Bookends 2023

For the past several years,  I have looked back over the previous year by comparing photos from the first and last day of the year.  It's kind of like reading the opening page of a book, then skipping to the end to see how it ends, realizing that you will miss out on all the detail and sub-stories in-between.

I started out the year in Kamalasai, and it looks like I took a New-Year's-Day walk along the Pao River that runs along the north edge of the town. The river levels are way down, partly because we're a couple of months into dry season but also partly because of low demand for irrigation water, so the Royal Irrigation Department is holding back water in the Lam Pao Reservoir.

Canoe in the Pao River

The bridge in the background is Highway 214, which connects Kalasin and Roi Et. It also bisects the Kamalasai municipality. In the river itself, we see a giant fish trap that looks like it won't be catching anything anytime soon.

The Pao River is the life-blood of Kamalasai. Not only does it provide a fishery, but it is an integral part of the irrigation system for the south-central part of Kalasin Province. The headwaters of the river are in Udon Thani Province to the north. The river, I believe, as a named river, begins at Red Lotus Lake, a locally important tourist destination. From there it runs into Lam Pao Reservoir, which is used as a source of irrigation, but is also used for fish farming and recreation. The lake has some nice swimming spots. Water leaves the dam in two places to bring irrigation water to different parts of the province. In some places the water follows old natural channels and in other places it is in lined canals. The natural channels are quite convoluted—when you drive the bypass to the south of Kalasin city, you cross three bridges over different channels of the Pao River. All these come together by the time they reach Kamalasai.

No less meandering was this past year for us. Packing up and moving back to North America after 12 years in Thailand. Traveling all over North America to visit ministry partners. And that brings us to the next photo.

After finally getting our house more-or-less in order, we celebrated a quiet Christmas there. Two days later, in the morning, I had a routine colonoscopy. That evening I started feeling quite sick—turns out I had COVID. So we closed out the year with my body recovering from both of those things.

COVID for the Holidays

My doctor prescribed some Paxlovid for the COVID. As I looked at the box, I found myself tending towards a conspiracy theory. The drug is made by Pfizer. The same company the US government partnered with to produce a new type of vaccine to combat the virus. The company profits from COVID, whether you get it or not. Maybe its just coincidence.

Conspiracy theories aside, on New Years Eve I find myself feeling a bit stronger and I am getting my appetite back a little bit. Maybe I'll stay up till 9 pm—it will be midnight somewhere.

Read my other review of the year here.