place called
are trips I’ve been making for the past month now.
The First truck ride leaves at 1:00 in the afternoon. We fill
our water bottles up, pile into the back of a truck and head to Patong. We pass
the westernized billboards, brick & metal ‘Patong City’ sign, & hold on
tight as we slowly jerk up the steepest vehicle hill climb imaginable. As we
round the top, the locals honk their bike and truck horns at the temple for the
Buddhist ‘Spirit on the Hill’. I guess we partake sometimes as well =)
surviving the climb. As we descend down the hill, we can see the high-rise
buildings and beachfront. Welcome to Patong. In a
15 minute car ride, we managed to drive over a ‘mountain’ & into a
‘different world’. To any tourist, Patong would appear to be a prime vacation
location. There are families and groups from all around the world walking the
beach paths, eating ice cream, and shopping from the countless vendors. It
seems to be a great place.
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We get in the truck, head up the hill, pass the billboards, and honk for the
‘spirit on the hill’… The same 15 minute ride to the exact same location, except The night visit to
Patong is very different…
At night, Patong is no longer a family vacation
destination. There is a main road called ‘Bangla Road’ with bars lining it, and
over 200 more in the alleyway’s referred to as ‘Soi ____’ each with a different
name.
Thai Girls are everywhere, and they are not bartenders. They
‘work’ for the bars, are advertised as being ‘dates’ to the men, and are
sometimes even raffled off publically at night. Vendors are everywhere, but
instead of selling hats and jewelry, they are selling you a ‘ping pong show’,
which is accepted code.
What’s so bad about this?! Patong could represent any city
in the world. Isn’t prostitution common & a lifestyle people choose to
live?
—-
There is a ‘dark spirit’ over Bangla Road. I haven’t been TOLD
this… I’ve BEEN there and I’ve FELT it myself. I’m sure there are cases when
women choose a lifestyle of prostitution, but the ‘Bangla Road’ girls do not
desire to be there. The individual faces & mannerisms make it very clear
there is deep rooted hurt going on inside each of them. The girls may smile and
say “Sa-wat-dee kah”, but their eyes are clearly reaching for help.
—-
So what is my place in this ‘party’ city?! How is an
English Speaking girl from Chicago
going to have any impact on THIS?!
connect four and jenga with the ‘bartenders’. We are genuinely interested in
these girls’ lives, and often they Stay & Talk to us, even
after being aware we are not ‘buying customers’. We are nothing more than a
kind smile and a caring heart. How often do you think they get THIS?
—-
There are many stories I could share describing the emotions
of the girls, their painful stories, and how much they dislike what they do. Instead of simply listing
what I’ve heard, I would like to share the story of ONE woman we are going to
refer to as ‘Mok’. Me and Mok made a connection when we met the first night I
was in Patong. I have visited her every night since…
Here is HER story:
a week, and she gets teary eyed if you even mention her children. She moved to
Patong to work just 3 months ago. When asked if she likes it here, she says ‘no’.
When asked how long she will work here for, She responds, “I will work here
until I find a husband.”
cramped in 1 room with 2 queen size beds pushed together. It is already a
cramped room, and the girls’ shoes take up any remaining floor space. Mok says,
‘the men sleep up there’ some nights as well. She does not like ‘going with the
men’, and she ‘gets drunk’ often. In fact Mok doesn’t like much of anything
that she has been doing since she moved to Patong. Her days are spent trying to
sleep in a cramped ‘attic’ and her nights are spent in humiliation and heartache.
and she spent all day cooking for her birthday party- fellow workers, and
guests including myself. Mok gives us hugs every time we visit her, and a kiss
on the cheek with a ‘Luv you’ every time we part ways.
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Mok’s story is just one of a thousand stories, but not to
me. If I was supposed to be in Thailand to simply encourage Mok, then my time was
well spent. I believe with everything in my heart that God has a new life specifically
for this amazing woman… A life where she can live without fear, re-establish
her dignity, and be with her children.
—-
Stories like Mok’s break my heart, as they do God’s. He
aches for the girl’s on Bangla Road. If those girls are open to spend 30
minutes playing connect 4 and selling us Sprite’s, it’s 30 minutes of genuine
friendship… 30 minutes of Truth being spoke into them… 30 minutes of Life being
spoke into them… and 30 minutes of NOT giving themselves to a man. A simple half hour conversation could be exactly what someone needs in order to change the
direction of their life.
letting them know someone cares &
sees good in them. Whether or not we see the outcome of that girls’ life, we just might be
THE smile or THE encouragement they needed to take the next step in leaving
prostitution.
opportunity for God to speak Life into her THROUGH me.
Please pray
for the Girls on Bangla Road. Please pray for divine appointments and girl’s hearts to be opened towards truth so
that they may be freed from whatever bondage they are held by. God is doing
miraculous things in Patong through an ‘Army’ of SHE volunteers, but until
every single broken girl is off of Bangla Road and living a life full of integrity, Patong needs our prayer.
I look forward to the day I can add a positive Third truck ride to this
story. =)
