As I was preparing to leave India to head to Cambodia I had the realization that I knew next to nothing about Cambodia. The first four countries I had at least some knowledge of the culture or historical events, but I didn’t have any background knowledge of this next country I was going to spend a month in. Having no familiarity with Cambodia, mixed with looming team changes, I entered Cambodia with a cloud of mystery and unknowns. Despite all my questions I landed in Phnom Penh filled with excitement to find out what my month would be like. Here are a few areas where I had unknowns answered in interesting ways.
Team Changes:
The first mystery revealed was the who. Who was I going to be spending the next several months with? Who would I be working and serving with? There are 50 people on my squad so there were endless possibilities of what my team would look like. My first few months were significantly impacted by my teammates, who were exactly the people I needed to start my race. I was so grateful for my first team, empowHER, that it made it hard to imagine a team that would live up to the standard they set. I have become friends with everyone on the squad, but with so many people there are some who I naturally have spent more time with than others. I was preparing myself to be on a team with people I hadn’t worked with and didn’t know as well. Although I was ready to be on a team with anyone, I was nervous about having to work through and figure out new team dynamics. When we were finally given the names of the people who would be on our new team, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was placed with many people I had already done ministry with when our teams were placed together and had already begun building deeper relationships with. My new team is very different than my first, but has been awesome so far! We have transitioned into our new team pretty well and it’s actually been really fun seeing the way we all work together.
Our Host:
Now for the what and the where. What would I be doing this month and which city would we be in? Working with SCH in Hyderabad was such a joy for me and fit so well with many of my passions. It was hard to imagine a ministry that would live up to that. I don’t want to spend time comparing each month to each other, but sometimes it’s difficult not to. Although this month looks much different than last, this month includes many things that I love. Our team is working with an organization called Bright Start in Battambang, Cambodia. Brightstart helps underprivileged children learn English! It is the norm in Cambodia that students are to bribe their teachers if they want extra help or to get good grades. With that system in place it sets up underprivileged students for failure. Bright Start provides free classes so children can improve their English without having to worry about the money to do so. They have a few centers around the city but we are working with one in particular. The center we work with mostly has students come to their evening classes but a few come in the morning. I have had the opportunity to spend my mornings teaching English to the morning class of 5 students. The rest of the day I spend going to the market with our host’s daughter and help her cook lunch and dinner for my team as well as her family. Throughout our time here we also have gotten the opportunity to become a part of the community by cleaning up roads, pulling weeds, painting our hosts church as well as another local school, playing games with patients at the hospital, and singing Christmas carols.
Dental Hygiene:
Here is a seemingly random worry that was calmed this month. Once I became a teacher, the dental insurance I had through my school no longer covered the dentist I had been going to all my life. I didn’t know how to go about finding a new dentist and therefore went too long without getting my teeth cleaned. Going so long in America without a teeth cleaning, plus a whole year on the race, plus the fact that I recently have begun to feel my wisdom teeth growing in, I was worried that I would go home with some huge dental problems. Our hosts in Battambang continually mentioned that they had a friend who was a dentist that they highly recommended and respected. I asked if they thought it would be possible for me to get my teeth cleaned while we were here. Immediately my host messaged her friend and I had an appointment scheduled for the next day. I was able to go and have my teeth cleaned for $15 and support a friend of my host!
I continually am reminded of how often I tend to be worried about things that I have no need to be worried about. Reading through the bible there are so many times that we are told not to be anxious or worried about what will happen. Yet if I’m not careful, I let myself worry about way too many things. It’s a continuous battle of being aware and proactive to prevent unnecessary problems, yet not worrying about things that I don’t need to worry about at all. Although I’m not always good at not worrying, I’m glad that I am constantly reminded that I don’t need to and that everything always works out in the end.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
-Philippians 4:6-7
