Just passed the midpoint of the mission trip, and everything has been wonderful! The people here have been extremely hospitable, and I do hope my ginormous appetite is doing some justice to their generosity. Time hasn't been passing too quickly or slowly: I've seen and learned much, and I've still enough rest at the same time.
I had been permanently posted to the Nursery section with David since yesterday, and today was our last day with them. Chasing a soccer ball around the playground, wiping their mucus from their faces, patting them to sleep, are just some of the things that I'm going to miss from my experience here. An interesting thing to note: Every teacher has her favorite kid, often not from their own class. The stranger thing to note is that the attributes of that chosen kid reflect something about the teacher's personality. One boisterous, feisty teacher has a favorite kid who is super rebellious and constantly refuses to eat. One loud and charismatic (but gentle) teacher loves a slightly autistic kid who us always seen moving away from the crowd. David's favorite kid (identified since last year) is a little shy girl from the Kindergarten whose name is called Pancake who's very quiet and enjoys burying her head in David's chest. As for me, I'm torn between a very good-looking young boy with long hair called Nooaid (he's going to be superstar if he plays his cards right) and a chubby kid in the Nursery called Kwan who can't stop talking to the people around him. Oh and did I mention, the kids have awesome nicknames. Ultra, Mega, Plang, Pee, Sea, Towsend and Alax. And it's super-cute to hear them calling "Pi Daewid" and "Pi Wictor".
The last few days have been spent traveling to the neighboring temple schools to organize hour-long English sessions for some of the students. It is truly by God's grace that we managed to capture the attention of nearly 200 kids (the first time) and 60 kids (the second time) for the entire period given to us. In addition, we've taught English to some of the Thai children in a small building called the Bethlehem house, where most of them come from poor families or have no families of their own.
The cell groups have been a massive inspiration for me personally. So far we've done cell group under the moonlight just outside the Bethlehem house, for a small family whose father has just lost his job, and in a hair salon! Each time, Pastor Anong ensures that some of the members will speak about what God has taught them over the week, and it is so encouraging to hear of their wonderful testimonies! If only my life and that of my Singaporean church mates were half as interesting. In addition, they all spoke with much conviction and at length, bringing much richness and openness to the fellowship that I hope to see back in Singapore.
It's truly been a fantastic journey thus far, and suffice to say, I've been encouraged very much by what this small-town church has done. Without a doubt, my Thai vocabulary has increased, and probably so has my weight.
Once again, I want to thank everyone for your prayers, and I look forward to telling you more stories about what God is doing in the Land of Smiles.
Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. -Paul (2 Cor 8:13)
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