On the night before our first day of teaching English in Thailand, our ministry host told us “some of the kids might be afraid of you.”
Of course, we were totally taken aback. “What? Why?”
She said, “Parents use white people (westerners in general) to scare their children into doing things. They tell them that white people will eat them“.
So, apparently white people are absolutely terrifying. Now that we’ve been in the villages of Thailand doing house visits, we’ve realized that it’s not just the children. The elderly community will barely look us in the eyes because they’re so afraid of us. I guess I kind of get it…
So, my friend and Team Leader, Saraya, wrote a hilarious short story that I just had to share for your reading pleasure:
We could just imagine some Thai kids shaking in his boots because his mom said “If you don’t finish your vegetables, the white people are gonna eat you.”
This news is quite hilarious, but I feel so bad for the kids! Can you imagine, some white people walk into your classroom just wanting to sing some songs and teach english and you’re just scared that their gonna eat you for lunch.
So sad. But so funny.
Obviously, there has to be a myth or legend to these stories right? So, I wrote one.
It was a dark and stormy night.
Tommy has been sitting at the dinner table for the last three hours.
His broccoli had been reheated at least four times.
But he would never eat it.
Broccoli is gross.
His mom had warned him over and over of what might happen if he didn’t eat his vegetables….but he was too old to believe in those stories.
The legend told of a being that would creep around the houses of children who didn’t eat vegetables.
It was said that this creature was human in form, but pale and sickly looking.
Smelling of fried foods, with coffee stains on its American flag t-shirt, this terrifying ghoul had been said to devour Asian children who refused their healthy greens.
But Tommy didn’t believe it.
Sneaking over to the trash can, he quietly threw his broccoli away.
“You ate all of it?” Tommy’s mom later questioned.
“Yes mom! I swear!”
Tommy climbed into bed, still trying to shake the silly stories out of his head when all of the sudden, a shadow appeared on his wall.
It was coming from the window.
Tommy pulled the covers up over his head, telling himself that he was imagining it.
It wasn’t real.
It wasn’t real.
The smell of french fries and caramel frappuchinos reached his nose.
He could hear faint whisperings….
starrrrbucksssss
baaeeeeee
i knew them beffforeee theyyy were coooooool
vitamin seaaaaaa
Tommy was frozen in bed… he couldn’t move.
Suddenly, his blanket was ripped from his bed and the nightmarish figure loomed over him.
He barely has time to make out the leggings and Uggs before….
A bloodcurdling scream echoed through the neighborhood.
Tommy was never seen again.
The end.
Moral: Eat your kale, kids. We’re gonna getcha.
Did you like Saraya’s story? Wanna read more of her journey on the World Race? Check out and subscribe to her blog!
