The past couple of days have been kinda hard on my heart. But in a good way. Reading newsletters and blogs, attending devos, recounting the beauty of my summer to friends I haven’t seen in awhile, all starts to flood my mind with images of the Cambodian people I love, of rice fields and dusty roads, and certainly plenty of mixed emotions. Of course that’s normal. Normal to feel a little out of place when you’ve hopped around from Cambodia one week, to Thailand the next, to home the next, and finally off to Abilene to get right back into the swing of things at school. I feel a little unsettled, but am starting to see that maybe that’s okay, maybe it helps me keep looking around me. I haven’t exactly sat down and had a moment of closure over all that I’ve experienced these past two months. So after a few days of settling in here, I’m learning to focus on where I am and who is around me, but also to not simply push other places and faces out of my mind. (Side note: I’m eating peanut butter while writing this, that has to be some kind of subconscious thing right?)
I’ve been really challenged the past few times I’ve been in Christian community by speakers to love the “least of these”, to open my eyes to those around me. Just the other night at a dinner for the incoming freshmen Honors students, during a lesson pointed at them, but apparently also for me, Dr. Johnson said “If you want to find Jesus, look all around you.” Yes, I’m sad that when I look around me now that I don’t see Cambodian children running up to me or standing in line for their snack, or even those pestering tuk tuk drivers trying to give me a ride, but that doesn’t mean that I leave ministry in Cambodia. It means I learn from ministry in Cambodia.
But more on that in a minute.
First, a recap.
So as we wrapped up in Phnom Penh before heading to Thailand, we rode out with the staff one last time in the SNACK truck and experienced a true day on the job for them. We visited our favorite villages and soaked up all the joy of our new friends before driving home. We are hoping it was just a “see you later” rather than a goodbye, but we have no idea what’s in store for us, for what God has is store for us. But the following day the plane ride came and we landed in beautiful Chiang Mai, Thailand.
We absolutely loved getting to wrap up our trip in Thailand. We had a day to explore the city and shop around, a day to kayak 17 km (10 miles) through the Chiang Dao forest, which was so fun, and a day for an elephant show, and most importantly, an elephant ride. After that, we headed for the resort where the Asian Missions forum was being held. The place had many lush and huge gardens that provided a serene background to the great sense of family and community found in the meetings and reunions between missionaries. The singing in English was incredible, as these people who normally are speaking one of a multitude of Asian languages joined together on common ground to praise our great God.
It was nice to rest in Thailand because once we hopped on the plane headed home we were in for a long flight, especially as anticipation started building. So ready to see our sweet families, yet leaving another behind.
So. Cambodia was SO great. I’m so thankful to have had this incredible opportunity to experience new people, language, food, and ways to serve.
I’ve learned authenticity of faith in the unreserved prayers and singing of fellow Christian brothers and sisters. I’ve learned the simplicity of joy in spinning around with children in my arms and in their beautiful laughter. I’ve learned that there is peace in the fact that God is in control of the lives of these children and people I’ve met and love and had to leave. I’ve learned that this work really does align with my passions. I’ve learned it is often worth the wait and the dusty, bumpy road because there are blessings at the end, but also along the way, found in simple conversation and in the beauty just outside the window. And I have definitely learned that God is at work in Cambodia and learned to better understand and share His love for children of all nations.
Thank you so much for your support, encouragement, and prayers.
And now it’s time to, as Bob Goff says, “Love God. Love people. Do stuff.”
(Google translator tells me that means Shine Jesus Shine in Khmer.) July is flying by. I just can’t believe we only have a week and a half left here. And then adventures in Thailand before heading back to the good ol’ U.S. of A. This past week we got to get back to being regulars in the countryside. And we also got to have “a day in the life of” swap with our friends Cassie and Sarah.
We started off the week by going out to two villages. We assessed the height and weight of kids at the second village,Ta Lork. This means that we weighed them on a scale and then had them stand against a World Health Organization weight-to-height chart. By lintersecting the child’s height and weight you are able to categorize them into a green, yellow, red, or dark red area which represent good, needs improvement, bad, or the most stunted and malnourished. This is super interesting to see if the snacks are proving effective and to see where the most need is among the villages. Sharon has had the staff assess once before, but many of the stats seemed to be somewhat inaccurate and there was a large change in which kids were attending the program. This is a new aspect that Sharon is working with so we did our best to get accurate results this time around so as to better track growth for the next period. In Cambodia, asking a child their name and age proves a little more difficult than you would think. Often birthdays are measured by how many Khmer New Years a child has celebrated (that’s in April by the way). Also, a girl may be simply referred to as “srey” which means girl among her family and many are named accordingly. For example, there are more than a few Srey Po’s (little sister) out there. So besides this confusing tidbit, we made great headway! We went back out and measured on Thursday, this time at Prey Ta Teong and Ra. After gathering courage to hold a crazy pet monkey on my arm at the first village (random, but true) we recruited one of the older girls there, Li Hoa, who is doing very well with her English studies and is a great helper, to write down results at Prey Ta Teong. After measuring and feeding all the kids, we dropped her off and headed over to Ra to repeat our methods. The villages we measured on Thursday had many more children in the red zones. They are farther out from the city and it just pulls at my heart to see a child that you think is 8 and find out they are actually 12. Once they miss the critical window of nutrition at a young age it is hard for them to catch up.
As for Tuesday, we went out to see Cassie and Sarah teach English at the Bible school they are interning for. They did a great job and the students were so receptive. We had a fun time walking down to the riverfront with them during the afternoon break. We got to see the little fishing boats that double as houses and see another way of life here in Cambodia. Another way of living in poverty, but working hard and having strong family bonds and striving for joy. We eventually headed back to the building for the children’s English lessons that happen at night. After a few songs and a short lesson, it was lettuce wraps (lok lak in Khmer) for dinner and then a trip to DQ. Yes, that is what we like about Cambodia (and Texas). It was a great day of community and we were excited to have them in the countryside with us just a few days later.
They came out on Friday with us and (after a little bit of a traffic delay caused by some political party excitement) we made it out to show them a few different villages. We ended the day at Throul Pang Petrea. Oh goodness, these kids are adorable. And crazy. Our little friends remembered us and jumped up and down and then a lot of spinning in circles and tickling and high-fiving ensued from then on. I got the little troublemakers to sit in my lap for the lesson and then we were back up and at ‘em. Sarah and Cassie really enjoyed getting to feed the kids and I enjoyed having a break and getting to talk to and play with several of the kiddos. After leaving TPP, we decided to climb a bajillion stairs and enjoy a little overlook out in the countryside. It was fun showing them what we have been up to the past six weeks and letting them enjoy the beauty of the countryside and the way of life out there. We ended up spending the night with Cassie and Sarah and having a really great weekend with them. Its been great to share experiences from different areas of ministry, but in the same culture with them over the past few weeks.
I have loved getting to be apart of what is just taking off in Cambodia. I want each and every child to not only grow physically, but to grow spiritually, to share in the promise of our great Father. But I am having to rely on the Lord’s timing and the fact that I don’t know when, or even if, I’ll be back to this beautiful place. It’s a hard thing to grapple with, such a great unknown. We have the passion to serve, but don’t know where it’ll take us. We are searching for the balance between trusting in Him for His will to be revealed and being bold enough to move forward with what we think He is calling us to. We are waiting on the Lord, but ready to keep moving and share His love.
For now my prayer and song is: “Jesus, Light of the World shine upon us. Set us free by the truth You now bring us. Shine on me, Shine on me. Shine, Jesus shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory. Blaze spirit blaze, set our hearts on fire. Flow river flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy. Send forth Your Word, Lord, and let there be light!”
Well, that brings us to Sunday. After waking up to a couple of pieces of glorious banana bread delivered for breakfast by the one and only Sharon, we hopped in a tuk tuk and headed off to the Siem Reap Church of Christ. We were greeted by friendly faces and lots of kids. The kiddos are from a children’s home that’s just a couple streets away. Though they weren’t so keen on sitting still, they got to go to a kids’ Bible class and get some energy out and when they came in for worship, they clambered up into our laps. The little guy that sat with me played with my hands and watch the whole time. As the service passed by in Khmer, I sat content surrounded by family and as each prayer came along, I’d fold his hands into mine. Simple reminders of love and joy are always welcome, especially when something so special becomes mundane. The awesomeness of being a part of worship in another language can drag on if you lose focus of what’s happening. I am learning the value of keeping a sense of wonder, rather than becoming complacent. God has created such beauty and it becomes so easy to walk right past it when we get caught up in the to-do lists and routine of life.
After church, we headed to the Blue Pumpkin to indulge in more American food for lunch. We ended up getting ice cream and hanging out there with Dan and Ravy for a couple hours. Once 3:00 rolled around we headed back to the church to encourage Marie Claire as she led a women’s Bible study. Afterwards, us interns were chatting with a couple of the girls there and one of them, a girl our age named Polly, was doing so great with her English and asked us about our families back home. I said there were four in my family, only one sister, small family huh? I figured typical Cambodian family, I’m sure she has more siblings. True, two sisters; but how many in her family? Three. No parents. She had brought her sisters, ages 13 and 7 to class. Not only is she taking care of them physically, but also making sure they get fed spiritually. It is so amazing to see the courage of these people. To see joy in lives that have endured much more hardship than I have.
After Bible study, we took a little nap back at the hotel before heading off for a surprise dinner and Apsara dance show. It was a seemingly endless buffet of mainly Khmer foods- so good! And then we enjoyed our last night in town as the performers told stories through their dances. Then our group headed back to the Night Market to pick up a couple last things and to walk off a little bit of our feast. My highlight was the fact that I managed to also enjoy a delicious banana and chocolate filled crepe. I’m glad they don’t have those near our house here in Phnom Penh because that could be bad! (Also: Khmers don’t quite do dessert like we do in America- it’s all puddings and jellies, hence the need for the crepe.) Well, we closed the Night Market down. As we decided it was probably time to hit the hay, the lights started turning off behind us, so we deemed that a success.
The next morning after enjoying brunch at an Anthro-inspired little cafe we headed for the bus. Now don’t expect to just hop on a bus here in Cambodia. After hopping off the shuttle bus they tried to usher us on to our ride home. Except the bus numbers didn’t match our ticket. And we were waiting on a man on a moto to chase us down because apparently the hotel just forgot to collect Sarah and Cassie’s payment. Whoops. But what’s Cambodia without a few struggles? Oh wait, that’s life anywhere. So after being reminded that these little bumps along the way make it memorable and help us grow, we settled down into our seats. Cue the Khmer heartbreak music videos.
Well, after more than our allotted six hours on the bus and a lot of rain we made it back home. This past week we got to visit the last three of the twelve villages that the SNACK program visits in rotations! It’s great seeing how many children are reaping the benefits of this program. Nothing particularly noteworthy happened during our time in the countryside, but I saw lots of help going around between siblings or grandmas as they helped the little ones with their cups of milk and bread. And ya know what? That is actually an awesome display of love. So rather than pass it by, feel free to smile. Because as Brennan put it in the Ragamuffin Gospel, “God intended for us to discover His loving presence in the world around us.” He created this world for us to delight in and to remind us of Him.
So our Siem Reap trip was last weekend and shows about ancient villages, tomb raider temples, attacking monkeys, shopping, and feet devouring fish were to be had. And they were had.
Thursday consisted of a SIX hour bus trip, so while all of you were preparing to eat hot dogs and do fireworks and sparklers, Shanleigh, Sarah, Cassie, Theary, Sharon, and I were watching strange music videos about Cambodian broken hearts and nerds that never got the girl and then randomly Justin Beiber's "Boyfriend" video (which was surprisingly terrible in both quality and morale value). To be fair, Shanleigh and Theary did make 4th of July cookies before we left the house and they were delicious. But, we began our unorthodox SIX hour bus trip and arrived in Siem Reap about midnight. We then went straight to our hotel and got some much needed beauty sleep before our big day at the Culture Village.
The next day, Friday, we made a semi early start, had breakfast at the Blue Pumpkin, and split with Sharon because she wasn't feeling well. So, Cassie, Theary, Shan, Sarah, and I trekked on by ourselves to the Culture Village.
For those of you who have no idea what that is, and I'm guessing that is most of you, it is like an amusement park that puts on shows instead of rides that paint a picture of the past and present cultures of the people that live in Cambodia. When we got there, we discovered we had shown up like 30 minutes shy of the first show so we decided to use the time before the next show (like two hours) to explore a bit. First we went through the wax people museum which was super cool and slightly freaky. Then we just walked aimlessly about and ended up in some kind of Wonderland/garden. I'm still not quite sure what happened. But we took lots of goofy pictures, did some archery, and we saw a cow, so it safe to say that things were going pretty great.
Like, why are there giant eggs here? Idk either, but we took pics with them
Me and Theary! :)
Wonderland?
...Why? hahahaha
Yes, you may call us Katniss. I am AK. Alaskan Katniss.
ACU girls! :)
Everyone was so tired of the heat hahaha
Getting back to my roots...she wasn't that friendly
Again. WHY?
For real though, the archery was cool. Brought back all those memories from Carolina Creek from last summer! It cost a dollar for 10 arrows and I am not ashamed to say that I shot 30 arrows. AND on my first time I won a prize! I hit the bullseye once and the sin area (now there's something you can unpack, when you hit anything but the bullseye it's called sin, yes we did use that as a processing tool at camp haha) four times so I won two free bottles of water. Well after I discovered there were prizes to be won, my competitiveness shot through the roof and I had to try to get that $100 dollars or at least the $10 + a tshirt. Let's just say I decided to quit after last 20 arrows and leave it at that.
My prize!
Next up we saw the Lounging Buddha and chilled with him for a little bit.
Planking like a boss
After that it was about time for the first show so we went to that. It lasted about an hour and I think it was dancing and celebrating the times back when they did fighting for fun and there were some amazing contortionists. Also, I'm pretty sure there was an actual cock fight on stage at some point and I'm not really sure why...
After that explored a bit more, may or may not have gotten a little lost, and then went to the next show, A Traditional Khmer Wedding. We showed up right as it was starting and wouldn't ya know it, there were front row seats open! Score. Grabbed those and settled in to watch the show. As it began, the host pulled a Cambodian man from the crowd to play the groom's father. He came rather reluctantly so the audience was laughing and laughing and laughing. The girls and I were too... Until a man came up to me and said, "You come?" beckoning to the stage. I looked behind me and Shan and Cassie are staring down at the ground giggling and stealing glances at me.
Now you're wondering if I went. I hope you all know me well enough.
I stood up and said, "Yes!" and almost tripped on my way to the stage trying to take my shoes off, which was like two feet mind you. Solid.
Well, I went through the wedding ceremony and gave my son what I think was a blessing with my silent Cambodian husband and then danced for joy with the rest of the wedding party. Needless to say, I rocked it. Everyone knows I'm like the best dancer in the world.
After that truly hilarious experience and having multiple tour golf carts full of Japanese and Chinese people yell, "You good Mommy!" at me (celeb status, hollah), we decided to call it a day because everyone was beat and the big show wasn't for like five more hours. So, we all went back to the hotel and rested for a bit. Then we went to a super good pizza place followed by delicious ice cream, and then hit up the night market! It was super cool. I finished up my gift shopping there:) The night market was just like a regular market in the day except that it was open only at night...ergo NIGHT market. They also had shows going on with what I thought were scandalously dressed dancing girls. Don't worry, they were just scandalously dressed dancing "ladymen." Not gonna lie, that was a little scary and definitely different haha after the night market we went back to the hotel to catch some sleep before a 4:45am start out to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat, one of the temples we planned to visit.
The next morning we all rolled out of bed and started our temple day. Our plan was to start really early, beat the crowds, and get the big temples done and seen in one day so we only had to get a cheap one day pass. First up was Angkor Wat, probably the most famous. For those who do not know what a Wat (haha) is, it is a pagoda, a place where monks live and this one is one of the most famous ancient ones.
Sunrise
Chillin in the baths...what they used to be at least
Next up was Bayon. This one was famous for its many different faces on the sides of the top of the temples. It was more in ruins than Angkor Wat was but still beautiful.
It was at this temple that The Incident happened. After walking around all day and getting up early, a girl is bound to be hungry. So I pulled out my cheese crackers and was munching away as we waited for our tuktuk driver. And these ADORABLE little monkeys come up to us. Actually, quite close. Actually, alarmingly close. And then Sharon tells us that we need to be careful because the monkeys are known for being very aggressive and will come up to you and steal things right from your hands including food, cameras, and phones. So I put up everything but my snacks and then this monkey jumps up on the post next to the one I'm sitting on. Lemme set the stage for you. There is a metal sign about two feet in front of me, my back is to the monkey so he can't see my snack, and I'm turned talking to Sharon or listening to something someone was saying. Suddenly, there's something heavy on my back, I lurch forward and whack my nose on the sign in front of me and out of the corner of eye I see Sharon raise her giant water bottle and swing towards my back. And then it was over. You say hello monkey, I say goodbye monkey. Sadly, we did not get an action shot. But, I have learned my lesson and put all possessions away when I'm around monkeys now. Which strangely is a lot more often than I thought...
Next up we went to Tuh Prome, where the classic Tomb Raider was filmed. Those movies hold a special place in my heart because I remember watching them with my dad and me thinking they were a pretty big deal haha anyways, this one was super cool because of the trees. There are giant trees everywhere and giant I mean GIANT tree roots wrapped around pretty much everything. Absolutely beautiful.
After we got done playing Laura Croft and buying some paintings, we headed out. After that temple everyone was pretty beat so we called it a day and headed back to the hotel to rest some before supper. Once we were adequately rested up, we went to a different night market for a bit. And then we happened upon Dr. Fish.
These fish eat, yes EAT, the dead skin off of your feet. I won't say I want to do it again, but it was fun to experience. After that the girls got pedicures, but mine was still good so I got a 30 min foot massage instead. For two dollars. And it was amazing. You have permission to commence your jealously. America should really get on this bandwagon of super low prices for things. Lower than Walmart, lets go people.
I don't even have my foot in there yet!
As long as I didn't think about it for too long, I could keep my feet in for the 15 mins
After Dr. Fish we went to the night market again and got kebabs for super which I hadn't had since Oxford at Ali's! There's a pretty good place in Abilene, but it was a little different. After that we called it a night! Top night, top night.
And Sunday is...
Shan's turn to talk:) So read our next blog to find out the rest!
Hope you're all doing fantastic! Love and miss you all dearly.
Peace & Blessings.
Stay classy.
Mallory Jean
PS. This is from a few weekends ago from the Riverside, but this guy does aerobics every night with all these people and they just copy what he does...so we thought we'd join in...enjoy...
