14: blessed

Occasionally, I have fleeting moments of guilt when I have experiences ripped straight from the pages of National Geographic or the Lonely Planet Guide. Here I am, half-way around the world, a missionary (admit it, you just imagined a mud hut and bucket shower)... But in this journey, I have also been given singularly incredible opportunities to revel in God's magnificent creation.

Yesterday in my quiet time, I read the following verse from 1 Timothy 6:17b, "...Put [your] hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." I think that as long as God is in His proper place, as the giver and provider of the beauty in His creation, it's okay to enjoy it. In fact, he wants us to! Pastor Doug used to always pray that "God would enjoy watching us enjoy His creation." Well, enjoy it, we did!

Today I had the privilege of spending the whole day with three of the folks in my small group and one of their friends in the Lopburi province.

[L-R: Jum, Jo, Aey, Thep and I]

The day started off visiting an area famous for their beautiful sunflowers. We found out upon arrival that we were a week early... but some of the flowers had bloomed, so we took advantage of them in our photo op!

After that, we had lunch on a canal... actually on the canal. 

[The "bridge" to our floating lunch]

[Jum, Aey and her husband, Thep and I]

[Finished... and full!]

After that, we went to a dam, where I purchased some fresh sunflower seeds (if you come to Spotswood on Dec. 15th, maybe I'll share!). Then it was off to our unplanned dayscursion adventure at... Monkey Temple! I'm not sure why "give a monkey a piggy back ride" never made it on my bucket list... (what was I thinking!??) It's now there and checked off.

The highlight of my day was definitely the wonderful company I was with... but the monkeys were a close second! ;)

[The Guardian of Monkey Temple] 

[Jum and the baby monkeys. They were in search of new friends... or more food!]

[Jo and the monkeys]

[They were everywhere... on the streets outside, climbing poles, in apartment windows, crazy!]

[I was taking a picture of some of the monkeys when this one jumped on my leg!]

[Monkeys got the memo, free rides for all!]

Can I just reiterate how happy I am that God made monkeys? What a lovely lot of creatures. I am so thankful for the sweet friends God has given me here, who treated me to such an incredible day. I am so blessed.

Prayer Request: Our entire small group will be going to spend the afternoon together tomorrow (Sunday). Please pray that God would open up conversations about Himself, and that He would continue to bind us together as a group. I am hoping this trip will really help them to connect with Matt and Alli, as they'll be leading once I leave.

15: missions accomplished

When Laura was in Bangkok, she became friends with a girl named Carter, who introduced her to two ministries: Second Chance Bangkok and Antique Cafe. I had never been, although Claire and Laura were big proponents of both. Today, Steph and I decided to try to find both of these locations and simultaneously knock out some Christmas shopping!

I wish I could take credit for our accomplished missions of the day... however, they would have been a complete failure without the many Thais who stopped to help, walk, talk and escort us around (sometimes in circles!) but eventually to where we needed to be. A big thank you to the lovely nationals, all 17+ of them, who helped us find these places.

Mission #1: Second Chance Bangkok- a ministry in the Klong Toey slums

Today was a comedy of poor directions. First there was our taxi driver who got us to the general vicinity of Second Chance, but said the address we had was for a region rather than a place. He gave up trying and dropped us off at this lovely green building, instead. The bright side? He gave us a discount on our taxi fare because he couldn't get us to the right location.

Inside the building (it seemed to be like a Thai-DMV), a team of no less than 5 green-shirted employees looked at our map, called numbers, and tried (with no success) to help us get to Second Chance. Finally, one of the men drew a map and started talking in Thai to the women. I couldn't understand much, but he did say "not correct" three times... which of course, didn't inspire any confidence on my part. After that, two employees took us down to the street, (and, after talking with two women on the street) loaded Steph and I on the back of a moto (yes, all three of us on one moto) and off we went. He had to stop approximately three times to get directions... and eventually dropped us off in front of a building in Klong Toey that was not Second Chance and drove off. 

The two guards there tried to help us, too. By God's provision, one of the guards mentioned "Helping Hands" which is the parent ministry of Second Chance and name-dropped Poo (short for "Chompoo"), who works for HH in her ministry, "Cooking with Poo". After lots of nodding and "yes yes-ing", the guard walked us to her place. There, we explained our mission, as well as our twisted tail of failed attempts to the souvenir shop at Second Chance. 

[Cooking with Poo's Culinary School in the heart of the Klong Toey slums]

[Can you read the sign on the left? Gotta love a good pun!]

Poo was incredibly sweet and friendly. Her English was also excellent. She led us through the meandering slums back to the main street, flagged us two motos, and sent us on our way to Second Chance. I'm so thankful that God placed her there, and that she was willing to help us!!

[Poo leading the way!]

Once we arrived to Second Chance, it took a couple more tries to get upstairs to the souvenir shop. However, the employees were very gracious and allowed us to go shopping, even though it was past closing time (our trip there ended up taking 3.5 hours... whoops).

I don't want to post any big spoiler pictures of my purchases, as Christmas is coming and some of my readers will be receiving gifts from there... but I will share one picture. Below (left) is a Christmas card made out of recycled fabric and paper. The employees of Second Chance up-cycle donated items and resell them. Cute, right?

If you are in the Bangkok area and want to go gift shopping, they will be selling items at the Sirikit Convention Center on Dec 11th.

Mission #2: Antique Cafe

I won't bore you with more details of our lost cabbie, confused moto drivers and random valet who eventually helped us find the Cafe... (Although I am going to include directions for future sojourners!) While we did find it, it had, unfortunately, closed an hour before we arrived. Perhaps I'll try this one another time!

[Ride the BTS to Phrom Phong, take Exit 5 and continue down the street (in the direction it pops you out) for about a 5-7 minute walk]

[When you see Au Bon Pain, on your right-side, turn right.]

[When you see this sign on your left-hand-side, turn left]

[Antique Cafe will be on your left. Warning: They close early, and aren't open on the weekends!]

16: butterflies and such

Today started off meeting my Mongolian friend, Tseka, at Mo Chit station (BTS) to introduce her to my favorite park circuit! After walking around JJ Park and pointing out Queen Sirikit Park, we made our way to the Train Park. Here we stopped for some lunch, and I was treated to delicious "nam tok" and sticky rice. Yum!

In the Train Park, there is a free butterfly garden. I've run past it many, many times, and always think, "I'll come back to see it someday..." Well. Today was that someday. Loved getting to see all the cool butterflies (and moths) and, in true Thai fashion, photograph everything!

Today was the end of Week 4 teaching... only two weeks left! After classes tonight, I headed over to Chelsea and Monica's place for their open-house/goodbye party. There was quite a crowd! We stayed until late talking, taking pictures (lest we forget we're in Thailand!) and enjoying some general tom-foolery. Chelsea leaves this weekend, and Monica will leave in a little over a week. They will go back to the States for the holidays and then return to Phuket to begin their work with SHE Ministries.

And, as it's officially Thanksgiving in America, a very happy Thanksgiving to all of you! May your time with your families be sweet and special. Praying that God blesses you richly today with many memories made and moments shared. And, in memory of all us photo-happy folks in Thailand, don't forget to capture some of the moments :)

PS: For a quick pictorial lesson on how we park cars in Thailand, check out Steph's post! [click here]

17: jokes

Thais don't do jokes like we do. Funny things here are mostly physical comedy (think: Mr. Bean). No joke books, no "telling a joke," and definitely no "knock-knock" jokes. As a teacher of English and culture, whenever relevant to the lesson, I try to incorporate a little rabbit trail on knock-knock jokes. After all, who doesn't love a good knock-knock joke?

Well, class after class, term after term, they've died. My classroom has become a graveyard of killed jokes. No one gets them. No one laughs. They just stare at me with these open blank faces that say, "I'm trying, but I don't understand." And so I explain, give examples, draw diagrams, but never have I had success on this topic. You would think after so many failed attempts I would give up. But alas, I only have 17 days left to successfully communicate the idea of jokes to this country. And so, I persevere.

We were talking today about different types of conversationalists, and the topic of the "interrupter" got me thinking about the "interrupting cow knock-knock joke". I decided to try a new approach. This time, I started off with a brief, and comical, history of my long failed attempts of explaining these jokes. From there I moved on to a lesson on "the sympathy laugh." After I was convinced they understood the history and proper use of these laughs, I proceeded to teach them the knock-knock outline and tell them my burner-jokes (you know, the warm up ones- for them to get the hang of it). Then, I finally felt like we were ready for the debut of the "interrupting cow knock-knock joke."

[For those of you who aren't familiar with this joke. Here's the full three-part version of "the interrupting cow" -- source]

I won some sympathy laughs, so that's worth something! Perhaps someday, a future teacher can build on my work and get all the way to the "interrupting sloth" stage of the joke. But until then, I'll just keep trying!

Do any of you have knock-knock (or general joke) favorites? Please share them below in the comment section. I'd love to have some more recommended/vetted ones for the next time I find myself explaining them in class!!

18: politics

The political situation in Thailand is not great at the moment, and we could really use your prayers! While I don't understand everything that is happening (or why), I have been trying to read a lot to gain a better understanding of it... and it's complicated. A pretty accurate article was posted yesterday which overviews the more recent developments, you can read it here.

[Tens of thousands of protesters gather at Democracy and Victory Monument -- source]

Some articles are a little fear-inducing with phrases like "deteriorating fast", "rising tensions", "increased security", "riot police", and "toppling the government". But, as I keep having to remind myself, God is in control of this, too. Being on the ground with all the political energy steaming from the streets, it'd be easy to work up into a frenzy. But despite the news, the hype and the sheer number of Thais wearing red, white and blue and sporting whistles... they are choosing to remain (with only a few small exceptions) non-violent in their protesting.

The good news is, you always know where they are by the noise! When I got off the BTS at Phaya Thai yesterday, they were marching past the BSC. I took the video below from the BTS platform. The BSC is behind the trees.

However, as of yesterday, the protesters have now begun occupying government buildings in an attempt to force the current prime minister step down, and to establish a new government. This has caused them to set up in all of Bangkok what they call ISA: Internal Security Act (think: martial law), to help contain the situation. It's currently in effect until December 31st.

There is no real threat to foreigners, especially if we avoid rally sites and marches (which, we are doing as much as possible). The plan is for these protest/rallies/occupations to be resolved before the King's birthday (Dec. 5th). As exciting as it is to be on the front lines of history, it would be best for the nation for this to be resolved as quickly and diplomatically as possible.

[Marches throughout the streets hold traffic at a stand-still.] 

[Some of the marchers and "whistle-blowers" -- source]

So, how can you pray?

- Pray for safety. Not only for the foreigners, but also for the Thais protesting, and the riot police and officials working in the occupied government buildings.
- Pray for a peaceful resolution and compromise.
- Pray that God would bring stability and justice to this country.
- Pray that the airport will remain open (in 2008 the protestors shut it down) so that we can fly home on December 14th!

19: water park

Before I left for my brief furlough in the States, and before Claire left Thailand, we had a nice (almost) week-long trip in Chiang Mai that was integral for helping both of us process our past year in Thailand and the experiences we'd had. I wanted for Steph and I to also have something similar... while we didn't have a week to spare for that, we did have a day, today.

The morning started off with a goodbye breakfast with our friend Dylan. Dylan was here when Claire and I first arrived and left the day after the Spotswood #thailandorbust Missions Team of 2012. He has since come back to Thailand to live and study and continue with missions. It really came full circle that we've both been to good-bye parties for each other now!

After breakfast at The Coffee Club, Steph and I headed off to The Mall Bang Kae (we found the fastest way there is by BTS to Wongwian, and then a 100B taxi ride) to spend the morning at a roof top water park! (One of the perks of being in Thailand... every season is good for an outdoor swim!) While on our way to the top floor, we had to walk through "Fantasy Land" which was like a little slice of Disneyland. <3. 

The water park was a total blast... There's little that can make a Liz happier than racing down a treacherous water slide. And tube-flipping. There was a lot of that, too. 

In addition to four giant slides and many kiddie slides (Which were also quite fun... hey! We had to try everything!), there was also a lazy river... complete with a human-car-wash feature. I guess they don't want you to get too lazy on the lazy river. 

Our post-water-day picture! Complete with swim cap forehead lines. Don't laugh, we had to rent swim caps... they're mandatory here.

It can become so easy to race through life without reflection. It's good in different seasons to pause and be circumspect. A lot of good conversations and decisions came out of today. I am thankful that we made time/space this afternoon for thinking and preparing our hearts for what God is moving us towards next. 

20: sabbath

Since the McCaman family is back in the US on furlough, different men on the LifePoint team have been stepping up to preach. Matt preached the past two Sundays, and today, Steve preached from Hebrews 12 about God's unshakeable kingdom. It was a timely reminder that when things/relationships/life around us are in flux and shaking... God is our firm foundation. His promises are solid. We have security in Him. This season I'm in definitely feels a little shaky at times, so being reminded of the steadfastness of God was a good word for me.

[Steve preaching and Turbo translating]

This Sunday was also Chelsea's last week at LifePoint before moving down to Phuket to begin her two year commitment with SHE ministries. Monica will have one more week before moving there. They are both sweet friends, and have been big sources of encouragement to me, as well as my baking comrades. I am excited for all that God will do in and through them during this next season, though!

[L-R: Chelsea, Me, Monica]

After church, at our Community House (formerly known as the Guest House), we had a Thanksgiving dinner and farewell party. The Hoods, our "house parents," are from Australia and had never celebrated Thanksgiving before. Betty introduced us to a Thanksgiving tradition from her family: we all read verses about being thankful to God and then shared one thing we were thankful for. Steph, Luke and I will all be leaving in December, so it was nice to get the "family" together for one last family dinner night. 

[L: Betty, Lorena, Patrick, Ash -- R: Steph, Luke]

Sundays also mean small group! We talked about mankind and our sinfulness this evening, and the discussion was really great! Jum started reading through the Bible yesterday and has already gotten through Genesis and most of Exodus... (wow!) So we also discussed some of the things she read. I am so thankful that Matt and Alli have joined our small group-- they will be leading it when I depart. They are such a wonderful couple, and I know the group will be in good hands. Tonight was Jum's birthday, so I made a cake and we sang and celebrated after group.

[Happy birthday, Jum!]

Last, but not least, my room is pretty spic-n-span at the moment, so I took one final shot-- before I start ripping things off the walls and gifting them away. This is as good as C3's gonna get! Take it in. Also, if you think of it, please pray for my poor A/C. It's been broken since Thursday, and I've resorted to camping in Steph's room (you can pray for her, too!) because my room is too hot to sleep in... sad trombone.

Also, for those of you reading this from Spotswood, in exactly three weeks, I'll be at Spotswood! Can't wait to worship with you all on December 15th :)