Posts (page 2)

The neighborhood we live in is divided into two different sections by a stretch of a small county highway.  On the side we live on there is a stretch of houses along the main road, then a smaller road winds back away from the highway to the area we live in.  Our house is on the edge of New Life Church of Wiang Kaen’s property.  The church’s soccer field borders our house and then there’s the church, a big cement building with a bright blue roof.  A few other houses are in back behind the church, all belonging to members of the church.  It’s a blessing to live in a Christian section of this neighborhood as the influences of the neighborhood are often dark and immoral. 

Crossing the road to the other part of the neighborhood is a clear line, both in feeling and in sight.  Houses are mostly constructed of wood.  There are bamboo homes, with only grass thatch for a roof.  There are water faucets connected to random pieces of pipes, providing water for dish washing, laundry and whatever else.  The water spills haphazardly onto the ground where broken cement slabs serve as a counter/table for the chores that need to be accomplished there.  

It was to this side of the neighborhood that we walked to today and to a house that is one of the most dilapidated in the area.  Trash lies around outside, longing for someone to put it in its right place.  The walls of the house are constructed of wood planks, spaced in some places, so that light and every other kind of vermin can make its way in without even having to use the door.  The floor is dirt, scattered with old cigarette butts, rusty nails and miscellaneous broken household items.  The old grandpa greets us as we enter, inviting us to eat with him at his small bamboo table nestled on the floor.  It sets next to the indoor cooking fire and a pile of ashes that rise high above floor level.  There is a putrid smell, of smoke I suppose and the closeness of humanity.  A little boy named John is the person we have come to see.  His mother carries him out from the back bedroom to the main room and lays him on a wooden plank bed.  The bed is covered with laundry and long, dirty nails poke out from the underside.  This little boy is Rudy’s age, 19 months old, but he couldn’t be any more different from this jolly little son of mine that I’m holding in my arms.  7 months ago the neighborhood flooded and little John, having just started to walk, wandered away from whoever it was that was watching him.  He disappeared and was found almost 30 minutes later, face down in a rushing stream, stopped by the strong roots of a tree that held him in place.  He was immediately rushed to a big hospital in Chiang Rai, about 2 hours away, where he spent the next 7 months.  At times he was on a respirator.  Recently he was released from the hospital after being given a tracheotomy.  John lies very still on his bed.  At times phlegm and water start coming out of his nose and his tracheotomy site.  His mother works quickly to suction out the areas that are causing trouble as John struggles to breathe.  I felt faint and almost sick watching the site.  It wasn’t the phlegm that bothered me and there was no blood to be seen.  It was just everything that seemed to crush and overwhelm me.  The exhausted mother, the almost lifeless child, the stiff legs, the distant expression on his face, the filthiness of the surroundings, the hopelessness of his condition.  What darkness there must be when one doesn’t know the Lord and is faced with these circumstances.  As a mother a week of sickness in a child is a challenge and a major concern, but this, this is possibly a lifetime of serious and grave concern.  John’s father has deserted the family and the only other person around, grandfather, is hardly able to help with the tasks of caring for this child.  I could see a look of defeat on the mother’s face.  We’ve talked to his mother many times since John’s accident and she always seemed incredibly strong and positive.  This time though I could see that tiredness and hopelessness were beginning to creep into her features.  She is not a believer and although we pray with her every time we visit, I know she won’t have the incredible peace that the Lord gives until she accepts His gift for herself.  Would you pray with me for Ching Muay and her son John?  Pray that Ching Muay would accept the Lord as her Savior and rely on Him to supply all her needs.  Pray for John, that the Lord would heal him. 

I rejoiced in my boys the rest of the day after our visit.  What a reminder it was to me of the blessing of good health and safety.  I rejoiced in the ridiculous amounts of energy that they seem to be able to put out every day, because it means that they are healthy and strong.  I rejoiced in the questions and singing, because it means that they are able to speak and think and that they are developing normally.  I rejoiced in the huge meals they were able to devour, thankful that the Lord is providing for all their needs.  I am thankful tonight for all the things that I so often take for granted. 

 It’s a long trip from Bangkok to Wiang Kaen.  A 90 minute flight from the Northernmost airport to Bangkok turns into 12 hours of driving time.  Add an hour worth of stops for 2 pairs of restless little boy legs, 1 hour for snacks and meals, and usually an extra hour for bathroom stops and coffee breaks.  It adds up and we’re always excited to arrive at our final destination

Bangkok is an enormous city, packed to the gills with everything and everyone that you can possibly imagine.  During our time there we literally saw people from every end of the earth, crowded into that city to make a living, to shop and to eat.  Eating in Bangkok truly is a joyful experience for us.  Having left behind our sparse outdoor Wiang Kaen market, we are thrown into a variety of restaurants and food courts that span every appetite and craving.  Our trip was a blessing.  Not only did we receive a renewal of our visa that makes it possible for us to continue living here, but we also had a relaxed time together as a family, things I don’t take for granted. 

I love to watch the scenery as we travel home from Bangkok.  The towering ritzy high-rises of Bangkok are replaced by prosperous but smaller cities.  The cityscapes are soon transformed into mile after mile, or kilometer after kilometer of factories and then rice fields, forests and quaint little towns.  I used to feel more and more isolated and lonely as I traveled these roads to our far-flung home, but now it feels like coming home to enter the countryside of Thailand.  The road changes, from 8 lanes, to 6, to 4 and then 2 as we make our way northward.  Faded flags wave in the rush of passing traffic, alerting drivers and passengers to roadside stands that sell products and souvenirs that are famous to a particular district that we pass.  Bright orange pumpkins are stacked in neat rows alongside deep green watermelons, creating a striking display.  The next set of stands advertises roasted snake.  Little plastic bags dangle from their tables, containing a feast for those who choose to partake.  We drive on. 

Rudy is asleep in his car seat, thank you Lord.  These trips are probably the hardest on him because we can’t explain where we’re going, or why, or that we’ll stop for lunch soon.  He is patient most of the time and for that I am thankful.  He has been a real trooper, taking in the sights of the city from his stroller seat or toddling through malls and walkways as we made our way from place to place.  Rudy still tries to charm the waitresses with a coy little look, although he pretends to be uninterested when he’s offered the chance to be held by the lady who serves our ice water.  He’s a sweet little boy and I think he’ll be happy to be back in Wiang Kaen again.

It looks like rain up ahead.  Not the rain from huge, fluffy clouds, but from a dark, hazy and overcast sky.  We sure do need it.  It must be a welcome sight to this dusty brown landscape.  This time of the year, until April always seems a little surreal in terms of the weather.  A normally lush and wet country turns dry and brown until rainy season arrives in May and reminds us why the dry months are such a blessing. 

We’ll be stopping for dinner here pretty soon.  We were going to stop earlier, but then Ray fell asleep and we decided that a nap was more important than lunch.  This little town must have a restaurant although I must admit it’s not as much of a welcome sight to me as the places I’m familiar with in Wiang Kaen.  The restaurant owner is nice, she has a blond cat with blue eyes and Ray is excited to chase it around while we wait for dinner to be served.  Ray and Rudy split an order of fried rice, I have my own plate of the same and Jeremy has garlic fried pork with a fried egg on the side.  We’re glad to be back on the road again, everyone’s nerves are getting a bit frayed. 

One of our last stops before home is at a grocery store about 2 hours from our house in a town called Chiang Kham.  Ray is excited.  He loves to go on outings, anywhere, even to the grocery store, and this is no exception.  He wants to know what we’re getting and of course “why?”.  He is such a curious kid.  He loved Bangkok, after he got over being scared of the traffic.  He is like a sponge these days and it’s so fun to watch him spend the day soaking things up and then enjoy watching him sleep and dry out for another day of taking it all in.  Ray expressed being sad to go back to Wiang Kaen although I think he’ll get back into life there easily enough.  Bangkok is a fun place to visit but I don’t think any of us would really want to live there. 

We’re almost home now.  The road is familiar.  I recognize a newly planted rice field and how dried up the corn stalks are looking these days.  We try to guess if it rained while we were gone or if it’s still cool, unlike Bangkok which was hot and humid even during cool season.  There’s our house, everything looks fine.  I’m thankful to the Lord for how He has protected our home while we’ve been gone.  We unpack the van, the boys are still asleep.  We carry them to their beds, they’re happy to be in a different position.  We unpack the groceries and the suitcases.  Falling into bed at 10:30pm feels wonderful.  The cool breeze blows the curtains at our window, the crickets chirp, the night is still.  We are home. 

Happy New Year everyone! 

Some of you know that Jeremy and I have taken up the regular habit of biking in the past 8 months or so.  I’m talking bicycle biking, not dirt bike biking.   We’ve never actually gone on a bike ride together, but we trade off, rotating mornings when one person can enjoy the luxury of waking early, taking a long bike ride and then even getting a shower in before taking on the responsibilities of the day.  Personally, I am thrilled to have found a form of exercise that I enjoy and that is easy to make a part of my daily life.  Wiang Kaen is a bit of an exercise vacuum for women.  I could either participate in the evening aerobic session that sometimes takes place near the market, or I could rely on the heavy housekeeping and farming work that keeps most women fit.  One reason that I’ve learned to love biking so much is because it gives me time away.  There are no coffee shops, book stores, malls, swimming pools, women’s Bible studies that give me an opportunity to get out and about without the kids.  But biking gives me hours worth of quiet roads, gliding past fields, watching the morning fog clear, time for prayer and a breath of fresh air for this introvert at heart. 

My first few months of biking were spent in doing short rides near our house.  Somehow being able to plan a 30 minute trip and be back in time for the kid’s breakfast seemed like a nice plan back when I started.  But that started to wear on me and for my 30^th birthday I decided to do a 30 km ride.  I took off down the road on a path I had driven dozens of times before, but biking is not the same as driving and towards the halfway point of my ride I was facing hills that I wanted to push the bike up, not ride up.  All of a sudden I was reminded of my years of swimming when I would face a physical challenge in the pool, and I would have to choose to rely on the Lord to help me.  Now, I love exercise in moderate forms but there is something that draws my heart to the Lord when I am challenged to do something harder than what I thought possible.  Those are times when I truly experience the Lord’s strength. 

One of my regular rides now takes me on a road that reminds me much of my own walk with the Lord regarding His bringing me to this ministry in Thailand.  I know the Lord works in steps and stages with me.  If He had told me, upon my first trip to Thailand, that He was planning to send me here long-term, I think I would have had a hard time accepting it.  As it was though, He led me slowly.  From a 2 month term, to a two year term, to marrying a man whose heart was also in Thailand, to moving to a modernized city in Thailand, to moving to a small town…..  He has only led me at each step as far as He knows I can go by His grace.  Now, back to the actual road.  The first part of my ride is fairly easy, although there’s a gradual incline.  There are dogs barking and people hollering to look at the foreign gal riding her bike, but nothing too difficult.  All of a sudden though, at about 11 km past my house I begin to reach the path of the mountains.  A winding steep hill is half-hidden by an outcrop of trees.  Up and down it goes for the next 5 km.  Breathtaking beauty and breathtaking exercise.  On my birthday ride I went most of that route, up and down all those hills.  On an average day now though I don’t have the time, or the stamina, to make that ride.  For awhile I would reach that first steep incline and turn around, deciding that I should probably get back to the laundry or the family.  The last couple of times though I’ve felt the truth that if I can face the physical challenges in life, or exercise, with the Lord’s help, how much more will that encourage me and be an example to me of how the Lord will help me with the daily challenges that I face in other areas of my life.  It may seem like kind of a jump for some people, to relate physical activity so much to how the Lord can be honored by it.  I have to say though, that all those thousands of hours I put into swimming, staring at the bottom of the pool, the Lord can bring you to a deeper place with Him during that time, it’s not wasted time if you choose to look deeper. 

I’ve made it up that steep hill a few times now on my rides.  It reminds me of our ministry here, that some things have steadily gotten harder.  The first time I rode on that ride I was eagerly expecting a long, flat road for miles to come.  I hoped for some respite.  The fact is that the road beyond that first hill is even harder.  The hills are steeper and longer at times.  The potholes are worse as it is a road less traveled.  It’s farther from home and therefore more tiring.  But do you know that that road also has the most beautiful vistas from the tops of the mountain rises?  Do you know that the road crosses rivers that sparkle in the morning sun and fields of rice and corn?  It’s a part of the road too where I need the Lord’s help more than I did at the beginning of the ride, but to me I know that will make it so much sweeter.  There’s always that choice in life, I suppose, to turn around when I see something that looks too challenging.  Somehow though, going back to those straight, flat roads doesn’t seem as tempting as pushing ahead and trusting the Lord to see me through.  Whether it be up or down or whatever, whatever this year brings, and it’s looking like it will bring some more major challenges, I’m ready because I’m riding with Jesus.

Merry Christmas!

We hope you are had a blessed day celebrating our Savior’s birth! 

Our family had a small celebration Christmas morning before we opened the doors to the outside world.  The church here will have a big Christmas outreach this coming Sunday. Most of the group celebrating that we took part in came last night with the First (and hopefully not last, but maybe last because it ended kind of late) Annual New Life Church of Wiang Kaen Christmas Caroling Party! 

The preparations started over two weeks ago as our current interim pastor announced to the church at a Sunday morning service that we’d be starting the caroling party at the Gatzke’s house, because we’d be sure to have the most delicious cookies.  I was feeling a little pressure from the announcement so I made some plans as to how I would get all my baking done.  I had a list of what needed to be purchased and when all the treats would be made.  Unfortunately I made the mistake of ignoring my schedule of when things would be made (before the day of the party) and ended up spending quite a long time in the kitchen on Christmas Eve Day.  It wasn’t exactly what I had pictured, a fun day of making cookies with the family, letting the boys frost and put sprinkles on cookies.  I herded everyone out of the kitchen after breakfast and frosted most of the cookies while the boys were napping.  There was only one way to get it all done, focusing on the task at hand with 100% of my attention.

In planning what treats to make for the event, consisting of church members stopping by our house to sing songs and then have some snacks together, I tried to consider what I thought our Thai friends would like.  We are forever hearing comments about how our food is so sweet, it’s so rich, and so on.  We ended up making brownies, toffee, frosted sugar cookies and butter pecan cookies.  Along with 12 liters of Coke, I figured we had enough food to suit the crowd and way more sugar than most of our Thai friends claimed to be able to digest without ballooning up two pants sizes. 

At about 8pm our carolers showed up.  They looked quite eager and I looked at our buffet table, wondering if they’d actually like what we had.  Maybe I should have purchased that huge bag of shrimp chips or fried up some crickets, it was too late, I had to hope that they’d at least try some of what we made.  To my surprise they descended onto our table with much more enthusiasm than I expected.  The container of extra cookies had to be relocated from the kitchen to the main table where it was devoured in minutes.  As it turned out, the Christmas goodies we made yesterday, over 200 cookies and such, was almost COMPLETELY cleared out in a span of 30 minutes by only 30 people!  I couldn't believe it!  I thought I'd have leftovers for us to munch on for a week or so.  I remember thinking to myself, “it’s too bad that I have to spend most of the day in the kitchen, but at least I’ll get all my Christmas baking done in one day...”  As it turns out I'm going to have to do another baking day so the boys will have something more than a fleeting memory of eating Christmas treats. It was a blessing though, to be able to make something and see people enjoy it so much.

After the stop at our house we all piled in 3 vehicles (2 trucks and our van) to head up the mountain to the house of one of our Christian friends.  He lives in a small Chinese town called Pha Tang.  We stood outside his simple little house in the dark quiet of the night and sang “Joy to the World”, in Thai of course.  Our candles flickered in the cool evening air and what a joy it was to do something so simple and yet so wonderful, to celebrate our Savior’s birth at the home of a believer whom Jeremy has been discipling for the past 3 years.  Our friend opened his doors and welcomed us in to enjoy another round of snacks and soda.  As we left, he pointed out that the cherry tree outside his house was in full bloom and he invited those of us who desired to cut off a branch to bring home.  What a simple gift to us, but what beauty those soft pink blossoms bring to our table. 

This year we praise the Lord for the many blessings He bestows on us and even moreso the greatest blessing that could ever be given, God’s only Son, our Jesus. 

I know I have mentioned before that we often end up being last minute English teachers, English homework checkers, and general English resource centers to our non-English speaking neighbors.  A couple of days ago a young high school gal, who I once helped with some simple English homework, dropped off a 7 page document about Christmas, needing it to be translated immediately.  I have to admit I was a little perturbed.  Now, I can read Thai and I can translate, that is not the problem.  The problem is that it is her homework and she dropped it off for me to do.  I don’t like that.  When she dropped by today to pick up the completed translation I told her that I hadn’t started it and that I didn’t feel right about doing it all, seeing as it was a homework assignment given to her, not to me.  She was obviously not thrilled about my decision but we sat out on the porch and started to work on it.  After a few minutes she said that she had a friend who may have translated it already and that she’d just get that copy and have me spell check it.  I could not believe what I saw when she brought me the translated manuscript this evening.  I was planning to watch “It’s a Wonderful Life”, instead I was forced to participate in a grueling spell/grammar corrections project.  At first I was going to just do a little nip and tuck to what she wrote, and then I read it.  I think what she did was to open the Thai/English dictionary and then just translate everything directly.  Here are a few samplings and believe or not they are completely unedited:

1. *This first one is supposed to be about the use of candles and wreaths during the Christmas season*  “Candle and the steering wheel.  Steering wheel is the symbol that the ancient use to mean the victory, but, for steering wheel hanging in that Christmas means with regard to His Majesty come to originate in the world, and make everything fully, be plentiful follow event plan of God, which, this custom is brought from one father low-lying group has in German country takes the branch comes to assemble, be a circle resembles the steering wheel, already take 4 candles lay on steering that wheel, everybody in a family will one candle dot, pray pray, and sing the Christmas accompanied with for 4 last week arrive at Christmas, the tradition is popular (gum, rubber, tire much) in the United States of America, later have the change by lead the 1 that candle comes to the dot keeps in the middle steering wheel, and induce hang at a window, for the warning gives a person who has passed back and forth know near arrive at the Christmas already, reason part that the steering wheel has that green, because, there is believing that, green will help protect the home has from power wicked gang, “ 
2. (These are some snippets from the section about Santa)  “….this tradition then begin to is that know and extensively in the USA, by have something change, be, saint cow name, become, crawl eyes well up, and instead of a patriarch, become a man old that fat and add red group, live at the North Pole, there is move the vehicle that have the deer scurries abundantly tug, and will visit everybody child in this world in Christmas chance, by get down chimney way of a house for takes a gift comes to give those child follows his behavior, although, crawl eyes will well up to is just the legend that happens to come to for celebrate the Christmas no matter, but be center symbol takes the soul and the meaning of the Christmas keep very much, such as, the delight admires, helpfulness, love and the intimacy…”

I was expecting to shed some tears tonight while watching an old favorite Christmas movie.  The reality was though that I shed some major tears of laughter over these words, hope they bring a little laughter to your day too. 

My new hometown has snow on the ground this week and I find myself trying to remember what it’s like to see the welcome sight of those huge flakes falling from heaven.   I look out my own window here and see bright green bushy leaves, a partly cloudy sky and a hazy fog beginning to form over the mountains.  I miss being home for this season of the year. 

Many of you may have never spent a Christmas away from home, meaning away from America, in a different country.  It’s quite an eye-opening experience.  Thailand is a traditionally Buddhist country and the celebration of Christmas, among the general population, is not very common.  In the bigger cities you’ll see an occasional Christmas tree set up in a department store along with part of an aisle devoted to Christmas décor in our local version of Walmart.  But for the most part, people here in our neighborhood are pretty clueless about Christmas.  They think it’s a New Year’s celebration for foreigners.  They think it’s about presents and Santa Claus. 

Our first year here in Wiang Kaen one of our close friends mentioned how they had once visited the home of some Americans during the Christmas season.  Our friend was shocked by the vast assortment of gifts under the tree.  He had never seen such a display.  The first time I heard of his reaction I’ll admit that I was annoyed.  “It’s Christmas”, I thought, “and this is how we celebrate it, whether he likes it or not.”   I remember wanting to hide away at Christmas our first year here.  I wanted to celebrate the way I was always used to.  I wanted it to ‘feel’ like Christmas.  I was frustrated that the church Christmas outreach was on Christmas Day, making time together as a family completely impossible.  In other words, I was selfish about the whole thing.  My focus was in the wrong place, by a long shot.  I don’t know what makes this year so different for me, other than knowing that the Lord continually works in the hearts of those who love Him.  This year I am actually excited about the church Christmas party.  I’m looking forward to the soccer tournament that we’ll have to help us build relationships with our neighbors.  I’m eager to attend a Christmas outreach at the small church of one of our friends, to see all the crazy non-traditional ways that they will celebrate this season in a way that they appreciate.  I’m even enjoying the way that we all decorated the church a few weeks ago, with bright tinsel and every kind of metallic color of garland.  With flashing colored lights and “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year” signs gracing the entryway.  As we decorated that day I took in all the color and wildness and watched the faces of the kids as they decorated.  They were just as excited about this as I was about my own Christmas decorating traditions.  I’m learning that just like language and culture, so my celebration of holidays in this country has to translate and transition so that I can truly embrace and understand the hearts of those we’re trying to reach with the message of God’s salvation. 

Ray and his buddies

What a blessing this cool weather has been!  We are reveling in the daily gift of wearing sweatshirts and socks.  I’m especially enjoying how nice it is to be able to play outside with the boys at any time of day without having to hide in the shade to keep the temperature bearable. 

A few weeks ago as the weather was starting to get cool I was chatting with Ray about the change.

Hillary: “It’s starting to get cooler Ray, isn’t it?  Soon it will be winter. 

Ray: “What’s winter”

Hillary: “Winter is when the weather gets cooler and it’s also when we celebrate Christmas!”

Ray: “Okay.”

Hillary: “So, Ray, what do you want for Christmas?”

Ray: “A small orange toy.”

As soon as the question “Ray, what do you want for Christmas?” popped out of my mouth I knew that I had just made a big mistake.  At 3 years old, Ray is the most impressionable person I know, just as 3 year olds are.  Living where we do, far from cities, disconnected from other Americans or non-Thais, disconnected from television and shopping malls, Jeremy and I are the primary source of influence and information in Ray’s life.  If he’s not hearing things from Jeremy and I, then it’s from one of his other friends who inevitably speaks Thai.  Although Ray’s Thai language ability is improving, it’s certainly not as developed as his English and therefore he learns opinions, attitudes, everything from Jeremy and I.  When it comes to Christmas and what this season means, Ray is going to form his expectations and joys based on what we expect and take joy in.  That’s why I was frustrated with myself for asking him what he wanted, rather than explaining to him the incredible gift that he was given when Jesus was born. 

A few nights later Jeremy and I were talking about what Christmas meant to us as kids.  Despite the fact that we knew we were celebrating Jesus’ birth, we admitted that for us it was…..well, let’s be honest, it was all about the gifts.  Few children would be able to sit and thoughtfully listen to the story of Jesus’ birth when there’s a huge pile of brightly wrapped packages under the tree.  There’s too much competition during Christmas and inevitably Jesus gets left behind, forgotten in the midst of a day when we’re supposed to be celebrating His arrival. 

As Ray and Rudy grow and change from year to year, so does the way our family celebrates Christmas and therefore the way that I view this time of year in my own heart.  Ray’s first Christmas, at 2 months old, consisted of him staring at and being mesmerized by the lights on the Christmas tree.  Unable to move or speak, he was really taking it all in.  We were home for Ray’s second Christmas when he was a little over a year old and it was a precious time of having a little kid in the midst of a grown-up celebration.  He obviously enjoyed all the gifts, and we enjoyed watching him.  His 3^rd Christmas at 2 years old, Ray was definitely beginning to understand that there was more to it all that just the gifts, but I admit that it was difficult to tie him down and get him to really grasp some of the true story.  Just before his 3^rd birthday it seemed that a window opened to Ray’s little heart and mind, a window of incredible opportunity where all of a sudden the communication of thoughts and ideas, fears and joys became a daily conversation.  All of a sudden, it seems that this little boy of mine is able to wrap his mind around more than I realize.  Back to the above conversation: When I asked him what he wanted for Christmas, he kind of looked at me with questioning in his eyes, “Why would mommy ask me what I want for Christmas?”  That’s when it dawned on me that I had an incredible opportunity to begin forming in him a right and true attitude of Jesus’ birth and how it should be celebrated.  If I told him it was about presents and asked him to make a list, he would believe me.  If I told him it was about making 13 kinds of cookies and decorating the house with thousands of colored lights, he would believe me.  If I told him it was about Santa and the gifts he would receive from the elves, he would believe me.  I pray that the Lord would help me to choose to lead Ray along the path that leads to understanding that Christmas is about Jesus and a humble birth that changed the course of the entire world and that it was the first twinkling of light that would lead us to salvation, and I pray with all my heart, that he will believe me and carry that truth in his heart forever. 

Truly we have much to be thankful for this year and especially today.  As many of you know, or may have read in headlines recently, things are not so peaceful in our neck of the woods.  As it turns out, even if we wanted to go home for Thanksgiving, we literally would not be able to fly out of this country.  Please join with us in praying for a peaceful resolution to the problems that are gathering steam here. 

Speaking of gathering steam, we’ve spent the last several days preparing for our Thanksgiving feast.  There’s always the opportunity here, because of lack of understanding of foreign holidays, to just choose to have a quiet, private Thanksgiving meal.  Hoping, of course, that nobody happens to drop by as you’re saying a prayer over the elaborate meal that you’ve prepared only for yourselves.  Last year was our first year to invite friends to celebrate the day with us and it was a blessing that we decided to duplicate this year.  A few weeks ago Jeremy and I were casually discussing plans for the day.  We came to the conclusion that we would need to invite a bigger crowd this year, twice the size.  I’ll admit that I was a little concerned by this proposition, especially since we would have no family here this year to help us with the cooking.  I even prayed that if we wouldn’t be able to handle it all, that the Lord would prevent us from finding all the ingredients and pans etc that we would need.  Well, God works in mysterious ways and it turned out that we were able to find EVERYTHING we needed, without any problem and at a cheaper price than we expected.  I thanked the Lord for answering my prayer and then I prayed for the strength I’d need to put it all together.  There were a few things that I didn’t have that I wished I did, but the Lord provided them, in their simpler forms: instead of canned sweet potatoes I had a huge bag of 50 that needed to be cleaned, baked, peeled and mashed.  Instead of canned pumpkin I had 3 pumpkins that my neighbor had given me, that needed to be cut open, cleaned, steamed and mashed.  Instead of two sons who would sit obediently at the table and color hand-print turkeys while I made stuffing, I had two energized, wild boys that almost escaped across the soccer field next to our house while the turkeys were roasting.  One of my greatest blessings of the day was a friend named Ratana who came early and helped till the last dish was dried.  What a blessing it was to have such a wonderful friend.  She sliced onions, fried onions, peeled apples, stirred green beans and washed dishes.  She was my Thanksgiving angel. 

In all we had 17 guests and they ate almost 2 whole turkeys.  According to Betty Crocker they were only supposed to eat 1 ½, but I guess Betty doesn’t take into account the lack of meat in the Asian diet!  We have about half of our side dishes left over and lots of pumpkin pie, apparently they wanted to be warned ahead of time that dessert was coming.  

I think the most special part of the meal was the time we had when everyone shared something that they were thankful for.  This tradition might seem old-fashioned and empty to some but it was a blessing for us to hear the voices of our friends lifted in Thanksgiving to the Lord.  Marriages mending, friendships reunited, faith found, sickness healed, so many reasons to be thankful.

 May you be blessed this day with a heart full of thanksgiving and joy.  

Many of you know a little something about the weather in Thailand.  Think rain forests, tropical orchids, beaches, banana trees and you will have some idea of what a beautiful and yet WARM country we live in.  Many people joke that Thailand has three seasons, hot, hotter and hottest.  I’d say it’s more like this, a very hot/dry season (March-May), rainy/humid season (June-October) and cool/comfortable/almost perfect season (November-February).  In the northernmost part of Thailand, where we live, and on any high mountain in Northern Thailand, these seasons tend to be very distinct and the cool season really does get cool.  Cool season in Bangkok probably means only having to change your sweaty shirt once in a day rather than the normal 9 times (maybe that’s a slight exaggeration).

Anyways, it probably goes without saying that we really look forward to cool season.  It means we can turn off the fans for several months in a row, pull out sweaters and socks and enjoy being outside at any time of the day, except at night when it really starts to cool off.  Just coming off the end of rainy season we were looking eagerly to the start of cooler weather.  This year it happened suddenly even though it was something we’d been expecting for weeks.  Usually the start of cool season is ushered in by an extended rainstorm or an unseasonably hot day.  We watched everyday, watched the clouds and watched the thermometer, looking for any sign of a change of seasons.  This past Sunday night, as we were traveling home from a weekend visiting friends in Chiang Mai, we stopped in Chiang Rai and noticed something unusual.  At the supermarket where we usually shop there were some clear signs of the arrival of winter.  The people we saw were actually wearing sweaters and jackets, and not just to ward off the sun, but to ward off the cool!  Whoooppeeee!  Cool season is here!

Every city deals with this cool weather differently and in our neighborhood it means; campfires in the early morning and late night, time to wash the sweaters and hats and socks that have been stored away for months, patiently waiting to be remembered.  There’s something about going through your closet in the hot and close month of July and seeing a pile of sweatshirts that just makes me laugh and think, “does it ever really get cool enough to need to wear all that stuff?  It sure does.  The last few mornings it has been about 65 degrees inside our house and down into the upper 50’s outside.  Now, to you Midwesterners that doesn’t sound cold at all does it?  Well, the fact is that with the way the houses are built here, with no heaters or central air of any kind, the temperature outside the house is very similar to the temperature inside the house.  During the warmer parts of the year it can be over 90 degrees inside the house in the afternoons, hopefully cooling down to the upper 80’s during the night.  We usually have the fans on during most of the day, and night, during other parts of the year.  However, during cool season the fans are unplugged and stored in the corner, totally unnecessary during a time of year when you need multiple layers to stay warm 

There’s something sort of unusual about watching a normally humid and over-heated country all of a sudden transform into a mild-winter.  Everyone seems happier during cool season.  It’s no secret that hot and sticky weather makes people ornery.  That’s why banks, and other businesses that are expected to have long lines to wait in will inevitably install an air-conditioner.  We’re used to watching people breeze by on their motorbikes, enjoying the coolness of the breeze.  Now they are covered from head to toe with mismatched face masks, scarves, jackets, long pants and of course socks hastily stuffed into sandaled feet. 

Yesterday we went to the weekly Saturday morning market in Wiang Kaen, as did quite a few other people, all looking for warmer clothes.  There were piles of sweat pants, bins of felt fleece hats, lightweight gloves and jackets.  There seemed to be a shortage of what we thought would complete the supply, warm clothes for little kids.   A vendor told us they had just ordered the cool season stock, last week they hadn’t known yet that it would be so cold.  We left with plans to return to the market next week, or perhaps visit one of the other weekly markets, in order to outfit our boys in an extra layer of warm jammies. 

Several of our friends here who are more aware of other parts of the world outside Thailand have asked us about how the cool season here compares with cold season in America.  “Is it as cold as this?” they say, shivering in their multiple layers as they ward off the 56 degree cold.  “A little cooler than this” we say with a smile.  We decide that stories of a Midwestern winter would only make them shiver more.