I Can't Believe It's Still Raining!

"I can't believe it's still raining!"

We have been saying this for FIVE days! I have never experienced rain like this. It has rained every single day over the last 6 weeks, but on Thursday rainy season turned determined. It hasn't let up for more than a few minutes at a time. All day and all night, it rains. Yesterday, we had errands to run and final goodbyes, so we were all around town. We went into a building for an hour and a half, and when we came out, the main part of town was flooded. Nichole, Steve, and I were on a motorbike. It took us an hour to get home when it usually takes about 7 minutes! 

This morning, our last morning in Mae Sot, we rode our bikes to our favorite Burmese breakfast place. At this point, the roads in this direction were clear.

Nichole and I wanted to say a quick good bye to New Wave and had a few things to drop off, but the closer we got to the school, the higher the water level became.

Look at our sweet school! We were devastated to see this. Later we found out that all the schools are closed until the flooding recedes.

Around 11, I went home a different way than Nichole. I chose the wrong way. The current and path I took were awful. I  had to get off my bike in thigh-high dirty brown water and walk it home. Roaches, trash, debris, and God knows what else (actually, I know because later someone pulled a writhing EEL out of the water) floated by me. I lost my flip flop at one point and made a truck wait to go by me as I fetched it because there was no way I was moving out of the middle of the road. I had a mini break down when I finally reached our place, but nothing a hot shower and Malibu+Coke couldn't fix.

At this time, it was flood free in front of our home. A few puddles, but that's it. As we were packing, the rain got more vicious and we heard commotion from downstairs. Hundreds of roaches were trying to get in because it had started to flood. We were given an hour to finish packing, clean whatever we could so we could get out. We didn't make it to an hour. Eels were being pulled out of the water, people in knee-high water were walking by, and the usual motor bike wagons that go by, had stopped. Our friends couldn't reach us because the roads were closed and we were trying to figure out how we were going to walk out of there with all our stuff. I'm shuddering at the memory.

Steve flagged down a truck with the loveliest Thai couple, and someone yelled, "We got a ride! We're leaving, now." I happened to be chopping pineapple at this point (I seriously do the most ridiculous things at the most inopportune times!) Nichole jumped to my aid, we cleaned up, and in 4 and half minutes the 6 of us had our bags and ourselves in the bed of the truck. This is our last view of our friends and home.

The couple navigated some mean flood water roads, took back roads, and finally got us to the bus station. I posted a video on Facebook of the start of our journey. 

Drenched but so so so thankful!

Jesse and Jenny, missionaries here in Mae Sot and dear friends, met us at the bus station. They took our drenched selves out for lunch, took us to say goodbye to Khin, (another blog another story) and then let us invade their home to change and relax. To put on dry clothes after one has been shivering and shaking for 2 hours, is a new favorite experience. 

We leave for Bangkok on an overnight bus in 2 hours. It is surreal that people we care about and others that we smile and greet daily are staying in this madness. Please pray with us!

Vacation Shmacation- boo!

It's week 5. Half my team left on Monday, and as we chased after the truck that was taking them away from us, I wondered why I hadn't just signed up for 4 weeks. However, even though I miss our people, this week has been my favorite.

New Wave School update:

Thursday after school, we found out that the school will be closed on Friday because of Mother Theresa day and Monday and Tuesday because of a Buddhist holiday. 

I bounced out of the hut delighted because learning had taken place, only to be hit with the holiday news. In America, I would have immediately checked my bank account, "can I take a trip?" But, here, my eyes welled with tears. I begged the teachers to reconsider! They laughed and one touched my arm in understanding. I marched back in the hut and told my kids (teacher helped) that if they studied their words over the weekend, bright sparkly stickers awaited them. We'll see.

 

I'm shielding the kids who quickly/correctly write the word I say from the masses of children who are trying to copy in hopes of a star! I usually get about 12 minutes of teacher directed teaching/trying to get them to think time before pure chaos ensues. For example, Chris, who has the bestest smile and usually tries to please me, will punch one of the little boys (they smile at me constantly with beautiful little innocent faces that make me want to pack 'em in my suitcase...ah! digressing.) and they will cry. The girls who don't receive my direct attention will start to draw, stab each other with rulers, or stare off into space. Sometimes, I will notice, "there are seriously only 7 kids paying attention right now." I guess that's the same in the US. To reget their attention, I have resort to the repeat after me game.

This picture is monumental. Why do you ask? Because, I got about 27 seconds of "uninterrupted" reading time with David. Do you see the kids behind me working on an assignment independently (involving colored pencils, but still!) that hasn't happened til this week! They are so used to sitting in one spot, their books open, repeating exactly what their teacher says with zero critical thinking skills, that whenever I give them any kind of mini-assignment, they want immediate feedback. I have to limit my star drawing on their papers, or then the chaos creator is me.

The little one directly to my right is John. He was absent for 3 days, and I slightly embarrassed him by hugging him tightly the second I saw him today! He barely left my side. :) He's painfully smart and quick, so I would write little sentences for him to read. He then had to draw a picture to prove to me he understood. 

I twenty-seven second read with several kids today!

Meanwhile...

Kayla's 7 kids (They're mine now, but they were hers for a month, so technically, they're still hers.) gathered around 1 iPad, and with zero bickering worked on a noun sorting activity I left for them, while I ran back to my kids, whom can't be trusted to be on their own for very long.

I teach 2 classes at a time now that 2 teachers have left. Originally, it was decided that I would teach 2 45 minute classes, however, the other group has no teacher for 45 minutes. So, I bounce back and forth. It's wild. Wild and wonderful.

Only 2 teaching days remain then carnival day on Friday!

P.S.

The toilet by our favorite coffee shop. Don't worry, I flushed (with the green scooper) before I took the picture.

Chiang Mai

Disclaimer: The following blog is just a journal entry. Nooothing serious nor thoughtful. :)

Nikki and I planned a spontaneous trip to Chiang Mai this past weekend. It was so nice to be a tourist for a day with no responsibility.  Here are some highlights!

The best part of the entire weekend? Sleeping in a bed!! After a month on the floor, the following was heaven.

After walking around exploring the city, we met up with some friends of a friend at the Night Bazaar, the best shopping available to a human. We were all slow walking, touching everything, and wanting to buy EVERYthing! 

BUT we took a break half way through to go grab dinner, and then this happened:

A delicious REAL Italian dinner with red wine. (I've been eating thai food every day for lunch and dinner! ;) By the time we finished here and the fish ate our feet, sigh, the market was closed. No regrets, of course, but I'd do anything to go back for a few more nights at that market!!

The next day we went to the Elephant Park. The drive up through the mountains was beautiful. Green everywhere. We rode our sweet elephant up the mountain a bit. It was really rad for awhile, but then I couldn't stop thinking about our elephant going up and down day after day. I have such a sensitive heart for animals! ;) Ok, but really, I did feel a bit bad. Even though the experience was so unique. 

After, we watched the neatest show! Elephants are SO talented! 

One elephant kicked a soccer ball, and the goalie elephant missed it, and it went into the goal! We went wild!! :) Then, he kicked it again, and this time the goalie blocked the ball with his trunk. We went wild again! Then...

I watched this baby elephant paint a beautiful landscape. How??! I still can't believe what I saw. I went up to the front to sit with the little kids because I was mesmerized!  The trainer would hand him the paintbrush with a new color, and he would paint a small section at a time. Amazing. 

His painting sold for 6,000 BHT ($200)

When we went to visit the elephants, the trainer waved me over. The second I tentatively patted the elephant's trunk, he grabbed me around my waist!! Ugh, so cute! :) Except for the snot boogies I saw on my shirt later. 

It was a short vacation, but it was sweet, as was our plane! 

It was GREAT to come back home, reunite with our people, and then see these guys today. :)

My English Name is Pablo

Pablo. Pablo. Pablo. Look at that face. Adorable! He is always at my side asking me to check his work. Now, I grab his little head, spin him around and pretend kick him in the tush! Goodness. 

Obviously this little Burmese rascal's name is not Pablo. ;) I gave my 25 1st graders (ages 6-12) all English names, so I could remember them all, and so they could become more familiar with English sounds. Most of them got names of friends and family back home, until I realized I should have given all of them one syllable plain Jane names! And what's up with my friends having fancy names?! Berenice, your girl is just Bere. Genelle, yours is Gena. :)

The following is just a little of what I have learned about some of my students. They are all fantastic!

Amy sat in the front the first day, so that is why she got that name. I used her as an example too much, so she sits in the back now. :) She is one of the first to get her star because her work is perfect. If I call on her she pops up quickly and at the top of her lungs yells her answer with confidence. All the older bigger girls flock around her, she is a magnet!

Hersson knows he bears the name of my brother, and that it's very dear to me, but he'd switch it in a minute! I walk over to him a lot and hold him to a high standard. ;) Thankfully, this little handsome boy has intense integrity in his work.

Bryan is a total wise-ass. He sits suavely in the back, riling up the other boys and at times mimicking   me (I lightly say mimic because how many sounds are they really connecting with meaning?) I try to say very little that isn't connected to our objective (hahahaha!! Sorry, teacher joke.) Anyway, the second I go to check his work he holds it up and gives me the, "You thought I wasn't working? Teach-uh, please" look. He laughs constantly and is very charismatic. He was also the first kid for me to turn teachery-mean on. His work yesterday was awful, not his usual, so I circled a number 12 on his paper and pointed to him (his age). Then, I circled a 5 and pointed to his work, and shook my head. The other boys laughed, they got me. (Herss, I thought you would've called me "mean" for that!) Well, Bryan wasn't going to leave it like that. A much neater assignment was shown to me a few minutes later, so he could earn his star.

Ilene is a spit fire! On one occasion, she though I called her name, but I had said Lexi (see? sounds mean nothing!) She was already standing and ready to answer, in the ensuing confusion and rapid Burmese yelling, Lexi, who is twice her size, almost lost her life. It's funny, now.

Mary is brilliant just like my Mary back home. She is one of the few that I actually can see learning English and picking up on the point of the lessons. She remembers everything and processes like a champ! 

Anna is a little born teacher. The first time I tried cooperative learning, I used her as one of my  teachers because I could see her helping the girls around her. The experiment failed, but that wasn't Anna's fault, these kids just don't learn that way. Every subject is taught/learned by rote memorization. It is painful to teach this way, so we add our flair, but I think the kids see this time as "play time" since it is so different than the way they usually are taught. 

Hersson and Pablo

 

My view as I ride my bike into the school each morning.

At noon the bell is rung the students recite something to their teacher, then class by class they go outside to get their lunch. They all have these little silver pails filled with rice and curry.  It's so cute to watch them trade curry bites. All the kids eat inside the hut alone, while the teachers eat outside. No one is watching them, but they do alright. I couldn't even fathom leaving kids in our lunchroom with no adult!

 

Just wanted to share a little bit of our ministry with you guys. In the afternoons we have had meeting after meeting with NGOs and each other as we brainstorm and hash out a plan for partnering with the Burmese migrant schools.

 

The Book That I Read...

Back in the day, I helped my little brother write a lot of book reports. A Lot. Usually, they were written in a mad dash the night before they were due. I would love to go back in time to a night before a Hersson book report was due. I'm sure there were tears and frustration on both our parts, but surely we must have also had some sweet book talks, one of my current favorite pastimes. As usual, I brought too many books with me on this trip. I did finish Jane Eyre, but that was mainly due to my 48 hour travel day to get to Mae Sot. 

Today, I added another book to my collection.  I rented it for a 300 baht deposit at a local restaurant. Yeah, there was a little library in the corner. *sigh* :)

I feel like puzzle pieces are drawing together. They're not in their secure places yet, and there are still gaps, so I can't quite tell what the picture is, but nevertheless, a few pieces came together. After lunch, a new friend and I biked around town. We shopped a bit then ended up at a coffee shop. Our conversation was lively and centered around education, future hopes and dreams, and the random. My heart knew it was in the presence of a kindred spirit, and it pleased me to be having these types of talks again. Later, we took a songthaew (rickshaw) to the border. As we stood in the pouring deluge, and looked at Burma, we were given a brief history lesson on the conflict within that country and the strip of land called, "No Man's land," which runs between Thailand and Burma.

People with no home and no safe country in which to live, reside in that strip. They partake in sex trafficking and slave labor in order to survive. What's eerie and heart breaking as hell, is seeing little kids living in that tall grass. I saw little boys chasing each other and little girls staring at me with bright eyes, while their mom's sold all kinds of depraved sex paraphernalia. It's awful and at times, just plain unbelievable.

Of course there are places like this all over the world, and I'm not sure where or for what purpose the Lord is calling my future self, but I'm here, so for now, I'll just write about what I see, hear, and think to help me process. There is a tendency to get disheartened or overwhelmed by the huge gravity of the situation, but here is the beauty in the horrific rough: There are people all over this town who have a heart for the Burmese refugees. I have met folks who have given their whole lives to serve the Lord by serving these people. He has not forgotten them.

My new book is called, Burma Voices. A Burmese refugee interviewed his country folk from many different life situations in the hopes of bringing light to their situation, and that they would not be forgotten by the international community. I'm fascinated and moved by their stories.

Wife of a political activist...

 

Burmese Monk...

Herss, the book that I read... :)

P.S. If you're still reading, bless your loyal great friend heart! I wrote this at 4am whilst sleep eluded me.

Up Next... We started teaching grammar and conversation at a Burmese Migrant school. It's AMAZING. 

It's Staaaaarting!!

We're all still pretty jet lagged, so it's 7:15 pm right now, but it feels like a million o'clock.  

Today  *sigh* was, "just one of those days," and I mean that as in the best possible day. I woke up to the sound of pouring rain, but by the time the 5 of us in our neon running attire were ready, the rain had abated just for us and our run. :) I think it rains 21 out of every 24 hours. Had a great run! The weather was good and several cars slowed down to take our picture.

After breakfast, we met together to begin the vision for this trip. Ashley and Christin, the leaders, shared with us what the Journey looked like for them when they started it back in January, how it's evolved, and showed us what they envisioned and then accomplished in their 4 months. Then, they asked us questions to help us get to know each other and our hearts for the next 6 weeks. They taped giant pieces of paper to the wall, and I got to green marker all over my sheet. I'm bursting with excitement! I like my team a whole bunch, I loved hearing their thoughts and hopes, and this Journey program just has such an amazing purpose, providing a place for people to use their talents and resources to love and help people all in the name of Jesus. It's really beautiful. 

                

  The group! 

Later, we biked for 4 hours all around Mae Sot. Our objective/goal was to get to know the city and make some new friends. We stopped to eat some Sri Lankan food, (preeety similar to Indian with the curry n the spice) and I met a girl who was researching for her graduate degree about education for the Burmese refugees- what is working and what needs to be revamped. What are the odds?! She gave me a list of NGO's in town who have started educational non-profits, we're excited to check those out!

 

                     

What's been humbling is how many people have a passion for the Burmese refugees in Thailand and are actively trying to be a part of a movement to address and change, "unacceptable realities" that are normal in their lives. I am grateful to jump on board with them and hopefully start something that is lasting.

   

P.S. Had the sweeeeeetest mango for breakfast this morning, and it cost 1 baht. That's about 3 cents, folks. Oh, and while zipping around town today, I bought a bag of flower cut pineapple, and that cost 20 baht. LOVE inexpensive super tasty fresh fruit! :)

The Land of Smile

Made it to Bangkok after 24 hours of travel and thankfully *just now* so did my bags! We're hanging out in Bangkok for the day until our 8 hour night bus to Mae Sot! 

PS: There are succulent plants everywhere!