SUCCESS!

I finally have something in language school that I can brag a little about:) In Module 3 I am learning how to read and write in Thai along with speaking. Most of the time I feel pretty lost. At this time I have learned how to write 9 long vowel symbols and 24 consonant symbols. On Tuesday the teacher (Khruu Wanthanee) gave us 19 different word dictations and we had to write them in Thai. Guess what??? I was the only one in class who wrote all 19 correctly in THAI!!!! I was so excited!! Khruu Wanthanee even showed the whole class my notebook:) She really tries hard to encourage me because she knows I am struggling. She is a tough teacher but I know she is just what I need. I prayed during my 2 week break that the Lord would give me the teacher that I needed for Module 3 and she is definitely an answer to prayer.

Thanks for reading my blog and rejoicing with me over the small triumphs! I may have set the standard too high for myself--I am not sure that I can do it again but I will sure try!

I had my umbrella today but wasn't prepared for the flood!

After getting caught in the rain 3 times without an umbrella I finally decided that my umbrella goes everywhere with me no matter what the weather looks like when I leave. It is the "hot" season right now but there have been some storms every now and then because of the intense heat. Today was no exception.

When I left language school around 1:00 today the storm was moving in but it had not started to rain yet. I was hoping to make it home before the intense storm started but I only made it to the end of my street and decided to go in the shopping center and eat and just wait for the rain to pass. It was raining really hard that really an umbrella didn't help anyways so I went to Mc'Donalds and ate and did my homework for language school. I stayed there for a little over an hour and the rain had stopped so I decided I would walk home.

I had a big surprise when I walked out of the shopping center and realized my whole road was flooded. The sidewalk was still o.k. but when a car passed on the road the water splashed on the sidewalk. Just remember this water is really dirty. I was wishing that i had my boots but who would have known. The water was almost knee deep in places. I got to a place where I would have to cross a little road and the water was so deep that I wasn't going to do it. One police officer offered to give me a piggy back ride. I laughed and declined the offer. One officer helped me across by me climbing on this rolling thing that I stood on and he pulled across (he had boots to protect his legs:) I was on dry sidewalk again but realized I couldn't make it down the road. A guy who worked at one of the street vendors told me he would take me on his motorcycle so I took him up on the offer.

I made it home without getting too wet. I really don't mind getting wet and would have walked through the water but---it is really dirty water and they do have some really yucky snakes and rats here! Here are a few pictures. Enjoy! Every day is an adventure in Bangkok!

I survived week 1 of Module 3---that is an accomplishment!

I made it through my first week of Module 3 and I didn't cry all week! That is an accomplishment for me! I have a really strict teacher that I am a little scared of at times. She is funny though. She knows I am scared of her and actually keeps telling me in Thai don't be scared of me. She gives me a little "pep" talk in Thai every day about how I just need to ask more questions and be more confident:) It is kind of funny. I have gotten caught a few times asking another American guy in my class a question because I was confused and she looked at me and said in Thai- don't ask your friend ask me.

Every day is an adventure in language school. I have learned how to write 9 long vowels and 14 consonants in Thai this week. It is a difficult process. They do not have any letters so it is almost like drawing a symbol. The hardest thing so far has been remembering where to put the vowels. The vowels are written either above, below, to the right, or to the left of the consonant. It has been a bit of a challenge this week memorizing how to write the symbol, what sound it makes and then where to put the vowel. The teacher gave us a dictation test today and we were not allowed to use our books so we had to do it all from memory. She did them all fairly quickly so I will have to wait until Monday to see how I did.

Speaking Thai is also a great adventure each week. Half of the time I am clueless and it is usually written all over my face. I haven't cried this week yet--and this is really a great accomplishment! I often feel like the "special kid" in class who just doesn't get it. I keep trying though so that counts for something! I will share 1 funny story from class this week and then end because this is getting too long.

We were practicing a sentence pattern in Thai this week where you had to ask the teacher when she finished ______ then please do _____ for me. One of the guys said in thai--when you finish taking a shower will you please wash my clothes. The problem was that for this sentence pattern both of the blanks were things that she was doing for you---so in other words the guy asked the teacher. when you finish giving me a shower will you please wash my clothes--we all laughed for a while on this one.

Lesson of the day--do not try to directly translate from one language to another because it doesn't work!! Sorry for the long post--I am averaging about one a week these days:)

Back on Schedule---I like routine!!

I enjoyed the 2 week vacation from language school but am thankful to be back on schedule! Today I began Module 3--yeah!!! There are different teachers for each module and this time I have a lady (Wathanee) who has taught for 33 years. She definitely has experience. She speaks a little fast but I actually understood a few of her jokes today and followed most of what she was saying. There are always moments when I have no idea what is going on but I still love being in school.

Today was also my first introduction to learning how to write Thai letters! There are 44 consonant symbols and the vowels go in weird places in the words. Sometimes the vowel goes above, below, or beside the consonant--yikes! I learned how to write 4 vowels today and I feel like I am in art class. There is an art to making these letters and art was never my strong subject in school. I had to write the 4 vowels over and over on one whole page for homework.

I hope I survive Module 3:) I need my brain to keep storing information even if it is full.

on a side note--I also started learning how to play the guitar. I have always wanted to learn so one of my friends from church started teaching me on Sunday afternoon. My poor fingers were so red and irratated from the strings but it is lots of fun. I learned a few chords and hope to be able to play a few songs soon. I will let you know how it progresses.

I am glad to be back on a schedule even if it does mean I have to get up at 6 a.m.

My first field trip out of Bangkok!

I finally had a chance to do a few "touristy" things outside of Bangkok today. I went with some American friends and we did it with a travel company. Of course it meant that I had to get up at 5 a.m. in order to be at the hotel and ready to go by 6:30 a.m. but it was a really fun day!

The all day tour included going to the floating market, wood carving place, elephant park, and rose garden. We went in a van and had our very own tour guide. It was quite funny though because our tour guide did not speak good English so I really didn't understand him at all.

I am going to include some pictures from the day. I bought a very Asian looking hat--try not to laugh. I did wear it today to keep the sun out because it was an extremly hot day!! However, the hat will now be used as a cool wall ornament hanging in my apartment. Enjoy the pictures--it was fun to be a "tourist" for the day and to journey out to see some of the countryside!

Life is just sometimes hard!

I am sure many of you would say "amen" to my title. Lately things just seem hard. I moved into a new apartment a little over a week ago and my new friends here are ants. It could definitely be worse but I have to admit I am tired of seeing ants everywhere!! I bought spray but it only kills them for the moment and others always come back. It is a minor inconvenience but sometimes it just gets overwhelming and i'm ready to give up fighting the battle!

Another lesson I am learning is a cultural thing that I am having a hard time adjusting to lately. One thing in Thai culture is that they never want to offend anyone so they never say "no". The problem is that they tell you "yes" but then they don't show up. Later they will apologize for not coming but they knew all along they weren't coming. It is really hard for me because when I make plans with someone I keep them. If something changes I call them and let them know but that is not the way things work here. I keep reminding myself I am in their culture so I have to adapt but some things just aren't easy.

I am thankful though that I serve a Lord who never changes!! He is the same and is always there right on time:)!! He is there when ants are climbing across my computer screen and when friends don't show up reminding me to put all my trust in Him!

Praying for Peace

Many of you already know of the current situation here in Bangkok. About a week ago some protestors arrived here but within the past few days it has turned into a more serious situation. Military tanks moved in here Sunday afternoon to try to regain control.

Tomorrow I was supposed to go with some friends to the beach for the Thai New Year but we had to cancel our plans because it is not safe. All of the Songkran (Thai New Year) festivities have been cancelled.

I am safe and sound in my apartment reading all of the latest updates on-line. One of the best sources is the Bangkok Post. It is in English and keeps things updated almost every hour.

Please pray for peace quickly here.

Easter Sunday in Bangkok

Today didn't quite feel like Easter here in Bangkok for many reasons. One reason is because there were very few people at church this morning because most of them have left to be with their family for the Thai New Year (Songkran). We celebrated it as a church last Sunday.

The second reason is because around 3:00 this afternoon I was told that Bangkok was now in a state of emergency and that military tanks were situated in several places and were ready to act on the protestors if necessary. I had to take the subway home in order to avoid all of the action. This is not a time to want to be in on or see the action. I live only a few miles from where most of it is taking place so I will be staying home tomorrow.

When I arrived home this evening I took some time to read in the Gospels the story of Jesus death and resurrection. I was reminded of the sacrifice that He made for each of us and that He wants us to tell others about His great love!

I hope that everyone had a very wonderful Easter!

Easter Celebration at Canaan

We celebrated Easter a little early here in Thailand. There is a big Thai holiday coming up called "Songkran" and many people go home to be with their families so we had our Easter service a week early. We had special music using the chimes and some special singing. We also had some visitors!! One of the college students that I met at BSC on Friday nights came to the Easter service. Canaan (my church) was pretty full for the special service! After the service we had a special lunch and then just spent time hanging out. Around 3:00 a terrible storm came through which seems to be the norm these days. We had to wait for it to stop pouring down rain before we could go to the Easter concert at Lumphini park.

The Easter Concert was put on by the Church of Joy--the same church that did the Valentine's Day concert. There were lots of people at the park for the concert! The concert went from 5-9 and many of the singers are famous Thai singers who became believers. One of the guys that sang is from my church. It was a lot of fun! I love listening to praise and worship music in any language!

Now I have a 2 week holiday from language school and am going to spend most of it resting, studying Thai, and hanging out with friends. I am sure it will all go by quickly!

An "American" lunch

I have been planning for weeks who to invite and what to make for what I titled an "american" lunch. I wanted to invite people that I know from all different places--church, language school, Friday night life, and Sripatum Universtiy. The list got fairly lengthy and I think I probably invited around 20 people or so. Several of them were busy for a variety of different reasons so it ended up being 10 that came today.

My second dilemma was what should I make. My mom, sister, and Dana all sent some recipes for different things. Yesterday I headed to the grocery store at the end of my street and decided that I would make chicken 2 different ways, homemade macaroni-n-cheese- and potato salad. I marinated and baked some of the chicken and I made fried chicken using my grandmother's recipe. I made chocolate chip cheesecake brownies for dessert. That recipe came from a lady that I taught with in Virginia. I had never made potato salad before so I was a little nervous about it but all of it turned out great. My Thai friends loved it all! I did have some spicy sauce for them to add to things because they like things spicy here. I even bought tabasco sauce and yes they put a little of that on everything too:) I think their favorite thing was the potato salad so I guess my first time was a hit:)

Here are some pictures from the event. It was a great time with friends here. I feel very blessed.

HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY!!!

I am so happy for many reasons! I am happy because it's Friday--I love the week-ends:) I am happy because Module 2 is finished and I have a 2 week holiday from language school. I am happy because I finished and passed Module 2 so I will go on to Module 3. I will include a few pictures from language school. We went on a field trip yesterday to do our oral exam at the market. Today was the written exam. Our class gave our teacher roses to thank her for the wonderful job she did teaching Module 2.