God is the Father of Compassion2 Corinthians 1:3

By Cynthia Ebers

ThailandWork and Witness 2010

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Dedication:

Dedicated in loving memory of Emma Applegatewho loved God, loved people,

and loved world missions.

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Introduction

On the front of this book is a picture of a Thai boy with a bucket on his head. His face represents the inter-cultural experience you will have while meeting, and getting to know, God's people in another country. The bucket represents the common goal and hard work of any Work and Witness project. His youth represents the future of God's church around the world.

I love Work and Witness. The experiences I have had while participating in Work and Witness have greatly enriched my life. Not everyone is called to be a team member, but everyone can be a part of Work and Witness through their prayers and financial support. I have written this book to share the experience with those who God has called to be “send-ers”, and to encourage those who God may be calling to be “go-ers”.

Enjoy,Cindi Ebers

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God is the Father of Compassion

Prelude

My dear Dorothy,

You remind me of my grandmother in so many ways. Gentle and soft-spoken, small in stature, yet enormous in compassion. How long have we been friends? Fifteen years? More? Friendship is a marvelous gift, a mysterious one that can transcend age, gender, time or proximity. I think it is our mutual love of missions that has sealed our friendship.

Once again I am reminded of my grandmother, Maggie. People often thought that was her nickname for Margaret, but no, her name was just Maggie. She too had a heart for people and a mission minded friend named Philoma.

Maggie and Philoma attended church together as young girls. A missionary from China visited their church while home on leave. They were captivated by his tales of that exotic culture. Their tender hearts ached with the desire to help the orphan children in his stories. Immediately they began to dream, then to plan. They would finish school and become missionaries to China.

Plans have a way of changing sometimes. Maggie's plans changed when she fell in love. Then a wife, soon a mother, her life took a different path. Not so different maybe. She ministered to her own children and the people in her community. She had longed to be a missionary to China, but was instead assigned by God to be one at home.

She was a lovely person, and so kind. I never heard her complain or say a critical word about anyone. She had the gift of hospitality and everyone knew they were welcome in her home.

Philoma was called to China. On the wall of my office hangs a letter from Philoma to Maggie. My mother found the letter after her mother had passed away. She framed it on oriental fabric with a small photo of Maggie. The letter is typed on fading parchment and is dated June 17th, 1922.

Philoma opens the letter with the touching sentiment “I have not forgotten you”. It tells of her work, the people and their customs, and of her struggle to learn the complicated language. As you can imagine, this letter is quite a treasure for me, the mission minded granddaughter of Maggie. And, it is the inspiration for my letter to you.

Nearly a century ago, two friends parted. One went to the mission field in China. One stayed home. Just like us, one goes and one stays. I have learned from my treasure that though you stay home, you can still have the experience if I will but share it with you. And so, dear Dorothy, ...I have not forgotten you....

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Chapter OneThe Call

January 18, 2010

Dear Dorothy,

We are on our way. I didn't even know that I wanted to go to Thailand. I have a long list of destinations that I yearn to visit, but Thailand had not occurred to me.

I think now of the afternoon last September when you called with your proposal. You said there was a Kansas district Work and Witness team scheduled to go to Thailand in January “There is scholarship money from Emma Applegate's memorial to help with the cost.”, you said.“Would you and David be interested in going?” Oh yes, we are always interested in going.

I contacted the team leader, Eddie Fowler, through his email. He happily allowed us to join the team. Eddie filled us in on some of the details. The project for Mission Thailand was to be construction on the church at Hueyleuk. David is always a valuable contributer to a construction team. I wondered what skills I would have to offer, though every team needs a nurse, and a go-fer!Soon after our acceptance on to the team, God began encouraging me to think about Bible School for the children. Memories of Bible School in Panama with my sister, Connie, and Chris Seager kept coming back to me. The Holy Spirit? I felt God was asking me to prepare Bible School, or at least He was allowing me to, since I am always the greatest benefactor.

I love a goal, and thrive on a deadline! With answers to prayers, and divine inspiration, I chose lessons for a 3 day Bible School. Eddie's wife Ruth emailed me to ask if I could use flannel graph figures. They were exactly what I had planned for telling the Bible stories! I told her which figures I would need and she sent them to me immediately. Already cut out, with flannel attached, what a blessing!

I quickly ordered crafts, sticker pages, treats, and games to complete the plans. They arrived in two large boxes and I assured myself that any sacrifice I might have to make in packing would be worth it for the children.

Our Sending ServiceThe Sunday services before our departure focused on the Holy Spirit. Both Pastors were preaching a series on how to infuse God into our lives. The first week Pastor Scott talked about God, the second week Pastor Greg talked about Jesus, and for this third sermon, Pastor Scott brought the message about the Holy Spirit.

It was my week to sing on the Praise Team. Cheryl had selected a song about the Holy Spirit “Holy Spirit, Reign Down” to introduce to the congregation. It was a moving service. We prayed for the poor people of Haiti who had just experienced a devastating earthquake. We prayed for the Thailand project. People prayed for discernment from the Holy Spirit in their own lives. You stood beside me during the “sending” prayer. I was grateful to you for sending, and sensed you were grateful to me for going.

I remember kneeling later at the alter by Don and Terry Berry. Don had just lost his father. Terry is a powerful interceder and I found comfort in her prayers.

Just before the sermon, Peggy and Richard sang “Sweet Hour of Prayer”. I did not know at the

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time that both these songs, “Sweet Hour of Prayer” and “Holy Spirit, Reign Down” would be encouraging me in the following hours.

I have doing more thinking about the Holy Spirit. My heart and mind are more comfortable with God the Father, and Jesus the Son. I guess I don't have an image of the Holy Spirit to cling to. I have decided that, on this trip, I will make a conscious effort to watch for, and recognize the moving of the Holy Spirit.

I am grateful to you and the missionary council for preparing a place and a meal for our team's first meeting. It was wonderful and started us off as a team, more like a family really, and that is so important for the success of the mission.

We got up early Monday morning, too excited to sleep. As we finished our final packing, I heard David humming “Sweet Hour of Prayer” and knew he was communing with God for our mission and travel mercies. It made me smile to hear him. It is a blessing to have a husband who shares my love of missions and willingness to risk the unknown.

We had loaded the baggage in the Jeep the night before so just added a few things to the carry-ons. We require going through our “departure checklist” more than once now that we are older and more forgetful.

The short trip to Denver was uneventful. It is always nice to see the Rockie Mountains. They stand, snow-covered, just past the airport. The jet to Denver is a small, commuter jet, just 4 seats across. I sat with a young woman who turned out to be a nurse also. We nurses have a “sisterhood” so we had an instant connection and a pleasant conversation.

In Denver, we changed to a larger plane and started the next leg of our journey to Seattle. Just before the Seattle airport, the Cascade mountain range comes into view. We were close enough to see the ski trails down below, and were treated with an awesome view of Mt. Rainier, the largest peak in the Cascades.

We had 3 hours to wait in Seattle before boarding for Tokyo. It was a nice break, with time to walk around and have a leisurely lunch. Opportunities like this give the team members a chance to get to know each other. A popular topic of conversation is previous Work and Witness trips. Most of our team members have been a part of at least one previous mission, and many have been on several to locations all over the world. It is fun to hear their stories, and share our own. We were encouraged by work that has been accomplished and relationships that have been made.

We boarded a Boeing 777 to Tokyo. It was not a completely full flight, so we were thrilled about being able to shuffle into seats we found most comfortable. Brian, a 6 foot 7 inch farmer from western Kansas, got to move to a row with more leg room. David and I got to trade and sit together. Curtis, just across the isle from me, had an empty seat next to him, which is always nice.

Past Curtis and the empty seat, 3 Army soldiers sat together on their way to Tokyo for leave. The row ahead of them held another soldier with his family, and across the other isle sat two more soldiers. The airlines frequently acknowledge the military traveling on board and we all joined in agreement when the Flight Attendant thanks them for their service.

About an hour into the flight, the 3 soldiers in our row began to get boisterous. They had been drinking, though not excessively. One man in particular got loud and vulgar. The male Flight Attendant had a conversation with them about keeping their volume down and cleaning up their language out of respect for the other passengers. His speech helped, for a short time.

Soon, the loud one resumed his swearing. He dumped his lunch on the floor, broke a monitor in the seat back in front of him, things began to escalate.

The soldier in front of them had his family moved forward. Then he came back and talked to the three in our row. They let him talk, and he shook hands with them before sitting down in front of them again. I remembered thinking that the Holy Spirit must get a lot accomplished with the help of

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diplomatic people. Things were fine for a while. It had already been a long day and I had just dozed off when the

commotion began. I looked over to see the loud one had progressed to violence. What happened next is hard to describe. The aggressive soldier was crazed, and focused his

rage on one of his buddies, who had apparently become “the enemy” to him. Soon all of the military men on board were at the scene. The flight attendants and other

passengers allowed these men to handle the situation. It went on for a long time. He struck out repeated at his perceived enemy, but the young man never retaliated. He swung at the others, but they never reacted violently to him either. They talked to him, and stood between him and the other passengers. Eventually they were able to get him to the back of the plane. There, they hand cuffed him and tied him up. After a while, his profanity stopped and he slept.

Let me digress. Much of what it takes to be a good traveler is your ability to to endure inconvenience. Crowded spaces, lines to the bathroom, crying babies, these are all inconvenient. But a violent, out of control person on board a plane that is 35,000 feet in the air is something else. It's a potential for disaster and it is terrifying.

While it was happening, I wondered how many people would end up hurt before it was over. Just as Pastor Scott described in his sermon on Sunday, I found myself in a situation where I was without words, even for prayer. Only the words to our song “Holy Spirit Reign Down” came to me. I sang it over and over to myself, and hoped God would understand it to be my request for help.

Though we were well on our way to Tokyo, the authorities decided to reroute us back to Anchorage for everyone's safety, and so the soldier could be dealt with on American soil. The man woke up several minutes before we landed and resumed his swearing, making the end of the flight uncomfortable. Soon we landed in a foggy, snow-covered Anchorage.

Once we had landed, the local authorities came on board. They eventually removed the soldier in handcuffs, and took statements from the other military men. He was calm by this time, and quiet. His buddies wore the bumps and bruises of the ordeal, but no one else was injured. We didn't know if this was the result of alcohol, drugs, post-traumatic stress, or a combination of these. I was thankful it ended as well as it had, and will leave the judgment to God and those who understand what happened. I do know that with our team on board, the man had a great deal of prayer support. He had terrified all of us on board that plane, but it saddened everyone greatly to think he might be a walking casualty of the war.

Such an ordeal is glaring proof of how much we need the Lord. We all suffer the consequences of our own decisions and mistakes. And, because no man is an island, we also suffer from the decisions and consequences of others.

May I confess to you Dorothy, that for a short while, long enough to think a few thoughts, I wanted to go home.

Eventually we were refueled, de-iced,and taking off with a new course for Tokyo. Everyone was tired and emotionally spent. I refused to allow myself to fret over how tired those in the cockpit must be, and just gave the rest of the trip to God.

The employees of United Airlines in Tokyo took good care of us. We had missed out flight to Bangkok. The airline arranged for us to spend the night in a very nice hotel in Tokyo called the Tokyu Excel. We were given meal tickets and new plane tickets to Bangkok on Thai airlines for the morning.

The room was nice, though best suited for people of Japanese stature. The furniture was smaller and lower to the ground than we are used to. The restroom reminded me of the facilities in my parents camper. But, the sheets were clean and the water was hot. I am an experienced enough traveler to know that these are luxuries that should never be wasted.

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Chapter TwoSecond Beginning

In the morning, we were treated to a wonderful breakfast buffet. Fresh fruit, breads of all kinds, scrambled eggs and bacon, and waffles! There was another table of Thai breakfast regulars: rice, fish, and stir fried vegetables. The tastes of our cultural preferences showed up on our plates, and by our choice of utensils. Spoons and forks for us, chopsticks for them.

While we were eating, David pointed out a small Japanese girl. She was 2 or 3 years old and absolutely adorable. She was sitting up to the table in a booster seat. In her right hand she held a pair of “trainer” chopsticks. They were connected at the top and had rings for her baby fingers on the back. She was making a valiant effort to eat her noodles with these trainers. We watched her more than we should have, but she was so precious, we just couldn't resist. Even the adults amaze me with their ability to pick up anything with chopsticks. I think I will look into ordering myself some “trainer” chopsticks when we get home!

David noticed a Japanese garden through the window of the restaurant. After we finished eating we went to our room and got the camera. The garden was beside the Hotel. January is winter in Japan also. It was cold outside, but we wanted to walk on the narrow bridge. Most of the trees were still green, though some were bare. There was a waterfall landscaped into the garden, but the water was not running. Still, it was peaceful to have this haven of nature next to all the concrete buildings.

The bus took us to the airport. With the trials of the previous day behind us, we resumed our excitement for the mission. Our prayer for the new day: luggage.

When short term missionaries start sharing stories, a luggage “ordeal” always comes up. David and I have one. We spent the first several days of our mission to Jamaica without any luggage. From these experiences we have learned to be good packers.

If you have four bags to take, you spread a little of each category (clothes, tools, first aid supplies) into each of the bags. That way, if one bag does not arrive, you still have some of what you need in the others. This was my philosophy with the Bible School supplies, though I prayed fervently that all of them would make it on our journey half way around the world.

We flew into Bangkok on Thai airlines. I got my first window seat. Leaving Japan, the plane headed out to sea, then circled around toward the mountains. The captain pointed out Mt. Fuji, the highest peak in Japan, and a source of great pride for the Japanese people.

It takes 6 hours to fly from Tokyo to Bangkok, the capitol of Thailand. One of my favorite things about international air travel is “the map”. Whether you have a private screen on the seat in front of you, or a shared screen near the ceiling, you will get to see the map of the plane's location. I love this. It showed us our location as we passed over China, Viet Nam, and Cambodia. “The map” is how we first found out we were changing our course to Anchorage on the previous day. It was a wonderful geography lesson to watch as we passed by Hong Kong, Singapore, Phnom Pehn....

Bangkok is a city of twelve million people. Can you imagine? It is on the coastal shore off of the Gulf of Thailand and is Thailand's capital city.

There is always a line at customs. It is best to just be patient and smile a lot. I found it comforting to be in the company of a group of people who are such seasoned travelers. Everyone made it through immigration without difficulty. We proceeded to the baggage claim area. I could feel the prayers going up for our luggage. We cheered openly as we located each bag full of tools for the work, supplies for the Bible School, our clothes, and not least importantly, our snacks! Never underestimate the importance of a good snack. When you travel to a place where the menu is exotic, a peanut butter cracker or a candy bar can go a long way in lifting your spirits.

Samuel Yangmi, a full time missionary for the Nazarene church was there to meet us and would

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serve as our guide, translator, and friend for the entire mission. His life is a fascinating story. He was born in a Lisu tribe in Burma. Fleeing communism, his parents had to leave him with the Morse family who were missionaries in Burma. The missionaries had an adopted daughter, who then adopted Sam. The family spent four years hiding in the juggle of Burma, and eventually were able to walk out. After being educated in the US, Sam returned to Southeast Asia to minister to the people there. His mother arranged for him to marry a local Lahu girl named Lumae. They have been married 30 years and serve together on the mission field.

The Yangmis served as independent missionaries, then later joined the Nazarene church. He has been a part of every Work and Witness team to Thailand, and is now working in Burma and Southeast China as well.

We boarded two very nice minivans and headed through Bangkok to the train station. Out the window we could see the high rises and construction of a thriving metropolis. Apartment buildings of all colors stand side by side. Some were new and well kept, but most were old and worn. Many of them had enormous satellite dishes attached to the railings of small, run down balconies.

The streets of Bangkok are crowded with trucks, vans, small cars, and motorcycles. Many, many, motorcycles. The lack of helmets on the drivers, and passengers alike, made me uneasy as they swerved in and out of traffic. Though I cannot read Thai, the billboards in Bangkok tell the story of a modern city. Weight-loss clinics, and shiny new cars to buy.

I catch glimpses of the ornate Buddhist Temples, called Wats, that are tucked into neighborhoods. They come in all shapes and sizes, and always have a tall fence surrounding them. They are very elaborate in their decorations and colorful. Orange and gold seem to be the favorite colors for Wats.

We had a good tour of the city on our way to the train station. The driver was an accommodating impromptu “tour guide”. The train station is a hub of the city, and very crowded. As we entered that sea of humanity, there were bright spots of beautiful flower gardens. They were a welcome relief to the bland surroundings. The first few trains that I saw were city commuter trains. They had only an occasional pane of glass remaining in the windows, and only random padding left in the plastic seats. Knowing our trip to Chiang Mai would take 12 or more hours, a small wave of dread began stirring in me. Thankfully, the sleeper cars were considerably nicer.

We loaded our luggage inside and stowed the bags under the benches. Everyone selected their compartments. Each compartment consisted of two bench seats that faced each other, and a table stowed in the floor that could be placed between the benches for dinner. There was a bunk, folded up and strapped to stay in place, located above the window. The porter would come around at dinnertime and assemble the tables in each compartment.

Just before the train departed, a whistle sounded six o'clock and was followed by the National anthem. All of the Thai people stood immediately and stood perfectly still until it was over. I have always admired patriotism.

We had placed our dinner orders earlier with the assurance they would be ready at 7:00. True to his word, the porter arrived at 7:00 with a tray full of cellophane wrapped plastic plates. He stacked them on the first table and promised to come back in a few minutes.

While waiting for his return, we watched the city of Bangkok go by our window. Beyond the glistening high rises of downtown, are the slums of this over populated city. In stark contrast to the sleek architecture and shining glass of the new high rises, are the crowded and dilapidated habitats of the poorest of the poor. Deteriorating wood walls and rusting tin roofs struggle to provide one more day's shelter for their inhabitants. They cook outside on open fires just a few feet from their kindling homes. Trash is everywhere. Tossed carelessly by the road, and in the ditches, and under the bridges, without a thought of the problems that will arise from it. The only relief comes from the bright colored

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clothing hanging here and there to dry in the sun. Eventually the porter returned and placed a plate in front of me, but my appetite was gone. Later

he returned to make the bunks. The top bunk is lowered. It's cushion is covered with a clean white sheet, and a turquoise blue curtain is hung on a rod in front of the suspended bed. The curtain looked new and the compartment number was embroidered in bright orange on its front. The Thai people seem to enjoy adding bright color to their surroundings. The train was so dreary that I enjoyed the colorful curtain as well.

David took the top bunk. Inside my lower bunk compartment I felt like a child in the perfect fort. It was long enough for someone 5 foot 6 inches to stretch out completely, and tall enough to sit up without bumping your head if you slouched a little. I could pull the window curtains back see the stations as we arrived at one after another all night long. The stations were mostly bare. They had a row of wooden seats, and always a Thai flag.

The Thai flag is red, white, and blue, like ours. The pattern is horizontal stripes: one narrow red, one narrow white, one wide blue, one narrow white, and one narrow red. Every building in Thailand has a flag, and an alter to their King in a prominent place. The people keep fresh flowers and incense at the alter to honor him. King Bhumibol Adulyadej is Thailand's longest reigning king, and the world's longest serving current Head of State.

After passing a dimly lit station, we would return to travel through the darkness of the countryside. Inside my “fort” I kept my most valuable belongings with me. We had been encouraged by Samuel to do so. There was a small reading light at the head of the bed that worked by a toggle switch. I was thankful for the light, and spent some of the hours I was unable to sleep continuing my letter to you.

“Jet lag” is a very real phenomena. When you travel half way around the world, crossing more than 20 time lines, your body is confused for a while about when is day and when is night. This does not distress me, I simply choose to sleep when I can, and entertain myself with reading or writing when I cannot.

One hour before the train was to arrive at Chiang Mai, the porter came through to awaken us. As people began to stir, he went to the task of remaking the compartments into benches and tables. We had something recognizable for breakfast, scrambled eggs and toast! Our team was met at the station by Samuel and his wife, Lumae. She is a lovely Lahu woman who is kind and smiles a lot. They would soon be celebrating their 31 anniversary. Their marriage was arranged and they did not even speak the same language at first. She spoke Lahu. He spoke Lisu and English. Samuel studied to learn 400 Lahu words before the wedding. Eventually, they both learned Thai, and she learned English. He jokes that they had only 30% communication when they were wed, and now, 30 years later, they are up to 60%. Their conversations to each other now are a mix of all the languages, sometimes in the same sentence.

It took one minivan and two open-air taxis to transport 14 Americans, and 24 pieces of luggage. The streets of Chiang Mai, a city of over 2 million, were crowded with people and congested with traffic. Cars and motorcycles and pedestrians everywhere, with stoplights and white lines on the roads serving only as “suggestions”. Chiang Mai means “New City” and is the northern capitol of Thailand. We proceeded to our hotel, the Tapae Palace. It was a very comfortable hotel with clean rooms and running water, most of the time. Samuel allowed a few minutes to settle in, then gathered us together for a informational meeting.

Chapter ThreePlan B

With the enormous amount of miles traveled and time lines crossed, it was now Wednesday. Samuel

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began by introducing us to the Thai greetings customs. There are 3 ways to greet. You choose the greeting that displays the amount of respect due it's recipient. It begins by putting your hands together, like the way we were taught to pray when we were children. The location of your hands indicates the level of respect. For children, the hands go just below the chin. For persons of equal status, the hands go at the level of your nose, and for persons of authority, the hands go at the level of your forehead. There is a slight bow with every greeting, and an additional lowering of the head with the most respectful greeting. Along with the hands and bow, men say “sawatdee crop” though it sounds like “sa-de-cop”. Women say “sawatdee ka”, which sounds more like “sa-de-ka”.

Thailand is made up of the Thai race, as well as the tribal peoples. Samuel was of the Lisu tribe. Lamae was of the Lahu tribe. The government considers the northern tribal people nomads and most are not citizens.

Currency in Thailand is the Baht. The currency exchange rate was currently 32 Baht for 1 US dollar. After a few more comments about how to exchange money, and where to find good places to eat, Samuel became more solemn. It was apparent that he was struggling to tell us something important, that we might not want to hear.

The planning for our Work and Witness mission had taken two years. The final arrangements, like non-refundable airline tickets, were made in October. I think he hoped we would remember these details when he made his next announcement.

In the tribal villages of Thailand, the New Year is an important and spiritual time of celebration. All work ceases and the people enjoy the festivities for 10 days. However, the New Year is not a set date. It occurs sometime in January, whenever the tribal leaders, the Head Man and the Medicine Man, decide that the celebration will take place. They use the moon, harvest, and other tribal traditions to make this determination.

Our project was to take place in Hueyleuk, several hours north of Chiang Mai. The Head Man in Hueyleuk was a Christian and member of the Nazarene congregation. The Medicine Man was not a Christian. As a whole, Thailand is 94% Buddhist and less then 1% Christian. The village of Hueyleuk is 40% Christian and 60% Buddhist. The Medicine Man has a lot of authority and power over what takes place in the village. He is the “majority leader”, if you will. Just two weeks before we arrived, the Medicine Man announced that the 10 day New Year celebration would take place January 19-29, the exact dates of our work project. They believed that to disobey the tradition and work during the celebration would bring bad luck to the village for one year. It was suggested that he picked these dates on purpose to disrupt our plans. Who knows what is in the hearts of man? Only God.

Together the Head Man, Samuel, and Pastor Jawsha began working on a compromise. If we showed disrespect for their traditions and customs and worked anyway, our Christian brothers and sisters would pay the price. Every bad event for a year would be blamed on them and their God. The men who God had ordained to leadership began the work of goodwill ambassadors. They already had meetings arranged and were making plans to help resolve our dilemma. Samuel even remarked that there may be the purchase of a pig involved. We were given our first assignment as a team; pray.

Webster defines diplomacy as “skill in managing negotiations, handling people, so that there is little or no ill will.” For the second time on our trip, diplomacy was what was needed. Samuel said they were bargaining with the Medicine Man to try and reach an agreement. Their plan, and our hope, was that the village Christians would obey the Buddhist's cease of work for the entire 10 days, and the team would remain in Chiang Mai until the 24th and then be allowed to go to the village to work for the last 5 days.

This news was discouraging for us. Our travel to Thailand had been long, and we were ready to work. Typically, a Work and Witness team works for 5 days, takes a recreation day on Saturday, attends church with the local congregation on Sunday, then works for another 4 to 4 ½ days before heading for

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home. While the negotiations commenced, Sam said he had arranged for us to take our recreation time at the beginning. This seemed logical to everyone.

Then, in a very elegant and articulate speech, Samuel reminded us that much of the “work” provided by a team comes in the form of our inter-cultural relationships. He implored us to make connections with the people and said we may not know for years what will come from these relationships. As an example, he talked about a young woman who came to Thailand with a short-term mission, then later returned to work long-term at the children's home. Since we had more time in Chiang Mai, he had added a visit to the Maetang Children's Home into our new schedule, which excited me.

The Maetang Children's Home is part of the child sponsorship program of Nazarene Compassionate Ministries. David and I had sponsored a boy from that home, Somboon, for 14 years. We started sponsoring him when he was 5 years old and continued until he left the home at 19 years of age. I was thrilled to find out we would get to see the facility. I mentioned our sponsored child to Samuel and he told me that he remembered Somboon. He said that while he was recently in Chiang Rai on business, a young man in a shirt and tie came up to him. It was Somboon and he was working as a tour guide in Chiang Rai. He said he was a fine looking young man. On the outside I smiled and told Samuel how pleased we were to hear that. On the inside I wept a mother's tears of joy that, through the children's home, our “son” had been educated and was now making a nice life for himself. I have never seen Somboon, and probably never will, but I am proud of him.

That night, as I listened to David's soft snoring, and prayed for my family back home, I was reminded of Samuel's words. I had been stirred by his emphatic plea for us to connect. I asked God to allow me to witness some of these connections as the Holy Spirit moved between villagers and team members.

Chapter FourExperiencing Chiang Mai

While we waited for permission to enter the village and begin our work, we delved into the exotic culture of Chiang Mai. On Thursday evening, we visited the Old Chiang Mai Cultural Center to partake of their world famous Khantoke dinner.

The center is a lovely facility made up of several buildings along an outdoor path. The path is lit up with hanging lanterns. Just inside the entrance is a beautiful fountain. It's flowing water sounded peaceful in the night air. Next to the path, there are small gardens with colorful and delicate looking flowers. Sitting on a small square platform, there was a petite Thai woman in an elaborate gold costume and dramatic make-up. She was playing a small cello of some sort, with a bow. David and I remembered seeing a street musician in Vancouver last summer who was playing a similar instrument. It only had 3 strings, but made rich, haunting music.

The feast takes place in an open roof theater. You have to check your shoes (two pairs together) before you can enter the red carpeted dining area. In our stocking feet, we were ushered to one of the many lounging areas on the thin red carpet. You sit on the floor and have triangle shaped cushions to recline against. The small framed Thai people make this look easy, and comfortable. But those of us who are unaccustomed to sitting on the floor did a lot of shifting and moaning. Some of our team members are large men, who found it easier to sit at the tables placed around the perimeter of the floor seating. (All of the tables filled up.)

The meal begins with an appetizer of fried bananas and fruit drinks. I am always thankful when pineapple juice is an option. Next they bring small woven baskets with lids that contain “sticky rice” which you ball up with your fingers and dip into the sauces of the main dishes. They also brought

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bowls of white rice. Khantoke is actually the name of the small, round table that will hold the main courses. At the cultural center, the tables are red. They are placed in the center of four people so that the main courses can be shared. On the table are small bowls containing fried chicken, Burnese pork curry, fried cabbage, pork tomato-chili paste (hot) with fried pork skin to dip in the paste, fresh cucumbers and “rice crispies”. I loved the rice crispies, which were made from a puffed crispy rice and sweet glaze made of honey, I think. Every time a bowl is emptied, a young Thai server is there to refill it. When everyone has eaten their fill, the show begins.

Northern Thai classical dances are preformed in the dining theater. The first is the “Fingernail Dance”. The graceful dancers wear exquisite silk kimonos, heavy, dramatic make-up, and long, curled back fingernail tip “nails”. They perform this dance on special occasions, like for honored guests. The Thai people are very proud of this dance. Signs with these images can be found around Thailand. They continue with other traditional dances like the “Silk-Reeling Dance” and the “Magic Fowl Dance”. A solitary man performs the “Sword Dance”, and some children come out to do a stepping dance over bamboo poles that are tapped on the floor.

After the program in the dining theater, we collected our shoes and followed the path through the night air to a roofed amphitheater. Along the way there were booths where tribal villagers sold their wares. Dolls, scarves, and wooden frogs that made muffled croaks when you rubbed the wooden stick along it's carved spine, were frequent findings.

Inside the amphitheater, the hill tribe people performed native folk dances. Some tribes had Tibetan influence, others migrated from southern China. They were not the elaborate, technical dances of the professional dancers at the previous theater, but wore their authentic tribal costumes and demonstrated their love of the traditions of their people. Most of the dances had only a few steps that were repeated. They reminded me of visiting a Native American Pow Wow back in Kansas.

On Friday morning we traveled north out of Chiang Mai to the Maetamann Elephant Camp and Rafting retreat. We arrived right on time to see the elephant performance. Just before it began, the trainers rode the elephants down to the river for a bath. The elephants laid down in the water while the trainers splashed water over them and rubbed them down. I have not been around many elephants, but it was apparent that the elephants were enjoying themselves. Many people gathered on the banks to watch this spectacle. One trainer brought his elephant close to the crowd and gave him the command to spray water. This too, the elephant seemed to enjoy as several members of the audience shrieked from surprise.

The elephants and their trainers put on an enjoyable performance. They demonstrated the amazing abilities of these enormous animals by playing basketball and soccer, stacking logs, and even painting pictures. The “elephant art” is for sale in the gifts shops near the entrance. You can buy bananas and sugar cane in bunches to reward the elephants. I could not resist the idea of feeding an elephant so bought a bunch and shared it with some of the others.

One of the larger elephants seemed to know instantly that I was an easy mark with a bunch of treats. He came close and reached his trunk towards me. This caused me to pull back in surprise, but he did not retreat. Instead he wrapped my hand with his trunk and soon had my whole bunch. This drew laughter and encouraging comments from my fellow team members. Especially David and Eldred, who I noted were not brave enough to hand feed an elephant themselves.

The elephants seemed to be enjoying performing as well as the snacks from the generous crowd. They would tap their trunk on the ground to encourage the crowd to clap. After the demonstration, we made our way to the platforms to take a ride. On the way, Samuel told us that because of the good treatment at this camp, and others like it, the Asian elephant is finally increasing in numbers.

There were various sizes of elephants. Some of our men waited to ride the larger animals, while

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David and I ended up on a smaller one. David noticed that the Asian elephants were smaller in stature and had much smaller ears than the African elephants we had seen on safari in Kenya. Interesting.

Both our elephant and his trainer appeared to very “mature”. (old) The trainer sits on the neck of the elephant. Strapped to it's back there is a wide wicker basket seat. It is big enough to hold 2 large people or 3 small ones. There is a pile of wool blankets under the basket so it does not sit directly on the elephant.

When the riders get into the seat they snap a metal safety bar in front of you. It reminded me of the bar on the old wooden roller coaster at Joyland in Wichita. The trainer has you sit so that the weight is evenly distributed on the animal. Since my husband is heavier than me, I had to sit on the far left and he had to sit more towards the center. I felt confident that the bar would keep me from falling out, but uneasy at the same time since there was not really a place to put my feet. Going down hill I really had to hold on to keep myself up in the seat.

The ride begins by crossing a small river, the same one where the elephants had taken their bath before their show. Immediately after crossing the water we began climbing up the hill. The path is narrow for an elephant. It passes through jungle with tall teak wood trees and thick brush. There was a lovely stream running through the jungle.

Our old elephant required a fare amount of encouragement from his trainer. He appeared more interested in eating the tall grass that was growing beside the trail. Our slower pace required us to pull over to the side in the wide spots to let the younger, faster animals pass us. The trail wound up and down through the hills. It was beautiful countryside. Occasionally we saw one of the mother elephant with her calf and thought about what Sam had said about their numbers increasing. The ride took about an hour I think, which is really enough time to be hanging on for dear life in an elephant basket!

Near the end, our trainer stopped near a flowering bush and picked a red bloom for me. He gestured that I should put it behind my ear and smiled an agreeable smile when I did. At the end of the ride you get off on a platform and then pass through an open market. The souvenirs range from authentic handmade items to mass produced trinkets from China. Just beyond the market you climb another platform and board a wooden cart being pulled by a pair of yoked oxen. Our driver was an older woman, who took us on the long route back to the entrance of the camp. A traditional tip for both the elephant trainer and the cart driver is 50 Baht, about $1.70.

The camp has an open air dining area with a large buffet of traditional Thai food. Meats and vegetables in rich sauces, usually something in curry, and always rice. Fried chicken is especially popular. They had a dish of “legs” fried up but the small size made me question if they were really chicken. David said they have small bantam chickens so they probably were chicken. (I passed.)

Coffee and hot tea, usually green tea and English tea, are served at every meal. I drink my tea English style with sugar and cream. We have to buy water. The water in most tourist attractions is probably safe, but with bottled water available it is not worth the risk of getting sick.

After lunch we headed to the river for a bamboo raft float trip. There is one Thai man at the front and one at the back. Each has a long pole for steering. The river is not deep, nor swift, so it was a leisurely ride. We started to pass another raft which stirred up the pole men. They were younger than our pole men and immediately took a competitive response. Their riders were part of our team so they began to encourage the young men with promises of Baht. Our pole men were mature men and just let the youngsters pull ahead, not wanting to expend any unnecessary effort. I silently agreed that it was too nice of a day to work so hard. It was very enjoyable to just float along. Suzanne and I were sitting on the back seat. The pole man in the back pointed out a snake to us, which caused me to frown and shiver. “Yum” was his response to the snake which brought another face from me, followed by a laugh from him. Just before the ride was over, he tapped me on the shoulder and motioned for me to look in my pocket. There I found a small rock. Again he laughed. I smiled and thank him for the “present”. I

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have no idea why he put a rock in my pocket, and still don't know how he got it there without my knowledge. David is still wondering why the elderly men of Thailand kept giving his wife presents.

Again, the tip for each pole man was 50 Baht. Tipping in another country can be tricky. When the currency exchange is so odd, 32 Baht to 1 dollar, it is easy to get confused. Curtis was on the raft with the young pole men. After the ride he offered 30 Baht to one of them and didn't understand the young man's cool reception. I once tipped a maid almost as much as the price of the room for one night. I think it would be wise for international travelers to find out the new monetary exchange and then make a “cheat sheet” with some common amounts to keep handy. Like; 300 Baht is almost $10.00.

When the raft ride was over, it was time to leave the elephant camp. On our way back to Chiang Mai, we stopped at the Sudaluck furniture factory and store. They make beautiful furniture and art from teak wood and rose wood. The teak comes from Thailand and the rose wood comes from Burma. Everything is made by hand. There is a row of artists in the factory that hand carve elaborate and detailed “3-D” pictures, as well as intricate designs on the furniture.

Our guide said it can take 6 months for an artist to complete one large picture. Most of the carvers earn about $600 a month, though the most experienced can make $1000 a month. That would be a good living in Thailand. The Thai people put a great deal of value on beauty and respect their artists.

Next to the furniture factory is the parasol factory. There is a row of women sitting on a platform and hand making the bamboo frames. One woman makes the paper. She dips large screens into a vat of cotton fibers. When she is satisfied with the thickness, the screen is put in the sun to dry. Several artists are lined up to hand paint the pictures on the parasols. They will also paint a picture on your jacket or bag for a small fee. Flowers and elephants seemed the most popular choices.

Back at the hotel we gathered for evening devotions as a team. Brad led, and spoke about the many dimensions of God. He encouraged us to think about what God can do through us if we allow Him to work. And reminded us that though we may not be able to see all of God's plan, He is still working. Brad is the former director of the Kansas district Work and Witness program. Eddie had been his helper, and is now in the director. Brad loves short-term missions and has been all over the world. He asked Eddie to save a spot for him on the future teams. It is our pleasure to have such an experienced team member along.

Disappointment is an interesting phenomena. We had all enjoyed our outings, but were getting restless in our wait to begin work at the job site. Everyone, even the team members who had been on many previous missions (and should have known better) came with preconceived ideas of how the project should unfold. The deviations had made us unsettled. Eddie also encouraged us to not lose heart. He said Samuel had notified him that we would be allowed to start working in Hueyleuk on Monday. A cheer went up. We thanked God for the diligence of Samuel, the Pastor and the Head Man, and for God's help in allowing the compromise to be reached.

The Lisu people have traditions going back thousands of years. It was not our intent to disrupt their traditions, and these Godly men had made a great effort on our behalf. The entire village recognized that we had come to do a good work. Sam explained to us what a church can mean to a village. The tribal people are considered nomads by the government and are not citizens. Once a church comes to the village, it is considered a permanent structure and the government then recognizes that the people intend to stay. The people can then be registered and apply for citizenship. Obtaining citizenship can take from 2 to 10 years. Because of the “permanent” status, the government will also bring electricity and a paved road to the village. Christians and Buddhists alike benefit from the church being built.

The Head Man, Medicine Man and Pastor Jawsha traveled to 4 other villages to seek advice on our dilemma. It was finally decided that our work would benefit the village so we would be allowed to

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work Monday through Friday. Thursday was the final day of the celebration. The men who were members of the church's congregation would be allowed to work with us on Monday and Tuesday, but would not work on Wednesday and Thursday since they were the most Holy days. Once again, a great deal of diplomacy was involved in completing God's work.

Just as Brad described, we could not see God working, but He was. Our respect for the Lisu traditions brought goodwill to the village.

Chapter FiveThe Maetang Children's Home

The other word in “Work and Witness” is witness. The manual labor of any project, be it medical or construction is important, but as Samuel had pointed out, the witness is just as important. I was excited about having Bible School at the children's home the next morning. Our unusual circumstances meant that the entire team would be available to help with Bible School. Typically, I only have one or two other team members to help me as we do the Bible School while the work project is going on. Again I thanked God that all of my supplies had arrived, and asked for His presence in our efforts.

Maetang is about 45 minutes north of Chiang Mai. I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived. The Children's Home is actually only one part of compound. There is also a nice chapel, adult Bible college, and a house for the Director, who was Lumae's younger brother. All of these buildings had been built by previous Work and Witness teams. The children have a building that is part classrooms and part dorm for the girls. It has a large paved area outside the building where the children play basketball. There is a dorm for the boys a short distance away.

Samuel introduced us to Nit (pronounced “Neet”), the head mistress in charge of the children, and her assistant. They had a long term missionary working with them, but she became ill and had to return to Australia. She turned out to have colon cancer and they are all praying diligently for her.

While Samuel gave us a tour of the compound, Nit gathered the children in the chapel for Bible school. Samuel started the children's home while he was still an independent missionary. When he joined the Church of the Nazarene, he brought the children's home along. Since then, the other buildings of the compound have grown up around the home. The children's home is not just for orphans. They also care for tribal children who live far up in the mountains, in villages that do not have schools. The children come to the home and stay for the semester. They can return home for holidays or summer vacation. Our Somboon was a tribal child. Samuel thinks there are around 20 orphans at the school right now. The rest of the 70 or so children are tribal children.

It is very difficult for a westerner to adopt a Thai child. Because of the terrible problems Thailand has had in the past with child trafficking, there are now many laws designed to protect the children. You must live in Thailand for at least two years before you can apply to adopt a Thai child.

The chapel was spacious with rows of folding chairs. On the stage was a pulpit and several musical instruments. I was relieved to see they had electricity because I had planned to open Bible School with a fun music CD. They had electricity, but unfortunately none of our adapters would make our system work. David had prepared for the possibility that we would not have electricity so he had another plan. They pulled Sam's SUV around to the nearest window and popped the hood. David attached an adapter to the battery of the vehicle and we had music!

“Jump, Shout, and Sing” has been a hit at Bible School all over the world. They may not have understood the words exactly, but with the actions they got the point and we all had fun jumping, shouting, and singing because God loves us.

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Next, I told the story of Noah using the flannel graph figures that Eddie's wife, Ruth, had so lovingly prepared for us. Brian held the background and Nit translated the story. Along with the traditional emphasis of God keeping His promises, I spoke to the children about being a follower of God, just like Noah. Following God is a choice that each of us must make for ourselves. When we have made that choice, then we show it by loving Him, trusting Him, obeying Him, thanking Him, and praising Him. We illustrated this plan by drawing on the tips of the children's fingers. A heart for loving, a cross for trusting, an ark for obeying, a rainbow for thanking, and a musical note for praising. In their palms we drew a circle to represent God the Father (never ending), a cross in the center of the circle for the saving grace of Jesus the Son, and wavy rays coming out of the circle for the outflowing of the Holy Spirit. Next we sang another action song called “Rains, Pours” that says we will trust God through all the circumstances of life.

We moved the children to the back of the chapel for craft time. They sat scattered around on the floor along side our team members. Our craft project was to make a prayer journal. This required them to “sew” the paper inside the binder then glue cutouts to the cover. I had hoped that they would find this a fun project but was amazed at how intently they worked. No one rushed. They all seemed determined to complete their journals as perfectly as possible. Every team member was directly involved in helping the children. I knew how difficult it was for some of them to sit on the bare concrete floor, but no one complained.

I don't know if the team members realized it themselves, but I could see in the children how special they felt by this attention. The children are away from their families, or have no families. They live in a nice facility, but they still out number the adults 30 or more to one. So this kind of one on one attention, especially from men, was precious to them. I knew that this was exactly what Samuel had been talking about when he asked us to “connect” with the Thai people. Many connections were being made on that bare floor.

Lindsay, just twenty years old was used to working with teens, so children's ministry was a new experience. Several of the girls were attracted to her immediately. I was not surprised. She smiles a lot and children are always comfortable with a smiling face.

Conner, the youngest member of our team, is twelve. He joined in everything that was going on which helped the older boys to know it was OK to participate as well. I saw Big John (a nickname given to him by a previous team), who is a hearty construction worker from western Kansas, hook up with one of the older boys who was himself “big”. There was an instant camaraderie between then as they worked with large fingers to complete the project. Connections, connections, connections.

When they had finished making their journals, we had them trace their hand on the first page and mark the fingers of the drawing like they had marked their own hand. For this was also a lesson in how to pray; A heart for love on the first finger, “I love you Lord”, a cross for trust on the second finger, “I trust you with my life”, an ark for obedience on the third finger, “ I will obey You Lord”, a rainbow for thanks on the fourth finger, “Thank you Lord, for all You have done”, and a note for praise on the fifth finger, “I will praise Your Name Lord”.

They ate their animal shaped fruit snacks and then we headed outside to play a game. It was a hot day, but we found some grass in the shade and made a circle. We played a chasing game, similar to “Duck, Duck, Goose”. Because of the language barrier, we substituted saying “Duck, Duck, Goose” with dropping a blue towel behind the person you wanted to chase you. I have played this game with children for 30 years. They always love it. I can always count on someone choosing me to chase them. Many of the team members joined in the circle and were also popular picks for running. The children especially enjoyed seeing our gentle giant, Brian, jumping up and running around the circle after a small Thai child. The children loved to “pet” Brian and we finally figured out it was because they are not used to hairy arms. A gentle giant with hairy arms was just too interesting to resist petting.

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We gathered them once more in the chapel so that Eddie and Geralyn could show them “speed stacking”. They had salvation color cups. Dustin read the accompanying lesson while Nit translated. The children were very impressed with the stacking and clapped for Eddie and Geralyn. We finished Bible school by singing “Jump, Shout, and Sing” and then“Father I adore You” in a round.

Eddie presented the children with school packs that had been put together by the children in Hugoton, Ks. Each pack included the name and information about the child who had packed it. I thought that was a good idea, and another great connection.

We said goodbye to the children and loaded up in our vans. Sam had arranged for us to eat lunch at his country club in Chiang Mai. He is an avid golfer. The club was beautiful and we ate a wonderful buffet lunch on the veranda.

After lunch Sam took us to see the silver factory and the silk factory. Thailand is world famous for it's silk. A young Thai woman showed us the stages of the silkworm and explained the different qualities of silk. I bought a silk scarf in peacock blue that I hope to wear at our daughter, Jennifer's wedding in May.

David led our team devotions that evening from Isaiah 49:15. He reminded us that, like a nursing mother, God cannot forget us. I felt content that though our plans had been changed, God was still in charge of the project. Connections were made, Bible School was a success.

Many of the team members went to the Night Bazaar for dinner, but some of us were tired so stayed to eat in the hotel. One of the team members was still struggling with the changes and delays in our plans. I thought homesickness may be playing a part. Being homesick is a very real illness. You are going along fine, and then something reminds you of home and you start longing for things like hot water or your dog. Even worse, you begin to ache with longing for your family. It actually hurts to be homesick.

He said that it was not homesickness, more like disillusionment over our inability to start the work project. David and I tried to encourage him that the trip was not over. You frequently have to wait for some time to pass after the mission to fully appreciate what has happened. It is one of those events in life that is best viewed with the advantage of hindsight. And, as Sam pointed out, things will still be coming out of our trip for years to come. It is God's agenda. We are but a small part of a much larger picture.

If someone were to ask me about signing up for a Work and Witness trip this is the advice I would give them; Pack all of the patience you can and leave all complaining at home.

There is just no room for complaining on a mission trip. Complaining is like adding a drop of poison to a pot of soup, it will soon touch everything. Many of us are used to living by strict schedules and detailed plans from which we do not detour. In surgery, my time is documented down to the minute. But there is just no way that every minute of a mission project, that is thousands of miles from home, can be scheduled in advance in every detail. We have to hand this over to God and trust that He has put the correct people in charge, and that they are doing everything they can to make things run smoothly. Giving up control is an essential part of work and witness. It is a test of faith that will be demonstrated by one's ability to be obedient. When God says “work”, we work. When God says “witness”, we witness. And, when God says “wait”, then we wait.

Chapter SixHeading North

On Sunday we headed north out of Chiang Mai. Sam rented a very nice bus for the long day of travel. Lumae wanted David and I to ride with them so that we could discuss the meals. Sam, Lumae and I had done most of the shopping the night before but still needed to stop to buy water, ice and fresh fruit.

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I asked many questions along the way and Sam graciously answered them all. There are two large pastures just outside of Chiang Mai. One has a herd of horses, and the other has mules. These are the animals used by the military to fight up in the mountains along the border of Burma. There was also a gated military school.

Our journey took us through the granite mountains and we passed by Chiang Dao mountain. It has the second highest peak in Thailand at 2700 meters. The face of the mountain is steep. Sam explained that on the backside of the mountain there are many caves. The Burmese army used to use these caves when they were invading Thailand. The natives consider the mountain sacred and don't climb it. The people of Chiang Dao had recently rejected an attempt to put a cable transportation system up the mountain. They want it to remain natural.

We proceeded to the village of Nong Wuadong to join them in their morning worship service. Nong Wuadong means “Red Bison Lake”. It is a very remote village, just a few kilometers from Burma. This was the first church built by a Work and Witness team in Thailand. It is a well established church with good leadership. Eighty percent of the people tithe so they are able to support their own pastor, Pastor Solomon.

The church had several rows of wooden pews facing the front, and two sets of pews facing the center that were used by the adult and teen choirs. We admired the elephants that were carved into the choir pews. The platform had a pulpit, communion table, electric keyboard and 2 microphones. After the church was built, the government brought the village electricity and a paved road.

The leadership roles for the service are alternately led by the men one week, and the women the following week. This week, the men were in charge. The adult choir sang acappella in four part harmony. Next, the teen choir sang accompanied by Pastor Solomon on the guitar. The Pastor also serves as the choir director.

The District Superintendent and his wife were present in the service. Our team member, Pastor Curtis, presented the message with Samuel translating. He spoke about having our hearts broken open by God so that He could fill them. It was a nice message and many people in the congregation nodded their heads in agreement when Sam translated his words. Connections.

In the back of the church sat our bus driver. The bus driver was a Buddhist from Chiang Mai. The Thai people often look down on the tribal people as ignorant and superstitious. Though the driver did not understand the words, (Curtis preached in English, Sam translated in Lisu, and the driver spoke Thai) he was at least exposed to a group of tribal people who sang in four part harmony and had a dignified worship service. Sam hoped this would influence the driver's opinion of tribal people. Connections.

After the service, we lined up outside in front of the church. The people of the congregation filed by to shake hands with us. In Thailand, they shake with their right hand and hold their right elbow with their left hand to show respect. Out of respect, the Thai people do not make eye contact. I did my best to smile and say “good morning” or “God bless you” to each of them. Many of them glanced up when they saw my smile and smiled back. I think some where looking at my green eyes also, which is not something they see everyday.

The ladies of the church served us the dinner they had prepared for our visit. We ate outside on the porch of the Pastor's home. White rice, stir fired vegetables and meat. When we had eaten our fill, David and I decided it was time for balloons. We have tied balloons on previous missions, and they are always a hit. Several of the team members had come to our room last night to learn to make balloon animals. We had two pumps, and four of us shaping the blown balloons.

David likes to blow up his own balloons. He makes swords for the boys and swan hats for the girls. I have a repertoire of two animals. I twist a head with two ears. Then, if it turns out to have a long neck it is a giraffe, and if it turns out to have a long body it's a dog. Suzanne and Conner also mastered

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the skill of making dogs last night in our room. Dustin and Big John took on the task of blowing up the balloons for us and we just kept making animals.

Big John stood next to me and muttered a surly “I hate kids” , and all the while he was blowing balloons then tickling the children with them as they waited their turn for an animal. I didn't buy his complaining for a minute. Big John pumped, Dustin tied and I twisted animal after animal. I heard Big John say “Cindi is a factory” and smiled inside. This was not my first balloon tying party. We tied and shaped the entire package, 100 balloons.

Eddie and Geralyn sat up a table in a small shaded spot and got out their speed stacking cups. This drew a crowd instantly. The Thai people admire skill. It is very fun to watch. I had never heard of speed stacking prior to this trip. When I first emailed the team that I was planning Bible School, Geralyn asked if she could bring her speed stackers. I had no idea what she meant but was encouraged that other people wanted to be a part of Bible School. Geralyn is a young woman who lives and works in Mahattan. This is her second Work and Witness trip, and I am certain it will not be her last.

We ended up using the speed stackers on several occasions and they were always a hit. Pastor Josh and Brian passed out the salvation striped candy canes that I had brought, and Brian allowed the children to pet him. Just before time to go, Eldred got out the Fireballs. These are cinnamon flavored jaw breakers that are so hot you cannot keep them in your mouth. As soon as he gave out one, he was surrounded by excited children with up reached hands. They swarmed him like he was giving out money. I tried to hand signal to some of the kids that they “HOT!” by fanning my mouth, but that just made them want more. The Thai people eat food so hot it will take the skin off of the roof of your mouth. What better than hot candy? I will always think of Eldred as “Fireball Eldred” from now on. The name might imply a rambunctious go getter, when in actuality he was a laid-back, easy going fellow who could, and did, eat anything. From red hot candy to exotic Thai delicacies. I appreciated that (upon threat of vomit) he could be reasoned with to delay opening a package of smelly squid while sitting with me in the back row of a crowded bus.

Soon it was time to load up. We said goodbye to our new friends. The children ran after us waving their balloons. On we traveled, up and around mountain roads to the resort that would be our home for the next week. It was called “Rimtarn” which means “edge of the river”.

Rimtarn is a resort on th banks of the Maetang river. It had duplex bungalows. Each side had a bed and a desk. What looks like a normal bed, turns out to be a hard platform with a sheet over it. There are comforters folded up on the bed, it gets cold in the mountains at night. The Thai people sleep on thin mats on the floor or wooden platforms. The floor was tile and the walls were plaster. One wall in our room had a crack wide enough to stick you finger in. The ceiling was covered with some kind of thatching that shed. Small, black particles appeared around the room each day. Each room had it's own restroom with a small sink, a toilet with a short sprayer, and a longer sprayer mounted to the wall that served as a shower. The shower pipe ran through a box that, when turned on, would heat the water to pretty warm. The water ran into a drain in the middle of the floor. As I suspected, the water came and went, but was on most of the time.

For me, the lack of water is the greatest inconvenience. I don't mind doing without electricity nearly as much as I mind doing without water.

Outside our window, the Maetang river flowed by. There were some bamboo rafts tied up a little ways upstream. A cable and bamboo suspension bridge connected the shores of the river. It looked fragile to me, but some of the team members crossed it. On the other side there was a farm.

A few of the men were able to visit the work site that afternoon. We originally thought that we would be laying the brick. We had packed trowels, levels and string to ensure straight walls. Instead, the contractor had completed the walls and the floor was to be our project.

Dustin led devotions that evening and talked about God answering the prayers of people in the

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Bible, and answering ours today. Dustin is the youngest man on our team. He is a teacher who currently works a substitute. I was impressed by his obvious devotion to do God's will.

I was already dreading the nights at Rimtarn. I had taken a 30 minute nap that afternoon and awakened to a completely numb leg. Being a thin person with little “padding”, I have never been able to sleep on the floor. I was considering asking the manager if he had more comforters, or even towels so that I might make a thicker pad beneath me. Big John told me that he had an air mattress and would be happy to let me use it. I can't tell you what that meant to me. What a blessing.

The windows had screens so we left them open to let in the night air. The animals on the farm across the river provided many of the sounds that I listened to in bed that night. The cows have bells that ring in metal tinkles of various tones. The rooster called to his friend on a neighboring farm. The result was a medium pitched “R-RR-RR” echoed by a higher pitched, more distant “r-rr-rr”. They do not wait for dawn to crow, as I had always heard roosters do, but carried on their conversation throughout the night.

Many birds cry out in the night air. There are loons somewhere on the river and songbirds that I regretfully did not recognize. The frogs on the river blurt loud, eerie croaks. There was another call that neither David nor I recognized.

Chapter SevenThe Construction Begins

It was cold in the morning and we had to wear our jackets to breakfast. The resort owner was previously a cook, so the meal was hardy. There are four dogs at Rimtarn. Conner loves dogs. Most of them are shy, but one is playful and is already enjoying having a boy around. He is a young, black dog with a shiny coat. He tried to join us on the porch for breakfast, but his master dragged him away by his front paws. The man was not hurting him, but he protested in loud, dramatic whines.

Sam had difficulty with our transportation on Monday morning. The taxis he had arranged backed out. While he worked on getting something else, we had to make our first trip to Hueyleuk in the back of trucks, and in Sam and Lumae's SUV. It was a forty minute drive form Rimtarn to Hueyleuk.

First you travel the rough, dirt road from the resort to the paved highway. It is narrow with mountain on one side of the road and fences and brush on the other. Near the resort there is a house that has a peacock in a cage beside it. I want to walk back down the road some evening and have a closer look at the peacock. There are a few small farms along the road, one has soybeans growing. When you get closer to the highway you can see the distant farmland in the green valley with a backdrop of mountains behind. It is quite beautiful and worth digging out your camera.

The temperature for the morning drive is around 12 Celsius, about 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Chilly in the back of a truck or an open taxi. The highway winds northeast past villages of various sizes and more farmland. Many of the farms are rice. To grow rice, they make small, level, square fields that have high dirt rims. The rims allow the field to be flooded. The rice is grown from seed in a nursery, then the young plants are planted by hand in the flooded fields. Harvest time for rice is October which is the time they celebrate their Thanksgiving. They follow the rice crop with soybeans or peanuts. There are also many fields of garlic. These are larger fields and some have irrigation. The vertical irrigation pipes are about 3 feet tall and spaced several feet apart. When the irrigation is on, the pipes look like small umbrellas of water. Garlic fields are thick and very green, like winter wheat in it's early stage.

I also enjoyed the beauty of the papaya fields. Papaya grows on a small tree, maybe 5 foot tall. The trunk is thin, straight and bare. The branches at the top are heavy with foliage that cascades down.

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Each leaf has 7 lobes with a sort of filigree look. The foliage is dark green and quite beautiful. Again, they are irrigated with water umbrellas.

As we wind higher into the mountains, we see the teak wood trees that Thailand is famous for. They are tall trees with large, broad leaves and knotted trunks. Close to the road “broomgrass” grows 7 or 8 feet tall. We saw a man stopped by the side of road, cutting some with a machete. Lumae explained that the natives use this grass to make their brooms.

Part way up the mountain there is a gorgeous view of the valley below. There is one spot that has a break in the trees and we had to stop for another picture. This is the view I had in my mind when I came to Thailand. Green and fertile, even though it it the dry season, with mountains behind and teak wood trees in the foreground.

The villages are of various sizes. Some are so close together that it is difficult to know when you have left one, and entered another. Every village has two things, open markets and a crematory. Sam says that the open market is the center of Thai life. The open markets sell everything from food, to clothes, to utensils, everything essential. The gas station is a wooden stand near the street. In the stand there are 3 pumps with large glass jars on top. The attendant comes out and fills the jar with your choice of gasoline. (They still use regular gas.) Your tank is filled from the jar with a hose, similar to ours.

There are two military checkpoints along the way to Hueyleuk. Sam stops and talks to the soldier, then we are motioned on. He explained to us that since we are so close to Burma, they watch the borders for Burmese nationals trying to enter Thailand. Our white skin eliminates any possibility that we are Burmese.

The highway continues up the mountain, then part way down the other side. It has many “switchbacks”. Soon we turn onto a dirt road again. The dust is easily stirred making it a dirty ride for those tucked inside the bed of a truck.

We stopped for water, ice and fresh fruit so the truck arrived before us. My first glimpse of the church revealed a plaster walled rectangular building sitting high up off of the road. It had a beautiful cobalt blue corrugated metal roof. There was already a cross on top, identifying it as a church. Unpainted wood frames surrounded the windows and there was a brick foundation for a sidewalk along the side facing the road. It had a covered porch with sacks of concrete piled under the cover.

On their arrival, the other team members had been ushered to the Pastor's home. There, his wife graciously offered them water and tangerines. Without an interpreter there, they were unsure about drinking the water. As soon as we arrived everyone hurried to the church to begin the anxiously awaited arrival time of work.

Let me say a little about the rural tribal people. They are not a starving people. The weather is good year round. Thailand is on the same latitude as southern Florida so there are always crops growing. They have enough food for themselves and also for the animals, so meat and milk available. Chickens are everywhere, so eggs are available and a popular dish. Unlike many parts of the world, education is available, to those who can get to it. (Like the Maetang children's home.) They get their water from the mountains. They have been educated about clean water and even those living in bamboo huts are careful to boil their drinking water. The boiled water is stored separately from the water used to wash clothes, etc. I saw some use of cisterns also.

The people in the remote villages live in bamboo huts on stilts. During the rainy season, the water and mud runs so the stilts help keep their belongings dry. The space under the hut allows for storage and shade for the animals.

Pastor Jawsha's home consists of 4 separate areas. The “kitchen” hut is on 4 foot stilts, and has a fire pit built into the floor. The smoke from the fire rises up through the thatched roof and blackens it. From the outside, it appears the hut is on fire, but it is only the cooking smoke. Along one wall is a

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counter for dishes and utensils. The opposite wall has a low sofa. Near the fire there is a low, round table for eating. While eating, they sit on the floor or on small wooden stools. The Thai always eat family style. Each person has their own plate of rice, then they all dip into bowls on the table to share the main courses.

The sleeping area is another hut, maybe 15 feet by 15 feet. It is on taller 6 foot stilts. They stack the sleeping mats against the wall in plastic bags during the day. The pastor's daughter and grandchildren sleep in this large room. On the far wall there is a small area partitioned off for the Pastor and his wife. A blue curtain hangs in the doorway. Between the huts there was a covered porch. It had a row of tables and chairs. This is were the Nazarene congregation held church services, and were our team ate meals. Below the sleeping hut, was another enclosed area that must have been home to another of the Pastor's family members. I'm not really sure.

In Thailand, you must remove your shoes before entering the buildings. They wear mostly sandals so can slip in and out of them easier than the work boots worn by most of our team.

Before the concrete floor could be poured in the church, the foundation had to be filled with dirt and rocks. Lots of dirt and rocks. The church was a rectangular building, about 20 by 40 feet. It sits on a small triangle of land at the entrance to the village. The main road runs in front of it, and the mountain rises up behind it. This mountain was to be the source of the dirt and rocks needed to fill the foundation.

There was no mechanical equipment to help with the task of moving dirt. It had to be picked off of the mountain with a pick ax, then shoveled into one of the gallon buckets (we had 8), then carried to the church, dumped inside, and spread around. We did have one wheelbarrow which we used inside the church. It was filled through one of the doors or windows, then transported to the far side of the church and dumped. Moving dirt by hand is the definition of manual labor. When you consider a temperature of about 80 degrees, it is hot, sweaty, back breaking work.

David and two of the men from the local church, took on the task of picking away at the mountain. They started immediately to make a ridge about 5 feet up to stand on so they could pick down instead of up. Side by side, hour after hour, these 3 men worked. There is a correct way to swing a pick that makes it more efficient and expends less energy. The top hand slides down the pick as it is swung downward. It was apparent that each of these 3 knew the correct way. All of them wore heavy gloves. One of the Thai men was barefoot, and the other wore plastic flip flops but they managed to stay on the mountain. On the faces of the Thai men, I could see a respect for how hard David was working. Connection.

At the other end of the church, Suzanne found a spot several feet up and used a bar to chip away at the dirt also. Suzanne is Eddie's niece and has been on many Work and Witness trips. Like the other experienced members of the team, she came equipped with good gloves and sturdy shoes.

On the ground, we began to move the dirt. We struggled at first to get organized and actually become productive. It is a little daunting to dump one bucket in a foundation and realize how many more it is going to take to fill it. Sort of like trying to empty a beach using a teaspoon. The church floor required about 12 inches of dirt while the platform would require 3 feet of dirt. We shoveled and dumped quite awhile before adding the wheelbarrow. Dustin took on the job of dumping the wheelbarrow and leveling the dirt in the platform. Several of us provided his dirt, while others of the team passed dirt through the window into the sanctuary foundation. Most of us alternated between hoeing, shoveling, carrying, and dumping.

This type of hard manual labor was different than most of us are used to doing, so we had to keep shifting through the jobs. Brad, Eddie, and Lindsay found they could shovel easier by kneeling on the ground. I don't have the knees for that so had to do the back bending method. Let me just say this about our team Dorothy, everyone worked hard.

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While we spent the morning moving dirt, Samuel and Lumae attended a “town meeting” with the villagers. The leaders had come to an agreement, but some of the villagers were still concerned about our working. Samuel, Pastor Jawsha, and the Head Man continued the job of diplomacy. Just as Samuel had predicted would happen, he offered to buy a pig with team money. They would have it butchered and the meat would be divided up equally between the families in the village. At the end of the meeting, most of the villagers were satisfied that the correct agreement had been reached and that the church would be good for their community. Connection.

There was one woman however, who loudly protested the work. She said many people had been sick last year and it had cost the village many Baht. She feared our work would bring more illness to the village. She said she would refuse her portion of the meat. Pastor Jawsha told Sam that she was a continual complainer and that the others did not take her negative ranting to heart.

I had the privilege of preparing the team snacks and lunches. Lindsay helped me the first day. And, as the team nurse I was determined to make sure everyone was getting enough water. Heat stroke can be very serious.

Fresh fruit is abundant in Thailand and the team enjoyed snacks of tangerines, apples, oranges, and watermelon. We had simple lunches of sandwiches and chips with vegetables slices and fruit. It was my privilege to serve the food and drinks. The Thai people are used to resting after lunch, like “siesta” in Mexico, and the Pastor's wife graciously offered her sleeping quarters to anyone who wanted to lie down. I think that because we had been delayed in starting, everyone was just eager to get on with the work.

I hope you understand Dorothy, that I am but one perspective. All of the other team members could give you an account of their exact tasks for the day, but let me just say again, everyone worked hard. With the help of Eldred's Fireballs, dirt was being moved. The mountain had been carved back a bit, and the foundation was beginning to fill up. Some of the village children began showing up, as we knew they would, and eagerly started helping.

Along with the food, and some dirt moving, I felt it was my calling to be a goodwill ambassador for the church by working with the children. I took sticker pages and crafts for the children each day. There was a stack of wood laying on the ground behind the church so, just before lunch, I collected my supplies from the pastor's hut and sat down on the pile. I called all of the children that I could see to come and sit with me. There were 11 children that first day. For our first “Bible School” I helped the children complete Noah's ark sticker pages. Then we all put on animal masks which initiated a lot of giggling. I did not have an interpreter, but they laughed and played, and I hoped they would come back the next day with friends. Connection.

At the team devotions that night, Brian drew his inspiration from James 3 and spoke about Christian service. He encouraged us to be involved in the work of our own churches back home.

We started the next work day with warm rice and mushroom porridge. Sam had been able to arrange two open air taxis to transport us today. Open air taxis are small trucks with rows of seats in the back and a roof. More comfortable than the back of a truck, but still cool in the mornings. Brian and Conner like to take the seats at the end of the row that are mostly outside. Suzanne and I like to sit up by the cab, out of as much wind as possible.

At the project, we begin the day's task of moving more dirt. We are experienced now and more productive than yesterday. Some of the village children come and begin to help with the work. They are strong and determined. They are not shy about picking up a tool and getting in the middle of the work. I smiled to myself and wondered if they would remember helping to build their church. Several of the women of the church joined in the dirt moving also. They are thin women, two of them were quite old, and the younger one was pregnant, but they knew how to work. One small woman was barefoot and preferred her hands over the shovel. She would bend down and scoop the dirt into her bucket with her

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bare hands. This morning, I moved Bible School over to the shelter by the road, in front of Pastor Jawsha's

home. The shelter has a bamboo floor about 10 inches off of the ground and a thatched roof. Anyone can use the shelter to escape bad weather, or wait for a ride. Lindsay and I rounded up the children. Today we worked on Nativity sticker sheets, and beaded star crafts. Just as the children at Maetang, the children concentrated on doing their project perfectly. They loved the colorful beads. No one was in a hurry and they worked diligently on both projects for a long time. Before they left, we passed out suckers. Another successful day at Bible School. Connection.

After lunch it clouded up and began to rain. They had not had any rain for some time. It poured for a short time and instantly water started to flow under the huts. I feared the villagers would be unhappy and blame us for the storm, but Lumae said rain is always welcome. It fills up the streams where they get their water and cuts down on the amount of dust blowing around. The dirt there was red and had a lot of clay in it. It reminded me of Oklahoma. I don't know if you have ever tried to walk around in wet clay mud before, but it is a difficult task. Your shoes sink instantly with each step. They are soon covered with mud. The mud is sticky and clings to your shoe. When you try to pick up your foot, the clumps of mud are heavy.

The rain was heavy but did not last long, just long enough to make everything a mess. When the sun came out, we attempted to work but it was impossible to resume our morning pace. We struggled at it for a few hours, then loaded up and returned to Rimtarn. On the drive back we witnessed the damage that had been done to the village of Wiang Heng by strong winds. There were many branches, small and large, laying on the ground. A few huts had lost their thatched roofs, and some buildings had lost their tin roofs. Lumae told us that such strong winds are a rare occurrence for them. We joked about the Kansans bringing a tornado, but felt genuine empathy for the people who had received damage from the storm.

Lindsay led the devotions that evening. She talked about not restricting God with our own expectations. Let me say a few words about the youngest members of our team.

Conner, the adopted son of Pastor Josh, is just 12 years old. He is bright and quick witted, and always ready to participate. He works hard at the project, and plays hard with the children and dogs of the village. He takes the teasing of so many new “uncles” with a good natured disposition, and happily dishes it back to them.

Lindsay is just 20 years old. She joins in eagerly when there is work to do. Her love for the children is apparent every time we have Bible School. I was impressed by the articulate way she delivered her devotional and with her obvious decision to walk the Christian life. She reminded me of our daughters and I really enjoyed having a daughter along. I don't think this will be the last Work and Witness trip for either of our young team members.

Chapter Eight White Wash and A Wheelbarrow Ramp

Wednesday morning began with scrambled eggs cooked with shaved carrots and onions. Along side the eggs were small sausages that were slit so they curled. Eldred was ill and very disappointed at not being able to go with the team. He said his wife had been ill before we left and thought it might be the same flu, though he did not have a temperature.

The work site was still soggy but had improved enough for us to continue moving dirt. It was heavy from the rain. I wish I could give you a more colorful description of the work, but there are only so many ways to say; pick, hoe, shovel, fill, carry, and dump. Let me try it this way; sore hands, sore arms, sore legs, sore backs.

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The children continued to help with the dirt. One little girl, who was only as tall as the shovel, was determined to fill her bucket. She stepped in and out, and around, the other workers scooping up small amounts of loose dirt wherever she could find it. She actually took dirt off of Lindsay's shovel. We laughed and I said “Don't bother her, she's building her church”.

Samuel noticed that the children were working so hard, and that the team was not interfering with their efforts. He said he had had a vision that we were working with the future leaders of the church. I agreed. If our little girl was any indication, then that church has a dynamic future ahead.

At one point we made a “bucket brigade” which seemed to help. Conner started out picking the full buckets up off the ground and passing them to the line. The bending while lifting makes this a hard job, but he stuck with it. Little by little, we made progress.

Geralyn and Lindsay started the painting. They called it paint, though it was as runny as water and seemed more like whitewash to me. Brad and Dustin took brushes and started painting the trim on the inside. The trim was thick oil paint, and the color reminded me of redwood decks back home. With long rollers, one coat of the whitewash was completed on both the outside and the inside of the church.

We worked on sticker pages of the resurrection in Bible School today. Then we made necklaces with wooden crosses and colorful beads. Again, the children worked carefully and diligently to make their necklace look just like my example. Today, 3 grandmothers visited us during Bible School. They said little, but smiled their approval at the children's work. Connections.

Geralyn brought her stacking cups. As usual, the children were impressed by her skill. One boy and one girl in particular were taken with this new game. She patiently taught them how to perform some of the skills, without any words. They eagerly accepted her hand gesture instructions and were soon “stacking”. Connections.

While we were making lunch, Lumae explained another part of tribal culture. It is very important to the tribal people that everything be fair. Samuel had mentioned this in his introductory talk with us back in Chiang Mai, but it was easier to understand now that we had met the people. She said that they often have problems while preparing food for Work and Witness teams, because the villagers want their share. But, she continued, because we started out on the first day paying attention to the children and giving them things, the villagers loved us and would not take anything from us. Connections.

Instead of dinner at Rimtarn, we traveled farther north to the village of Piang Lai Ong. This village is just 2 kilometers from Burma. Sam had arranged for us to eat in the village's only restaurant. They served genuine Chinese food, which is different than Thai food. We arrived a few minutes early so Lumae showed me around some of the village shops.

We entered a dress maker's shop and I was instantly attracted to the beautiful handwork on the dresses. With Lumae's help, I selected a green dress and tried it on over my clothes. The skirt is simply material that has been sewn to make a circle. In this case, it was floor length with tapestry looking material on the top half, and green satin looking material on the bottom half. You step into the circle of material,placing the seam in the front. The skirt is then closed tight around your waist with the extra fabric pulled to the right. Next you fold the extra material across you to the left, covering the seam completely, and tuck it into the waist. They give you a small string to tie around your waist as a belt. The blouse was the same green satin material as the bottom of the skirt. It had a great deal of handwork and beading and is worn over the waist, not tucked in. I thought about how much you, Dorothy, and the other ladies of the church would enjoy seeing this handiwork.

I started to ask to see another dress, a blue one, but the grandmother who had been sitting quietly at the front of the store, came to us and told Lumae that the green one was beautiful, and made for me. She smiled. I bought the green one.

Lumae and I walked through a food market. She explained all about the foods, exotic and

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familiar, how they were cooked, how they were eaten. She bought us all some sugar care candy to try. It was very much like eating compressed brown sugar. I appreciated the time she took in helping me understand her culture.

The Chinese meal was my favorite of the trip. There were hot dishes, that I had to avoid, but there were a couple of dishes that were not hot at all. We had a sweet and sour pork that was different from our version in the states, but rich and flavorful. My other favorite was cashew chicken that was quite similar to what we are used. Delicious.

After the meal, the team took off down the street to explore the open markets. There was a woman in a roadside stand who was grilling meat. There was some sort of sausage, and chicken feet on a stick. Yes, I said chicken feet. Lumae explained that the feet are first boiled, then they are put on the grill to warm them up. The skin was grilled to a golden brown. Conner, like Eldred, will eat anything. He quickly bought 2 chicken feet for 5 Baht. He ate them too, though found there is not much meat on a chicken foot. Some of the men bought more to take back to Eldred, knowing he would be disappointed for missing such an unusual snack. Brad bought the sausage, ate it, and went back for more. He is a meat and potato kind of guy, and had trouble with having so many meals of rice and vegetables.

I led devotions that night based on 2nd Corinthians 1:3 “God is the father of compassion”.

Geralyn woke up ill on Thursday and had to remain at Rimtarn. It is frustrating and discouraging to be sick, but there is nothing that can be done about it. She suspected her illness was food related, and I agreed. Try as we might to drink bottled water, wash food, peel fruit, sometimes people get sick.

We rode to Hueyleuk with the anticipation of finishing the dirt work. By midmorning we had finished filling the foundation. Some of the men took turns tamping the dirt. The handmade tampers were handles made from two large sticks that were nailed to a short log. We had 2 tampers. The men would lift the tamper off of the ground a few inches, then drop it compress the dirt. The logs were about 9 inches across, so it was another tedious project to do the entire floor.

The contractor had bricks laid for the foundation of a sidewalk along the front and end of the church. The ground the church sits on was leveled out next to the mountain. This caused a dramatic slope down to the road, and the appearance that the church is “tucked” into the side of the mountain. The slope presented an interesting challenge for bringing dirt to the front sidewalk. In order to get the dirt moved to the front of the church, Brian and Pastor Josh constructed a ramp out of bricks and planks that was just wide enough for the wheelbarrow. Right at the corner, the planks were balanced on a stack of bricks so it looked more like a bridge than a ramp. Some of the team members and children shoveled dirt for their wheelbarrow, and they quickly filled up the sidewalk foundations.

I took bubbles for the children that morning. Everyone loves bubbles. They came in colorful plastic bottles that had a cross handle on the lid. There were not many children hanging around this morning since most were home preparing for the celebration. I could see them around their huts. Many of them were already wearing their traditional costumes. The costumes are usually black and red with bright color threads and trims. They like silver beads and some have bells that clink when they move.

Thursday was the last, and most Holy day of the villagers New Year celebration. The celebration was to conclude with a community dance and feast. We had been invited and were very excited to attend. It was scheduled for noon, but some of the anticipated visiting dignitaries were delayed by their visit to Wiang Heng. (The town that experienced damage from the storm on Tuesday.) They wanted to wait, but decided to begin without them.

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Chapter NineThe New Year's Celebration

Before the celebration begins, the people prepare a round wicker tray with all kinds of food. The food will be shared with the other members of the village. This demonstrates their desire for equality among the people. The trays are brought to the center of the village where they have a sort of “town square”. The ground is bare but even. In the center there are 4 fir trees that have been planted and are still staked. The trees have a bare trunk about 5 foot up, then they are green another 5 feet. There are more planted trees staked around the parameter of the square. They place the trays at the bottom of the 4 center trees and dance in a circle around them.

They dance to the traditional Thai instruments. The pi joom is a free reed pipe made of bamboo. The instrument is held down at the musicians side. There is a free reed at the top and finger holes near the base. They use circular breathing to make the continuous sound. They also have small gold gongs and various sizes and shapes of drums.

The dances are mostly stepping, though the first dance had a series of steps and pauses that I never quite caught onto. They added hand movements to the steps that represent things like the harvest. I decided to join the dance with one of the girls who regularly helped us at the church. She is a beautiful girl, about 9, and looked like a princess in her Lisu costume. I had a “surreal” moment. I realized that I was just an ordinary little grandmother, half a world away from my home Kansas, dancing by invitation with the villagers of a Lisu tribe in the remote mountains of Northern Thailand. This was not a reenactment, staged for the entertainment of tourists. The villagers were performing the traditional dance that their ancestors had been doing for thousands of years, and smiling at me for dancing along. Pretty awesome.

Some of the villagers ushered us to a spot with a tarp so we would be out of the sun. They brought us snacks of sunflower seeds and grilled peas. After the dance, they served us their traditional feast. Rice, meats, vegetables, all in hot sauces. And, the real delicacy of shaved cow hide. (Also very hot.) They did not eat anything until we had had our fill. They are very gracious people.

While we were eating, my little princess came to me for a hug. We had all grown comfortable with the children of the village. I noticed a woman smiling at me and soon realized it was her mother. Lumae had pointed her out to me earlier as the woman who had been so opposed to us working. Now she was standing next to me smiling while I hugged her daughter. Connections.

After lunch the tamping continued, followed by the weaving of the bamboo that was to be used as rebarb. A Thai man had been splitting long bamboo poles into long strips (each about a quarter of the pole) with a machete ever since we arrived at Hueyleuk. It was a big task that required a lot of skill. The contractor laid the strip across the church and platform in rows, and cut them to fit. Next, more strips had to be woven through the rows to make a cross pattern. Care had to be taken as the cut edges of bamboo are sharp. Big John and Dustin worked on the platform, I helped a little, while Brian and Pastor Josh organized the weaving on the floor. The contractor and his helper (from Chiang Mai) directed all of this with only hand signals. In spite of the language barrier, the men had become friendly with the Thai contractors. David mentioned to me more than once how happy they seemed to be to have help. Connections. I always offered them fruit at snack time. Before we left, one of them had learned to say “Thank you”.

The church had a baptism planned for Friday. Four children were to be baptized in the nearby river. Pastor Jawsha asked Sam if some of the team could tell the children their testimony. Pastor Curtis and Pastor Josh went to the Pastor's hut for this meeting. I was not there, and do not know exactly what happened. But I do know that it was a moving experience for Pastor Josh who later told me he was “honored” to have had a chance to speak with the children. Connections.

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Pastor Josh is a good natured man with an easy laugh. He took a lot of teasing about being “the preacher” from the men on our team who are members of his congregation. He graciously allowed each of us the privilege of being a parent to Conner at least once during the trip. I would like to hear him preach.

I cannot express too adamantly how important the children of Hueyleuk were to our team. The work was very physical. We were tired, and hot, and homesick. There were many occasions when we got a few moments of welcome relief by playing with the children. I taught a hand clapping game to one of my little friends. We did it many times that week, and I always enjoyed the smile it brought to her face.

Brian, a father of four and I'm sure missing his children, took Conner up the street with a sack of bubble gum for the children on more than one occasion. And the children knew that Eldred always had Fireballs with him.

Brad and Pastor Curtis seemed especially interested in communicating with the children. They could frequently be heard trying to get the children to tell them their names, or teach them something in English.

David came walking down the road one time with one child hanging on to his back, one hanging on to his chest, and one walking along holding his hand. He had been missing his granddaughters, so had found some Thai grandchildren to play with.

Suzanne sat and sharpened pencils for the children one day. They crowded around her to get their new pencils, which was a treat for them.

Children are a blessing in any culture. I would like to add how pleased I was that the fathers in Thailand seem to be a part of the family. That is not true in many parts of the world. In many places, the mother and children live together, and the fathers roam and do as they please. But, I saw many men interacting with the children. I don't think men realize how important they are to children.

Another coat of whitewash was applied to the church that day. Eddie and I started rolling the whitewash on the tall end of the church. The roller was on a long handle. I started rolling the top half, with the intent of rolling the bottom half next. The contractor came and showed me that he wanted it rolled all the way from the top to the bottom with each roll, which required more stepping and effort for me. We did the end and turned the corner. The contractor brought me a bucket and brush and pantomimed that I should go around the window and door frames. I gladly accepted this new job. Together, Eddie and I gave that side of the church it's second coat.

A scaffold had to be constructed for the high outside trim. Brian and Dustin made it from planks and barrels. Dustin painted from the scaffold, and Lindsay painted from a ladder that was held secure by Brian. The thick oil paint required quite a bit of effort. They reached, and twisted ,and stooped, and did a good job.

All that was left was the concrete. Yea!Back at Rimtarn, Lumae prepared the evening meal. We had been eating Thai food for nearly

two weeks so she decided to prepare a meal of pork roast, potatoes and carrots. It was delicious.

Chapter TenFarewell

Friday was our last day at Hueyleuk. With the dirt work finally finished, it was time to pour the cement. The contractor brought a cement mixer and they had to string wire from the nearest pole down the road to get the electricity to run it. He had a recipe for concrete that was 20 buckets of sand, 16 buckets of rock, one bag of cement, and water until it looked right.

The rock and sand had been delivered and piled up near the road, which, if you remember, is

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down a steep slope from the church. We had two bucket brigades that day. One going up the hill with sand and rock, the other inside the church with concrete. Out in the hot sun, Big John, Brian, and David shoveled and passed up the rock and sand to Pastor Curtis who dumped them into the mixer. When it was ready, the contractor poured the concrete out on the ground and Pastor Josh shoveled it into buckets. It moved down the bucket line until it reached the front to Suzanne. She emptied them where the contractor pointed, and returned them to Dustin who started them headed down the line going the other direction. Suzanne's father owns a concrete business so it was not her first time to work with concrete. She dumped buckets all day long.

We were just getting started when they ran out of water. Sam took David, Brian, Eldred, and all the water drums they could find, about 3 kilometers down the road to the stream. It took 2 more trips to the river before the concrete floor was finished.

While we waited for the water, Lindsay, Geralyn and I had Bible School. Today I brought the left overs of all of the stories and crafts. Soon we had 20 children, all working intently on their favorite project. We also had 4 mothers, 3 grandmothers, and 1 father come. The Pastor's wife came. She was studying one of the sticker pages of the nativity and pointing out the figures to her friend. Shepherds and sheep. Three kings. Baby Jesus. She nodded in approval.

After awhile I could no longer deny my condition. It was my turn to be ill. I went to the Pastor's hut to lie down. His wife pulled one of the mats out from it's plastic bag and got me a small pillow. She covered me with 2 blankets even though it was a warm day. I was too ill to protest. Soon Lindsay joined me. She wasn't feeling well either. Together we rested on the mat and prayed it would all pass.

Since it was the last day of the work project, the members of the church were preparing the evening meal. Thai food has a lot of preparation. It takes all day to prepare a large meal. Most of Thai food involves grease. They love to fry. The smell of everything frying was hard for me to take in my nauseous state.

Below us I could hear the Pastor singing with the children who were to be baptized that day. I wished I could be singing with the children. Between loads of concrete, they took one truck load of villagers and one truck load of team members and went to the river to have the baptismal service. Some people lined up along the banks, while others watched from a nearby bridge. Samuel did the baptizing. He called the children out into the water one at a time. He had them sit down in a few inches of water that reached their waste while sitting. He prayed for them, then dunked them backwards under the water. A small girl decided she wanted to join in the fun and went running out into the water. Samuel picked her up and told her she would have to wait to be baptized. Everyone laughed at her enthusiasm. She was a petite child with a picture of a mouse on her T-shirt. From then on, everyone called her “Baby Mouse”. The crowd sang together, and then everyone went by and shook hands with those who had been baptized. I was very sorry to miss it all.

Lumae made lunch. We could hear the tired men grumbling around with each other and I wished I could get up and serve them. I couldn't. After they had gone, Lindsay decided she was ready to get up. Lumae wanted us to eat and finally Lindsay agreed to a piece of bread. I knew I could not tolerate anything.

The work continued at the church throughout the afternoon. When the last bucket was emptied and the concrete smoothed out, our work project was pronounced “finished”. The church congregation and team members enjoyed one last meal together. They had fried chicken and pumpkin soup along with their stir fired vegetables and rice. David got out the balloons and twisted swords, swan hats and animals, much to the delight of the children. We divided up the flannel graph pictures and other school supplies between the Pastor's wife for Sunday School, and the DS's wife to take back to the Bible college.

Samuel had us all gather on the road in front of the church. There he thanked the team for

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coming and prayed for the church. Eddie made a very eloquent speech and told them how much they all meant to us. We all happily contributed to an offering for the church.

It was time to say goodbye to Hueyleuk. Many of the villagers came out to bid us farewell. One little boy yelled to David and Samuel translated his plea of “Bring more balloons next time!” The team loaded up in the open air taxi. I rode with Samuel and Lumae. The church looked beautiful as we passed by. White walls, a blue roof, and a cross on top. They will be able to start services there soon. The people smiled and waved to us. The children ran behind and waved their balloons at us. We passed the hut of “Baby Mouse”. She was sitting on the floor of a covered porch and she smiled and waved too. The last thing I saw as we left Hueyleuk was a small child behind a bamboo hut, blowing bubbles from a hot pink bottle that had a cross on top. Connections.

David led the devotions that night. I stayed in bed.

Chapter ElevenHeaded Home

On Saturday, we headed back to Chiang Mai. The new day brought new illness. Several of the team members felt poorly. Some of us spent the afternoon resting, some doing their last minute shopping. I was excited to be back to the hotel with hot water, and only slightly surprised when the hot water ran cold two minutes into my shower.

That evening, the team met with Rolf Kleinfield. He serves as Field Director for Southeast Asia for the Church of the Nazarene. Several people on the team knew Rolf from his earlier years as Associate Pastor at West Side Church of the Nazarene in Wichita. He led the teens there when our daughters were in the teen group. They adored Rolf and Debbie.

He thanked us for coming to Thailand, and for being a part of Work and Witness. He filled us in on his wife's health condition, (She has been back in the states since May due to a heart condition.) then explained some of what was happening all over the Southeast Asia district.

Last year, when we heard that Rolf and Debbie were going to Thailand, it seemed so exotic and unknown, kind of scary. Now, when we hear they are living in Bangkok, we just think “Ok, they are in Bangkok.” One of the benefits of Work and Witness is the new perspective you gain about the world. Though food, and clothes, and customs may be different, people all over the world are pretty much the same. They work and dream. They take pride in their families and accomplishments. They suffer through tragedies, and progress through inspiration. I am reminded of the Walt Disney song “It's A Small World After All”. We are different, we are the same.

Though David and I were only up to having banana shakes, Rolf and Suzanne joined us in the hotel restaurant and we had a nice time catching up.

Our journey back to Bangkok was on a VIP bus. It was very nice and even had a stewardess who brought us snacks and lunch. The trip takes 9 hours. The stewardess played movies, which were of course, in Thai. The first was an American movie. It was funny to see our popular actors, but hearstrange voices speaking Thai.

I am still recovering from the second movie. It was violent. It was gory. It was like spending two hours in Hell. I implored Sam to not let her start any more movies. When he talked to her, she said she was required to play the movies the bus line provided for the trip. He told her that if she put another violent movie on, he would turn it off.

Sam explained that there are no censors in Thailand. He said that the movie we just watched was what the children of Thailand were being exposed to all the time in movies and video games. That really got to me.

We had just spent two weeks experiencing the beauty and hospitality of Thailand, and forgotten

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that Thailand also has a dark side. It has a history of human trafficking, pornography, and child abuse. Because of that dreadful movie, I will never forget how desperately the people of Thailand need our prayers.

It is a long trip home. We boarded a plane in Bangkok at 6:30 am on February 1st. The flight to Tokyo takes 5 and ½ hours. We had a couple of hours of layover in Tokyo. The flight of Seattle takes 8 and ½ hours. There, we had a 3 hour layover. The flight to Denver takes 3 hours. Another 2 hour layover. The flight to Wichita takes just over an hour. We got to Wichita at 7:30 pm on February 1st. This is only possible because of the 22 times lines that we crossed! It felt like the Feb 1st that would never end, but we were home, and home is a good place to be.

Chapter TwelveWe Did Our Best

“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead.” James 2:14-17

Samuel emailed us last night. He thanked us again, and said the people of Hueyleuk will be talking about us for a long time. He urged us not to forget them. How could we forget? We did our best, and that is what God requires of each of us. I shall end this letter dear Dorothy, with Philoma's final sentiment to Maggie;

“Lovingly yours in joyful service,”

Cindi

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