Zimbabwe, South Africa, Brazil, Portugal, Bolivia and Cook Islands.
Paper suspender
Through my travels, I find that the stories of the smartest people often have the most heartbreaking stories. That afternoon, John told us his niece, Kari-Lee, that afternoon, as we drove through the flat desert landscape on our way to what we all expected.
She is known for her adventurous spirit and positive attitude, and her refusal to let cystic fibrosis prevent her from exploring the world. After leaving high school, she traveled to 38 impressive countries including Tahiti, which ticked all her summer girls boxes. Italyshe lived and studied in Urbino for eight months; and Brazilshe danced at the carnival.
While Carrie waits for a double lung transplant at Prince Charles Hospital in Brisbane Australiaher cousin Cass lives in Japan. Inspired by Eleanor Coerr’s novel Sadako and Thousand Paper CranesCass began folding 1,000 paper slings and sent them to Kari, Australia, to show hope. Kari’s mother Rhyl used this ritual to tie the crane to the hospital bed, reminding Kari to be loved, more than 1,000 times.
At the age of 27, Kari-Lee was forced to fail to complete her adventure when the transplant failed. The crane was watching her as she left the world. At her funeral, the family sent them to 1,000 guests, hoping that some could take it to a place Kari had never seen before.
John went on to tell us about his niece, when we sat in a desert tent and drank a few fresh mint tea, our small group of travelers were getting closer.
“Now, Julianne is everywhere, we go, we bring paper cranes for Kari,” he said.
Watching the Sahara sunset
Everyone was delighted as camels led us into the warm light of the Sahara Desert. After all, this highly anticipated moment has not been exaggerated. When the sun starts to set, we feel like we have such a huge desert.
When you are as epic as Sahara, it’s easy to spend every moment trying to take the best golden hour photos and quote lines from the movie dune At the top of the lungs, giggle. Fortunately, our leader El Houssine is proficient in the speed at which time the sand can pass.
“Well, it’s important for everyone now to find their place at the top of the dunes. Yes, one person! Trust me. Take a little breath for yourself and watch the sun set, just quiet,” he said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience!”
Is this a trick to turn us off? possible. But, with His Word as the gospel, we were dispersed– Suddenly, I was alone. One person reflects on why I am in the middle of an ancient desert, on a continent I have never visited. Just as John trails behind the dunes in the distance, I complete my own ritual of sadness thanks to Taia, with a fresh piece of paper lifted in my hand.
Use travel to relieve the pain of sadness
My father also left this earthly plane a year and a half before my 30th birthday. The loss was unexpected, heartbreaking, and the hardest thing I’ve ever experienced. My father is a painter, photographer and free spirit and has always been my number one supporter, teaching me to see the beauty of nature in the miracles of life. Now, when I travel or whenever I feel his absence is stronger than the day before, I make sure to watch the sunset on the moon or say a little “Hey Daddy.”
I didn’t share this with the group – it still feels too fresh and too fragile. After hearing John’s story, I was inspired to share, but still felt like Cary’s moment. But Dan knows. Zoe knows. They both held my hand as I whispered, “Dad will love this” – walking past the artist’s market in Chefchaouen, the narrow streets and the lively FES market, now sitting on a golden dune overlooking the endless desert. Dad will like this. Kari will love this.
Where are you, thank you
It is wrong to think that you live in someone you have lost, but in a sense, you are. You will appreciate everything more, you will see the world in a different light, and your humanity, mortality and ability to love are all more intrinsic.
Because El Houssine is right – the sand of time will slide through our fingers. And, there is nothing like grabbing all the moments of time and enjoying where you are, what you have and the people around you.
Just as I found a way to deal with sadness through my love of travel, others are doing the same. Only by traveling with strangers can we find each other, connect and share our stories, reminding us that we are not that different. Loss is part of human experience. Sorrow is just love that has nowhere to go. Therefore, some of us choose to occupy the land.
So I sat on a huge sand dune with harsh camels underneath, those my favorite camels were loved on both sides of me and I greeted my father when the sun set above the Sahara. Dad, you will love it – but I am here now, I love you. ”
A crane has now been left in Morocco, Canada, Alaska, Norfolk Island, the Cook Islands, New Zealand, Ecuador, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Fiji, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Portugal, Scotland, the US, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Bolivia, South Africa, Australia’s Outback and the Galapagos Islands – all in memory of Kari-Lee, an adventurous young woman, wants to see the world only.
When John, Julian, Riel, Cass, Cary’s nurses and countless others leave cranes around the world, I will watch the sunset of my father Kym as much as possible, as time allows.
The Holy Grail travels in 13 days Morocco discovered it travel. In any one Brave Moroccan adventure.
