3.19.11
I’m going to try a series with the style “A day in the life…” to give you a snapshot of my life and ministry here in Penang. I will include a couple different days in this series so you can get a more complete picture of what it’s really like. (Note: I didn’t actually record these times and I’m writing it ten days after the fact, and some times are changed slightly for comedic affect.)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
7:30am – Roll around in my bed as Mary and Rebecca’s alarms are going off
7:50am – Actually wake up myself once I realize I need to get ready and I can’t continue to sleep as the other two are getting ready
7:52am – Put on my jeans and my socks and close-toed red shoes (I note this because it’s not normal, it is too hot and humid to wear pants, socks and shoes here but we are required to for volunteering at the hospital)
*Side note: I got the red shoes from Ashley on my last team, love them! At the end of most months we as a team, and as a squad if we all happen to get together, usually set up a “free table” where we donate clothes and other items we want to get rid of. It’s fun to see your former clothes being worn by others on the squad. Many of the clothes I intially brought are no longer in my possession. I have shoes and a dress from Ashley, shorts from Rachel, t-shirt from Dawn, t-shirt from Shannon, hat from Em, jeans from El Salvador, and now two shirts from Malaysia. Plus at the end of this month I’m ditching my “Aladin pants” from Thailand. Welcome to community!
7:52-8:05am – Eat breakfast from my mess kit consisting of powdered milk and Corn Flakes. Attempt to make coffee from the water cooler, learn that the hot water isn’t working. Eat faster so that I can buy coffee from a street vendor
8:05-8:09am – Walk across the street and buy iced Kopi Tehrik (pulled coffee with condensed milk) and have it served to me in a bag with a plastic string as a handle and a straw. It’s enough coffee to make you for for the equivalent of 50 cents USD. Then walk across the street to the bus stop or “bas stop” in Malay
8:10…or 8:11, or 8:12am – Get on the bas
8:10…or 8:11, or 8:12-8:45am – Ride the bus and try not to make eye contact with the other white “back-packy” looking passengers. Ok, that’s not fair, some are cool to talk with – just use discernment when talking the old, bald British guy that’s trying to get his visa to go to India (yeah! Like that narrows it down…)
8:45-8:49am – Walk from the bas stop to the volunteer office
8:49 – 8:55am – Sign into the log, grab your name tag and put on the snazzy teal volunteer vests
8:55-9:10am – Walk to the office we work at. Grab the stuffed fish, the red heart-coin boxes, and the CD of the local Malay artist and the donation boxes. Mentally psych ourselves up for having to go and sell these items to patients in the hospital
9:10-935am – Make our “first round” in the hospital trying to raise money for children who need heart surgeries. Feel very uncomfortable when the first five people don’t appear to speak English. Awkwardly stand in front of the patients with the donation box until they reluctantly give. Bicker with your teammates in between each group of people as to who should be the one to do the talking the next time
9:35-10am – Head back to the office to count money and wait it out for turnover of new patients
10-10:10am – Talk about how it has probably been long enough and eventually decide to go back
10:10-10:45am – Complete the “second round” and try your hardest to not ask someone you’ve already asked and especially to not ask someone who has already donated. (It’s much easier if they’ve already bought one of those goofy fish, then you know to avoid them. I think some people buy the fish simply so that we won’t head back.) Repeatedly tell the patients, and yourself, that it’s for the children. Graciously thank the one of two patients who are willing to translate to the non-English speakers on our behalf
10:45-11:10am – Head back to the office to count money and wait it out for turnover of new patients
11-11:10am – Talk about how it has probably been long enough and eventually decide to go back
11:10-11:20 – Complete a brief “third round” and then head to the cafeteria
11:20-12:00pm – Set up a display of the donation boxes, pictures of children who were helped from donations in the past, fish and heart boxes on our table. Get in line at the vegetarian cafeteria for mysterfy food, but it’s free mystery food since we’re volunteers so no complaining!
12:00-12:10pm – Head back to the office to replenish our stock and count money (again)
12:10-12:45pm – “Final Round!” Unintenionally by this time we will have asked several people more than once if they would like to help the children or buy a fish. We have tried to split up the sections so our two teams don’t accidentally ask the same people. By this time we have a pretty good mental checklist of who has done most of the talking, and if it’s not you the guilt will start creeping in by this time. Plus, the one who has done the talking will also let you know. Your vigor has somewhat increased because you know that after this you’re done!
12:45-1:00pm – Head back to the office and shut the door – we have the shut the door every time, because though we try to be quiet in that small office we American are much louder than our Malay friends. Total the money. We have been given the goal of raising 1,200 Ringit in one day and if we meet that we will be able to have a pizza party – we met that goal yesterday, unfortunatly not today. For all of our days -four in all- of fundraising we have raised about 2,000 Ringit for the hospital (about $670 USD).
1:00-1:10pm – Walk down to the volunteer office, return the vests, take off the name tag, and sign out. Say goodbye to our friend Cat, who works in that office, and plan the next time we will hang out with her
1:10 – Rest of the day – Take the bus back, take a nap, read, do feedback (every night on the WR), eat some street food, hang out with the other team, compare stories, pray and go to sleep
Stay tuned for the next part of this series: A day in the life… Kawan Center edition, and A day in the life… Off Day edtion
