Yesterday, I started going through boxes containing my personal paperwork. My main intention was to look for copies of my old passports and attached visas, while also decluttering.

Five decades, three continents, six languages and numerous addresses later; it dawned on me that I am having problem recalling certain years of my life.

For instance, I can not remember certain things that happened in the late 90s to the mid-2000s. I must have had renewed my passport and applied for a tourist visa to the US, but I have no memory of how that was accomplished. If not for the yearly summaries, I would have probably forgotten about my role in settling my parents’ retirement funds, property rights, planning international trips, and so on and so forth.

These years of several ocean-crossings were a blur to me. So many things happened in those hectic days – at a non-Sabahan speed and frequency!

Five decades, three continents, six languages, and numerous addresses later; I am still counting.