Don’t worry I am still alive.
So I just realized the other day that I have not posted a blog since, well since Cambodia. I deeply apologize for this. I had not realized that I had let it go so long.
Well, let me give you a quick update of the last few months.
March: Malaysia, Month 7
Oh, Malaysia, what to say about you? It was an interesting month. And the interesting part came from how late we were up. So I will refresh you about Cambodia. We lived at an orphanage and were usually up at 5:30 am to worship with the kids before they went to school. I actually enjoyed this as I usually did my devos on the front porch in the pre-dawn silence as I waited for the kids to get up (aka I was usually up around 5ish). So keep this in mind. We usually did not start ministry until 4 in the afternoon and that was an English class for the youth of the church. Now I say English class loosely as we also taught them two dances, they taught us one and we played a lot of games. so really it was more of a hang out time for the youth in the afternoon. Then we would have some more down time until about 8:30 pm when someone would come pick us up for house church. We usually ended up presenting the Word at these meetings and it would then be translated. After house church we would eat dinner. So this was usually around 10-10:30pm. Then we would be dropped back off at the church (which we were living above) and stay up until anywhere between 1 and 3 am. So suffice to say the sleeping schedule was a bit opposite in Malaysia than it was in Cambodia. If you are wondering what else we did during the day, well it varied from day to day, but let me just say I got a lot of reading done that month (and if you know me, that isn’t too terrible)
April: Thailand, Month 8
The time we spent at our ministry in Thailand was short, which is unfortunate as I came to love it. The first 5 days were spent in Pattaya which is on the coast, This was debrief time, a time of sessions, relaxation, catch up with others and team changes. Yup, you heard correctly I am on a different team (hopefully the last).
Then we hopped on a bus and headed to Mae Sot, which is next to the Myanmar boarder to work with Outpour Ministries (check it out here: www.outpourmovement.com). We lived about their old bike shop and it was sweet. I really loved working with these visionary people and I am so glad I got to play a small part in their bigger picture. So, ministry wise we were all over. We mainly organized a volleyball tournament for youth to promote their in-progress space that will someday be a creative space for youth of the city. As this ministry works mostly with refugee minors from Myanmar we were able to get to know youth from the two homes connected with Outpour. These kids, let me tell you, they have left home to pursue education as education is very expensive in Myanmar and even though they are living in a home with other kids who are not their siblings with adults who are not their parents, they are so happy and filled with joy. I don’t know if I would be as joyful as some as these kids if I had gone through half of what they have probably been through. Also, Outpour is connected with a restaurant called Famous Ray’s, which served amazing American food! Let me just say this was our favorite place to eat (their fries were amazing) and we ate their at least once a week.
After spending two weeks in Mae Sot, a few of us hopped on a bus and left for Chiang Mai. Parent Vision Trip had finally arrived!!!
So parent vision trip (PVT) is a 5-6 day trip where our parents had the option of coming to Thailand to get a taste of the World Race. My dad was able to come out and see me, which was a miracle in of itself (a story not mine to tell)!!! I was so excited and it was do good to see him, spending time with him and let him experience a little taste of what my last 8 months have looked like.
So, during PVT we worked with the ministry called Lighthouse in Action. It is a ministry that helps people get out of the prostitution business and sets them up in a safe house and then if they want it, job training. The ministry host was an energetic, passionate woman who was such a joy to work with. During the day we would do either slum ministry, monk chats or painting/gardening at the Lighthouse home and then at night we could either go out to the bars to chat with the woman or do prayer for the people who were going out. It was such a good 5 days and it went by really quickly. We were also given an off day to do whatever we wanted.
So for those of you who know me this will not be a surprise. On the off day, my dad and I went to a cat cafe called Catmosphere. It is a cafe that has cats just roaming around in it. It was super cute and so relaxing to just chill and be around cats. Their antics were so funny. Suffice to say I took lots of pictures. Then we walked down the road to a big mall and just wandered, before ending up at an American restaurant for a late lunch. Then we caught transportation back to the hotel and did dessert for a late dinner. Having my dad in Thailand was amazing and it was so good to see him, spend time with him and give him a tiny glimpse into what I have been doing.
May: Zimbabwe Month 9
The getting to Zimbabwe was a bit more round about than it should have been, but you will get no complaints from me. So, we were supposed to fly out from Bangkok on April 29th at around 12:30 AM and after sitting in the airport all day (due to arriving on bus from Chiang Mai at 5:30 AM), we found out that our flight from Kenya to Zimbabwe had been cancelled (Thank You Kenyan strikers) and it was not advised to stay in the Kenyan airport due to safety. So, we were packed into vans and were given an all expense paid (3 square meals a day and a wonderful bed to sleep in) 2 day vacation in a ritzy airport hotel. The only catch, we couldn’t leave the hotel as our Thailand visas had expired. But I didn’t care. I holed up in the room with my equally introverted friend Jessica and we spent our days being silent and enjoying the silence. It was a perfect 2 day reprieve and recharge.
Then our flights were rescheduled and off we took for Africa. This month my team is serving in Bulawayo, which is the second largest city in Zimbabwe. We are staying a little outside of town at a hostel and it is glorious. You can’t hear city sounds and the stars at night are so clear. We are working with Our Neighbors ministry this month and we are all across the board on what we are doing. Their primary thing is a home for babies who have been abandoned, but they also work with a school for kids who wouldn’t normally have the opportunity to go to school, a soup kitchen that does a meal twice a week and a couple of other things. It is a wonderful ministry and while the hours are long (and jet lag was a beast) we have enjoyed working with the kids who are supported by this ministry.
I realize this is not very deep and it really only brushes the surface, so if you have any questions leave them in the comments and I will try to get to them as soon as possible. Thank you all so much for your support, your prayers and your patience!
I love you all and I am looking forward to meeting with people and sharing my stories.
God Bless,
Rebecca
