Disconnect to Connect.

We've all seen it. Maybe we've even done it.

Two friends out to lunch, and one of them spends half the time on the phone, "catching up with a friend" while the other one quietly eats their salad wishing their friend would talk with them and not to the person on the phone.

A father has the special opportunity to take his daughter to preschool every morning, but misses out on this quality time he could be sharing with her, because he's on the phone getting a jump on work for the day.

A family out is out to dinner, but the kids are all glued to their phones, texting to their friends about the boring dinner they're having, when they could be enjoying fun conversation with their parents and siblings.

I have to give major props to DTac, a Thai Cell Phone Company who created the ad below. They have realized what many have not. That even though we may feel "Connected" to the world through our super-phones, often it is at the price of being Disconnected from those who are with us right now.





Ps. Please don't leave me disgruntled comments. I use a cell phone. I use Facebook. And hey, I even write a blog! They are all good in their proper place, and yes they do connect us with the people who are far away that we can't physically be with. But my point is that we don't want to become so focused on connecting with the rest of the world that we forget about the world that is sitting next to us, longing for our attention.

Post Offices in the Rain.

Since I've been in America I haven't really written much.... at all... and I miss it. Thus, here I am.

There are a few things in my life that have not changed...

• I still find myself mentally responding to things in Thai instead of English.
• I subconsciously convert prices from US Dollars to Bhat in my head.
• I pause when I walk indoors, till I remember that I don't have to take my shoes off.
• Mosquitoes still have power to drive me to insanity. They have corrupted me.
• I have a longing within my heart whenever I hear Thailand mentioned.

MANY things in my life have changed dramatically...

• My morning commute has gone from 2 staircases to a 30-minute drive.
• I get hankerings for Thai food, not American.
• I'm no longer teaching, but am now an Administrative Assistant (Extraordinaire).
• I blow-dry my hair on a regular basis.
• I live in a house, rather than above a house, above a school office.
• There are squirrels running around outside. Not dogs.

Change is an odd thing. So is distance. While I was in Thailand I read Jane Austen's novel Emma, to keep my English speaking skills sharp. I came across a dialogue that really stood out to me. My friend Haley can vouch for me. We were sitting in Starbucks when I read it, and I had to interrupt her from her own book to read it to her. In the story, the character of Jane Fairfax was being rebuked for her seeming foolishness of going to the post office in the rain. This is her response...

"I can easily believe that letters are very little to you, much less than to me, but it is not your being ten years older than myself which makes the difference, it is not age, but situation. You have every body dearest to you always at hand, I, probably, never shall again; and therefore till I have outlived all my affections, a post-office, I think, must always have power to draw me out, in worse weather than to-day." Jane Austen, Emma, Chapter 34.

Sometimes now, I feel a lot like Jane Fairfax. While I am marvelously content where I am in life, I feel like there are bits and pieces of me that still eagerly await news from far off places. There are are people who are dear to me not only here, but also far away. And I am doubtful that will ever change.

The past in a picture frame.

I have this photograph in a frame and it sits on my desk at work. Each day I see these faces looking back at me. Usually I just go on with what I was doing without it phasing me... But from time to time I am flooded with memories. Was it all a dream? It feels like so long ago. Were these beautiful children really once a part of my life? I know that I was there for a time, for a reason. And I know that I am home for a reason. I wouldn't trade that time, and don't think I'm meant to trade this time either. But what about these kids? I love them, and I poured my life into them. I was given the opportunity to share Jesus with them, and to watch them grow. They have now moved on to grade 2 which is new and exciting for them, but they have also run into a challenging situation. They have no permanent teacher. They have substitutes, but no one to really pour into their lives. It breaks my heart. Along with love and attention, they need consistency. If you know anyone who might in the slightest bit be interested in teaching overseas, please let me know. I want to see my babies thriving, but it is hard for them to thrive when they're getting lost in the shuffle.

The Latest.

I have even received a few comments in recent times that are in reference to my falling off the face of the earth.
I have not.
In fact, I am very much enjoying my life on the earth.

I have been in an incredible phase of transition ever since my return from Thailand over three months ago. When you really don't know exactly where you're headed in life, it's awkward to write and give the update on what you're doing because it is only confirming to yourself the fact that you don't really know the answer. But I have learned a lot during this time. God has been teaching me over and over about what it means to trust Him.
Coming back from overseas was great. I was able to spend lots of time with family, and reconnect with friends, and get back into the swing of things in the states. But all too quickly I was faced with the question of what I would be doing next, and this is the question which I didn't have a clue how to answer. Would I teach again? Where would I live? Not having an answer to these questions quickly becomes a frustration. But I continually was able to see God's leading and provision. Not all at once, but spread out enough to keep me dependent upon Him. Then as I learned to trust Him, he provided one thing at a time. First I found some fabulous roommates... Then we found a darling little townhouse to live in, in a wonderful neighborhood.... And then I found a really great job that is not only something that I can love doing, but will also pay the bills that I was beginning to see pile up. Not to mention I've had lots of other unexpected blessings and surprises to make life even more exciting and enjoyable.

And everyone said "Eww".

Life Lesson I have learned from my 1st graders # 93:

Nose-pickers are laid-back, easy-going people without a care in the world.



I promise a serious post is coming soon.

:-)

She's going to be a Christian.

The parents of one of my students were very concerned today.

Of all the books she has, the only one she wants to read is the book my co-teacher and i gave to her for Christmas about the birth of Jesus. "All the time she wants to read about the baby born in Bethlehem." She is always talking about Jesus and singing songs about Jesus.

She excitedly told my co-teacher that even though her family does not believe, that she believes in Jesus, and she now talks about going to see Jesus in Heaven.

In a sigh of defeat her mother is realizing "She's going to be a Christian."

PRAISE THE LORD!

Please pray for all of our students, of course, but especially for a little girl named Daonua. Right now she only has a glimpse of the challenging road she is embarking on, as a Christian from a Buddhist family, in a Buddhist nation.


This, my friends, is why I'm here. :-)

This is Thailand, Part 2

Yeah, we've got Starbucks here, but you can forget about Venti. Your choices are Grande, Tall, and Short.

I recently bought a pair of Louis Vuitton sunglasses for the equivalent of $6 (US). I can be assured of their authenticity because I watched the lady picking out the logo to put onto the side of the glasses.

The best Italian food around is from the local Mexican restaurant.

Forget Black.

Pink. It's the new Yellow.

The King was recently seen wearing pink. Almost overnight, people have traded in their yellow polo shirts w/ the king's emblem for pink shirts w/ the king's emblem. Have I mentioned... Thais love their King?

Rain on my parade.

My Dear Friends.....

I won't go into a whole lot of details, but I would really really appreciate your prayers. Things have become extremely challenging here. I'm tired, and I still have a long way to go.

On a light note, here a are a few pictures of a parade for the King that went by my school the other day. He is very sick, so it was kind of a "Get Well" parade. He is approaching his 80th birthday, so there should be some sweet celebrations.

This is Thailand.

In Thailand there is a HUGE amount of respect for the King. They just painted the bridge outside my window yellow, the royal color, to honor the King. You also stand for the playing of the King's anthem before movies at the movie theater.

You can't flush toilet paper.

Not being able to flush toilet paper isn't always a problem, because about half bathrooms don't have it. But they have handy dandy "butt sprayers", kind of like those dish washing sprayers that are attached to kitchen sinks.

They have toilet paper on restaurant tables instead of napkins.

"Thai Time, very flexible."

Motor bikes are family vehicles. It's not uncommon to see 4 people on one bike.

If it's raining, and you're on a motorbike, no problem. Just ride while carrying an umbrella, or put a plastic bag on your head.

You are not allowed to bring certain fruits on the subway, because they smell bad.

Dogs roam the streets like squirrels.

It no longer phases me to fall asleep knowing there is a gecko running across my ceiling (unless it's near my bed).

It's 80 degrees and people are bustin' out the sweaters, scarves, gloves, and ear-warmers. My students show up to class in winter coats.

I now find it awkward to eat with a knife and fork. If I had to choose only one utensil it would be a spoon.

In five months I have driven a car only once, and it was in the right-hand side of the car on the left-hand side of the road.

Every morning I get a fruit shake in a bag for breakfast from Rose, (aka "The fruit shake lady") who has a stand on the side of the road. Usually there is a fly that sneaks his way into the blender (I'm sure he regrets his desire for a tasty snack). I've gotten used to this.

I can get whitening soap, whitening lotion, and whitening deodorant. When I came back from the beach with a little bit of a tan, Rose said to me "Teacher not so beautiful today."

It's not considered rude to say someone is not beautiful, or to comment on people's weight.

Appearance is everything.

Appearances may be deceiving. The girl who works at 7-eleven isn't a girl. Well... Maybe she is now.

I eat meat on a stick that I buy from the "meat on a stick guy" on the street corner. I'm not really sure what kind of meat it is, but it sure is tasty!

Turtle Life.

Me (teaching a verse during devotions):
"...that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."
My student:
"Ms. Elizabeth, same same "Turtle"?

*Edit*

I found my shoes today.

In Thailand you typically don't wear your shoes inside. You take them off and leave them outside before entering a place.




It is because of this that I lost my shoes to begin with. They had been left outside my house and eventually "walked away". But it's also because of this that I found them again. I found them kicked off outside of a doorway this afternoon.

Happy Birthday Miss Elizabeth!

Sook sun wan gerd!

Yay!

So my birthday has come and gone, and I am now 24. Most people I tell this information to don't seem to believe me, but I am indeed 24. Not 17. :-)

It was a very good birthday, and I want to say thank you to everyone who made it so special for me.

So many people have asked me, What do you do in Thailand to celebrate birthdays?" You party, of course!
















My awesome fellow staff members threw me a surprise party. And yes, I WAS very surprised. I didn't have a clue! They even made me a real american-style cake, which is unlike Thai cakes that taste like kitchen sponges.


And then we had a party in my class.

Number two, the idol rule...

"And God spoke all these words:
I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt,
out of the land of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above
or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.
You shall not bow down to them or worship them;
for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God..."
Exodus 20: 1-5

I have been teaching my students about the life of Moses in Devotions for the past few weeks. We work through it slowly, because their understanding is still very limited, but we have finally reached the point where Moses and the children of Israel are in the wilderness and Moses is up on Mount Sinai receiving the commandments from God.
I didn't think much of it at first, because teaching young children about Moses and the ten commandments is a pretty common thing. But then I ran into a problem.
I am teaching about God, and the Bible, to children who have been raised in Buddhist families. It starts off not as not very difficult. Jesus Loves you, Adam and Eve ate a fruit and that was a bad thing, Noah had lots of animals... These are all fine and good and acceptable, but then, Bam! "You shall have no other gods." "You shall not made idols."
In Christian churches in the states, we usually look at these verses/commandments and try to adapt them to our culture. We change it to say that we should not let anything become more important to us than God. We say that an idol can be a relationship, a sport, an electronic device, or anything that can steal our time and attention from God. To a typical American, it would be silly to think of bowing down and worshiping a statue. But transplant yourself into the Buddhist mind. Bowing down and worshiping a statue is normal life and isn't questioned.
I was suddenly very nervous about teaching the ten commandments. How on earth do I begin??
Something inside of me was tempted to say "But they won't understand what I'm talking about anyways, so it's okay." But that would be foolish of me. I WANT them to understand. They NEED to understand. I can't be censuring the truth so as not to step on toes.
I definitely have been spending a lot of time in prayer over this one, and I would love it if you could do the same. It's a big hurdle, but this is why I'm here, right?

In other news... The Kingdom of Thailand has lifted it's ban on youtube.com.

Comfort Zone City Limits.

This afternoon was a very unique experience for me. It was awkward and uncomfortable at times, and yet every time i think back on it i can't help but to smile because of the great joy that is in my heart because of it.

I have so much joy in my heart right now.

My friends, Mink and Daniel, and I stepped a little bit out of our comfort zones today. After going to the market to buy lots of fruit, we went to visit our neighbors. There is a little shantytown just a few blocks from the school. It is mostly people who are here working in this area, and soon they will move on to other areas for other jobs. They don't have a whole lot, but they work hard and make the most of what they have. Walking into the little community was strange at first, and we knew the question on minds of most of the people who lived there was "What are these white people doing here?" With the help of Mink who speaks fluent Thai and English we were able to tell the people there that we have more than enough, and want to share with them. We told them that we were Christians, and we wanted to show to them the love that Christ has by giving to them. One man even asked us if we had any Bibles! We didn't at the time, but we plan on going back next week, and we will bring bibles with us. The people were so kind and thankful. They weren't expecting anything like this, and they could see that it wasn't just because we felt sorry for them, but that we had a genuine love for them.

I was a little nervous about going, but now i can't wait to go back. Please keep the people of Nonthaburi in your prayers. These are my neighbors. This is my town. Seeds are being sown.

Mai Kow Jai Kaa

Mai Kow Jai Kaa = I don't understand.


This past week i began tutoring a few of my students who have been needing a little extra help. They're all extremely bright kids, but good number of them struggle in the areas of speaking and listening. After class for about an hour I'll tutor a student one-on-one and help them in whatever areas they most need help. Usually we'll both be pretty tired, seeing that it's the end of a long school day, yet these times are very important. I am able to more accurately gauge what the individual student needs, rather than the class as a whole, and i'm able to work with them until i'm confident that they understand.

It's not easy for these kids.

For the majority of a school day the kids are being taught in English (by me), but for an hour or two they will have classes taught in Thai. I recently sat in on one of the Thai classes and gained some valuable understanding. I watched the American kid (Missionary kid) who doesn't speak hardly any Thai, but he is in this school because the majority of the classes are in English, and his parents want him to learn Thai. I watched him fidget in his seat, daydream, become absolutely bored, and give up on trying to listen to the Thai teacher. It made me realize that when I teach, that is what it is like for ALL of the students in my class. It can be easy for me to get frustrated because they don't listen to me, forgetting that they have a really difficult time understanding me, and as a result it is easy to tune me out. I've seen it in my American student, and i've seen it in myself as it is easy for me to tune out any Thai that i hear spoken.

I'm trying to learn more of the Thai language. I've picked up a little...

The main reason that I am in Thailand is not to teach. The main reason is to share with people the love of God. Actions go a little ways... but to most of the Thai people i'm just another American tourist with a fat wallet. I need words to get past that. I've been writing everything down that i learn, and listening to stuff on CD and getting lots of pointers from the Thai teachers here, from people from the church, and from Rose, the fruit shake lady.

It's not easy to learn this language. In fact, with all of the tones it's very difficult. But it's worth it.

Street Signs

Everywhere I go, I find myself becoming fascinated with street signs.
In the mountains you have signs that say things like "Watch for falling rocks" or your typical deer crossing signs.
In cities it is common to see signs that warn against becoming the cause of gridlock (don't block the box!).
While living not too far from a prison I would often drive past a pedestrian crossing sign on which someone had drawn a ball & chain onto the crossing man's leg.
I have seen deer, bear, duck, cow, and chicken crossing signs. But nothing comes close to being as cool as the signs in Thailand.
Caution: Elephant X-ing.

And signs like this are needed! I can look out of my bedroom window at times and there amidst the buses and
taxis will be a little Thai man riding on a big elephant. It's
not so much a mode of transportation, but more of a way to make money off of the foreigners by making them pay to feed the elephant or to get a picture with it, but whatever it's reason for being there it is there nonetheless, and it never ceases to bring a smile to my face.

Wai Kru

Happy Wai Kru!
In American terms, "Wai Kru" is essentially a Teacher Appreciation Day. A very happy day in the life of Teacher. In the states, days like this tend to be just another holiday that comes with our calendar that we easily overlook, like Arbor day, and Secretaries day, or the birthday of a Queen of some country we've never heard of. But in Thailand, Wai Kru isn't just another forgotten holiday. It was actually a very exciting day full of surprises and ceremony.
At 1:00 all of the students and teachers at the school met together in one big room with a stage at one end. As a teacher, i was told to go sit in one of the chairs that had been set up on the stage. They sang songs and people spoke, but i couldn't understand a word of it because it was all in Thai. But then, all of my students came up to me bringing flowers and waiing me. You've seen my picture of Waiing with Ronald McDonald. The wai is a symbol of respect involving two elements. How high you hold your hands, and how low you bow. To a friend or coworker, for example, i would hold my hands at my chest and lean slightly forward. For someone like my boss i would want to give more respect, so i would do the same but hold my hands at about my chin or mouth. My children all came up to me with their gifts of flowers, had their hands up to their foreheads, and knees and elbows on the ground at my feet. Can I express to you how awkward this was? I really didn't know how i should respond at all, but i was told just to receive the flowers and to smile.
After the ceremony it was back to classes as usual. And that is when something really struck me. Trying to get my 23 first graders back to the room, trying to get them to listen to me, trying to get them to do what i was asking... it wasn't easy at all. And I honestly had to wonder if all the honor and respect they had just given me was real. Was it something they were doing because they truly appreciated me and wanted to do something nice, or was it simply because this is what they were told to do for sake of tradition? Please don't write back with "Elizabeth, you're a great teacher" comments, because that's really not the point of this post at all. My point is to remark about how similar we can so often be to this. Like the people in Isaiah 29, who so faithfully followed tradition in worshiping God. In verse 13 it says, "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men." They said all the right things, and did all the right things, but their hearts were far from being in the right places. Just like to me, when all the waiing and flowers meant nothing to me when i saw that my kids really didn't know what they were doing or why they were doing it, it is the same with God. Our worship of Him means nothing if it is not an overflowing of the desire of our heart to please God.

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

It appears that Monsoon season has begun in the Kingdom of Thailand.

What I can't figure out is why, in a place with a monsoon season, is it so hard to find rain boots?

Our roof was leaking last night. It was great excitement. :-)

First Week

I have officially made it through my first week as a first grade teacher in Thailand!

Not a whole lot has changed from my first day... there are still many challenges that are mainly related with the language barrier. It is difficult to keep the attention of the children because if they don't have a good grasp on the words that I'm speaking, it's easy for them to tune me out all together. My other challenge is trying to teach students that are at all ends of the spectrum in regards to their learning levels. I have students that are eager to learn and are leaps and bounds over the lessons that I have planned for them (not to mention the one American missionary kid in my class who gets bored with learning a language he already knows), while there are others that don't know a single word of English who i have to physically put a pencil in their hand and help them to write one letter of the alphabet. Trying to appropriately challenge all of my students is keeping me on my toes.

Here is an interesting thing that I have learned about Thai school systems. Grades and assessments are highly stressed, and I will even need to give homework and tests to my 1st graders. Yet at the same time, failure is such a great shame. So basically, even if my kids receive all F's on their tests and assignments, they will all go on to the 2nd grade next year. Many of the kids are not ready for the 1st grade, but nonetheless they are here, and so I have my work cut out for me.

Below are some pictures of my classroom!







My kids are cute all right. A handful, but cute. :-)

When I'm not teaching, and when I'm not preparing lesson plans (which doesn't leave a whole lot of time), I have been finding new ways to enjoy myself. I can't just hop into my little Honda that i have in the states, and go out driving, but i can always hail a taxi and hope that the driver understands English or my very broken Thai. One of the highlights of my week honestly was going to church.

Last night (Saturday night) I attended a church that i had not been to yet. It's called New Song, and after a long taxi ride with 5 passengers plus the driver piled into one little car, while stuck in traffic, we finally got out on the side of the road and decided to walk the rest of the way. It was raining, but i had my umbrella, so all was well. We walked all through the different allies of Bangkok, following our fearless leader, Nookie, a high school student from Kansas who is half Thai and can speak the language!



We finally came to a flight of very steep stairs nestled in between a row of shops that had closed for the day. At the top of the stairs was such a beautiful sight. There was a room filled mostly with people my age, American and Thai, singing praises to God. I stood there in awe... There, I could hear familiar songs of praise and worship to my Father, sung in both English and in Thai. I was truly beautiful. The fellowship and encouragement with other believers was exactly what i have been needing, and i cannot begin to express the joy i had in being able to sing to my God with other believers, in many different languages.

After church we were hungry... So we went to McDonald's! Haha, yeah, we did. And in Thailand, Ronald McDonald knows how to properly Wai (a polite greeting, involving placing your hands together and bowing slightly. Demonstrated below).



And of course I have to mention... I was able to enjoy one of my most favorite things that I have been wanting ever since the last time I was in Thailand. Do you know how at McDonald's in the States, you can get little apple pies? In Thailand, you can get Pineapple pies! And they're sooooo good.