“All around, the mountains rise and rise, pale gold and brown in the February light. Unlike the conventional lackluster scenery narratives of most contemporary travel literatures, Zeppa’s depictions are artistic and breathe life into the mysticism and beauty of a landscape forgotten by time. What’s also extraordinary about Beyond the Sky and the Earth is Zeppa’s imaginative style of description. If I feel this sad leaving Pema Gatshel after five months, I cannot imagine how I will feel leaving Bhutan after two years.”
I must squeeze my eyes tightly to stop the tears.
“They curl up under a blanket, and I stand in the doorway, watching their small faces relax into sleep. And by the end of it all, we all will be humbled by her journey.
We will be carried along with her, as she journey through joy and heartbreak empathize with her as she flows from triumphs to struggles and righteousness to shame. Intricately written with compassion, Zeppa’s book fashions us- the reader- into her persona, and systematically render us into her affection for a place. It is a memoir that recollects Zeppa’s romance with a landscape, a people, a culture, and a man. This is the most remarkable place, after all.”įundamentally, Beyond the Sky and the Earth is a love story. “I remember my arrival in Bhutan and how miserable I was, and all the other teachers who seemed inexplicably content. However, with the help and kindness of the Bhutanese people, her fears would progressively dissipate and Bhutan would eventually become her serenity. Misery consumed her as the risk of disease and sickness was brought into focus: a house infested with rats and bugs, questionable meat at the local markets, and hospitals that were miles away. People no longer spoke English, Buddhism became the dominant religion, urban infrastructure was practically non-existent, and all the simple pleasures of Canadian life were gone. I tell Sasha I am coming down with something, and lie in bed and wish for things: a Cosmopolitan magazine, a bagel and cream cheese, a grocery store, the Eaton Centre two days before Christmas.”ĭue to the polarization between the industrialized society of Canada and the rural way-of-life in Bhutan, Zeppa struggled tremendously with her process of acculturation. Yearning for adventure, she impulsively leaves her country, fiancé, and a potential doctorate education to teach English for two years in Bhutan, an isolated Himalayan kingdom that is often referred to as the world’s last Shangri-La. Marie native, Jamie Zeppa, became lost with her life’s course. After earning her master’s degree in English literature from York University, Toronto/Sault Ste.
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