Taking a walk around Victoria Park In the winter may not be ideal but it made me reflect on the edges I’ve walked on in my life thus far.  Walking on the edge has so many meanings to me, being an Islander, it gives me a sense of freedom and also a sense of pride that I didn’t know I had, until now! 

Moving half way across the world to Prince Edward Island was my most recent walk on the edge. Although I’ve walked on many edges in my life, I’ve always played it safe but this…this seems the most daring by far, away from my family and friends and yet this Island has been so welcoming that I immediately felt at home as soon as I arrived. This beautiful Island is completely different from what I left behind. For starters I’ve never seen so much snow in my life! (this is apparently a mild winter!) and now a couple of months since I’ve arrived, walking around in -6-degree weather is bearable…its literally a walk in the park!  

In the last couple months since I’ve arrived, I’ve been somewhat… comparing…. Prince Edward Island with Sri Lanka, I suppose it’s human nature to always compare things to what you are most familiar with……but what I realized is that, If I start comparing, I’m not completely living in the moment and appreciating this Island as I should, I need to see this Island for what it is, different from where I came from, unique and fascinating in its own way. To truly appreciate this Island, I must first shed the comparisons and start seeing things with new eyes.  

Basking in the afternoon air as I walk, everything around me is dormant, a long slumber, the trees, the animals, Except for a few small birds that I’m still to identify and the crows who betray my movements by announcing my walk to all! even the sun eludes me sometimes, but not today!  The sun is shining in all its glory today and I feel awake. It’s a busy afternoon with everyone on the Island coming out when the elusive sun comes out, the boardwalk is busy with families and people of all ages coming out to enjoy the few precious days of sun the winter brings. I stop to admire the sheet of ice that has glazed over the water as far as the eye could see and all at once I hear a big gust of wind coming towards me through the trees, I brace myself and it gushes out towards the sea blowing past me without a care in the world, and all at once I was cleansed a new……I walk on…  

I reach a part of the walk where the ice has melted and the sea is finally visible…. The edge of the water (but I don’t get too close to inspect), the sea has always scared me, maybe it’s because I can’t swim, I’m embarrassed to admit it, being an Islander and not knowing how to swim! How preposterous! some might say! But the Sea…  it mesmerizes me, tempts me even, to witness a world of unmatched beauty….to let go of my fear, to conquer it…. but somehow, I’m not there yet, perhaps one day…… But when I gaze at the water, the sea gives me hope, it makes me believe that I am connected to everything. Looking into the horizon, my thoughts are of my children, they somehow seem reachable across the sea, because I know the horizon is not the end…. I miss them so, but I know they will be by my side soon and so I walk on with renewed hope and the warm sun on my face this chilly afternoon.  

Walking along the boardwalk at Victoria park I also think about being an Islander and what it all means and how it can take on many faces, to me, in this minute, right now, it means a sense of belonging. I maybe an outsider right now but I feel I belong here and now, I have two homes. Walking along this path, I think about this new path that I’ve chosen to travel on in my life, I never thought this path would open up to me, but it has……and I’m glad, Glad to walk on another Edge, a new Edge, an unfamiliar Edge, to live, to thrive and to somehow, attempt to reach my full potential as a human being. I hope this new path brings me the fulfilment I’ve been seeking; I have a pretty good feeling it will…. because I feel it’s already happening, my heart is full with love for this Island and I am waiting with bated breath for the summer so that I can explore this hidden gem…. this new home of mine…… My motto in life has always been carpe diem “seize the day” but today especially, I feel I am truly living…. and to quote Thoreau “I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life.” 

 As I make my way back home, Robert Frost’s poem ‘The Road Not Taken’ keeps popping up in my head…. 

‘Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 

I took the one less traveled by, 

And that has made all the difference”.