As we were driving to Siem Reap this morning, Elder Dickerson turned to me and remarked that we have now been in Cambodia longer than we have left to go! Ten months of our mission is behind us and eight to go. So many things- nearly everything in fact! that seemed so different now have become commonplace to us and yet, each day is "new" in some way. My favorite to date is the elementary "school taxi" that we saw on the road today. Khmer ingenuity and business sense at it's best! The little metal carrier behind the moto reminded me of the woven piglet carriers they put on back of the motos... little piggy ears and noses all peaking out, only the school taxi had little arms, legs, and heads all sticking out! We had to get a picture! so we turned around and caught up just as the driver was letting a child out. Very few Cambodians can afford a camera, so getting your picture taken is a real event- I would safely guess that this was the first time most of these children had their picture taken.
We have been blessed to teach with Elder Nybold and his native companion, Elder Long, some wonderful investigators in KT. One of them, Sister Lee, has a 90ish year old mother who loves to sit in on the lessons. Sister Lee has very little in the way of material possessions- she works for about 20.00 a month. This she uses to feed herself and her teenage daughter. She has been slowly purchasing tin sheets to replace the heavily worn ones on her roof. Every time it rains, it leaks everywhere in her little one room woven cane hut. When she was taught the law of tithes and offerings, she asked if she, although not a member yet, could pay her tithing for she needed the blessings the Lord promised in the scriptures. In addition, could she pay fast offerings? That very Sunday, she paid tithing and fast offerings- the sum of money she had saved in fasting two meals and her tithing amounted to what would have purchased two pieces of tin.....The faith of such people brings us to our knees- literally and spiritually.
The monsoon season is here and for Cambodians, that means it is time to plant rice. It has been so amazing to watch what has gone on for a thousand years of time- we have seen the farmers plowing with cows or water buffaloes, the initial planting broadcast by hand, the bright green blades of rice sprout, and then, the backbreaking work of completely thinning out the thick rice fields and replanting the tender young shoots. The area for the final rice planting is plowed, flooded, and then the workers harvest from the thickly planted rice sections. The rice shoots are gathered into bundles that are tied and then carried out to the flooded field where they are taken apart and sections of about 3-5 individual plants are then pushed into the soupy, thick mud. It requires mud to be able to remove the tender rice plants and mud to replant....if the soil were dry, the tender plants simply wouldn't survive the handling they are given, nor would it be possible to transplant them so easily.
Another one of our Cambodian experiences that I hoped to have was the opportunity to plant rice. On our morning walk this past week, one of the families we have been visiting with was having their fields planted. As we walked by and waved to the workers, they laughed and called out what amounted to "Come on in!" It was too good of an opportunity to pass up, so I slipped off my tennis shoes and wadded in. The women I joined with willingly offered me a bundle of rice shoots and a "how-to" on rice planting. ( I will tell you, there is a trick to doing it correctly!) One of the most endearing traits of the Khmer people is their wiliness to welcome you into their lives. We, total strangers and "barangs"(foreigners) have been invited right off the street into their homes, wedding celebrations, funerals and every day work.
We have been so blessed on our mission to be able to experience Cambodia and it's people in a way that so very few are privileged to do. We serve in a country where the people are so full of faith the Lord is able so show forth His hand in a miraculous ways....It hasn't been easy- this mission is not for the faint-hearted. (On a humorous note, I had gone upstairs in the dark last evening, opened the door to our room, and one of our resident geckos fell out of the doorway onto my head. I will tell you, I rather surprised myself that I didn't even squeal.... I just brushed it out of my hair and went on in.) Geckos are a part of life- they live everywhere, from our bathroom to the kitchen. For the most part they stay busy eating mosquitoes- for that alone they are worth ignoring!
We love you!! Hugs and hugs, Elder and Sister Dickerson- grandpa and fearless grandma!
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