Flora returns to her homeland

Today on my way to my morning mikrolete, I passed the carpenter’s family home. Daniel and I have built up a neighbourly interest in this family ever since we admired the father and son’s handiwork. As I passed their home, their car pulled up with the carpenter, his wife and two daughters, one who was new to me. I assumed she was the one who had been studying at Victoria University of Technology in my home city of Melbourne, as her parents had told me the week before that she was due to return.

Their daughter’s name is Flora and she has spent four years in Melbourne obtaining her Bachelors degree in Banking and Finance. As she shook my hand I noticed her Aussie accent and confidence, the latter in stark contrast with most Timorese women who are painfully shy. I was however taken aback when she asked me whether I loved Timor. I replied that I wouldn’t say that, but did love all the children. She said that “yes, Timor has a lot doesn’t it; in Melbourne you have to go to a park or playground in order to see them!”

I asked her whether she planned on staying in Timor to look for work and she replied yes. She planned to take her CV to various businesses the following day. I wished her the best of luck and said that I was sure that with her qualification and English language skills, that she was sure to find work.

Category: Timor-Leste (East Timor)