The first time I saw Ae she was ducking underneath the street side bamboo hut that was her mothers restaurant. Large tattered brown leaves made up the roof that shaded her as she labored elbow deep in two side by side woks, flipping stir fry and tending to customers simultaneously.
She batted off a dense swarm of nagging flies using a large wooden spoon. Swinging it through the thick, humid air lackadaisically, our eyes met from across the room. Her gaze was fierce and piercing, leaving me intrigued as she quickly and coyly glanced away, returning to her work.
Our contact Emmi was loading up her truck and spewing out some last minute details we needed to know about the village and ministry. Amidst the barrage of information she mentioned that she spoke with the owner of this restaurant who informed her that her 17 year old daughter was interested in learning English. BINGO. That previous week I spent a good amount of time praying and asking God to bring me that one special person for the month. I knew Ae was my person.
(Ae's beautiful mother, May, who is an amazing cook)
Come to find out, that restaurant was conveniently located at the end of our driveway just off the main road in the village of Huay Pao and would be where we'd eat lunch and dinner every day for the entirety of the month. Feeling a pull towards Ae almost instantaneously, I wasted no time and tried to strike up a convo with her that very afternoon at lunch. If you recall from my previous Thailand blog, we were translatorless, in the village all by our lonesome, and forced to build a bridge over the gigantic gap of communication, Thai on one side, English on the other, all on our own.
Discouragement surfaced quickly as I gauged where her English skills were at…next to none and, well…we all know I don't speak Thai. The only thing I really succeeded at doing was making her laugh. However, my shameless attempts at communication have often proved beneficial when it comes to forging relationships with people and making a fool of myself for the sake of the gospel proved worthy yet again. Words or not, I was determined to get through to her and even more sure that God wanted to use me to pour into her life.
Ae was extremely shy and stand-offish at first but, my persistency proved vital. A few lunches later and I found myself fishing out dirty bowls and chop sticks amongst a heap of soap suds at her mothers house, washing the restaurants dishes to help out with the afternoon rush. If it weren't for my killer pantomiming skills and sound effects slash facial expressions, I don't think I would have even gotten that far. I still knew God wanted to use me to pour into her life but was frustrated with the language barrier and not sure if I'd be able to get past the surface level small talk and goof ball persona she was getting to know me by. There were only a few things I could actually say to her at that point and have her comprehend.
On top of working at the restaurant, Ae also had her own smoothie stand that was only a stones throw away from the restaurant allowing her to juggle both jobs everyday. I began to spend my afternoons hanging out with Ae at the smoothie stand, and helping out in the restaurant when I could. I would seek her out on my down time and my down time quickly dissipated for when I wasn't at the ministry site doing manual labor, I was hanging out with my new 17 year old bestie.
(Ae and I at the smoothie stand)
(Little fella enjoying one of our smoothies!)
(She makes coffee too!)
Ae grew quite fond of me and I experienced the deepest connection I had made with any individual my entire 9 months on the Race up to that point. She began inviting me to go to the market with her which was a solid 20 kilometers away and took me to the bakery and various stores to purchase supplies for the smoothie stand and restaurant. She took me to her grandparents house to meet them, the local waterfalls and swimming holes, a hot spring and some awesome caves to explore.
(At the swimming hole with the girls)
She took me to her best friends house and showed me where she went to school. She even brought me to one of her teachers houses to meet him. She enjoyed showing me around her village and teaching me about her way of life. We'd cruise the Thai countryside at night on her motorcycle, her best friend Guy joining us occasionally.
(Time for a cruise…yes, I wore that helmet everytime…safety first!)
We'd horse around and do 'muy thai,' teach each other our native languages, mix smoothies and chat with customers and clean up the mess at the end of the day. Her mom's restaurant would close around 8pm and my team would be the last ones to eat. I started getting invited to sit down and join her and her mother for their nightly family dinner after my team was served and the restaurant had closed. The first time we sat down, I boldly asked if i could say grace and bless the meal and to my surprise, they said yes.
(Lunch date and chop stick lessons!)
(Time for family dinner and cooking lessons from the pro!)
Sidestory: one time her mom brought out a 50 year old egg and well…YOLO so i tried a bite of it…don't recommend.
Anywho, I started having my quiet time in the mornings down at the restaurant so Ae could see what that looked like for a young Christian woman. I would get a free cup of coffee from her mother May and proceed to read my daily devotional, study my bible, journal and pray.
My team and I stumbled upon the most random phantom wifi connection on the face of the earth that month. Across the street from the smoothie stand and restaurant was a school that had unlocked wifi. Thank you Jesus. And if you sat at the smoothie stand you could pick up the signal, just barely.
One day while trying to communicate to Ae with my tiny handful of words and getting nowhere, frustration mounted and then a thought popped into my head. "Why not use Google translate?" We have wifi right here at our fingertips. It was worth a shot. I downloaded the app for my itouch along with the international keyboard and gave it a shot. It worked! Ae and I were able to talk back and fourth as easily as we passed the iPod. I was finally able to explain what we were doing there, what the World Race was, talk more about myself and learn a lot more about her and her family. I was even able to introduce her to Jesus and tell her about His love. Ae started bringing her computer to the stand everyday. I was thoroughly stoked about this and thinking I was nothing short of a genius for coming up with a way to talk to Ae. Google translate became my translator.
And then it dawned on me: Ae had already met Jesus. I didn't need a translator at all. Google translate or not, I was already speaking volumes to her through my actions. I didn't need words or sentences or even a common language to show her love. Jesus was being revealed to her all along.
You see, although words are a highly effective way to communicate, communication does not occur through words alone. It's nearly impossible not to communicate when we are in the presence of another person. We, as Christians, carry the Light of Christ with us. We shift atmospheres. There is something different about us that draws others in. We deposit Jesus everywhere we go.
This month more than ever God brought that famous saying to life:
ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS.
James 2:26 reminds us: "As the body without the Spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead."
God showed me that love is a VERB.
It's an action. And it speaks POWERFULLY.
God used His love in and through me to blast through a frustrating language barrier and impact the life of a 17 year old girl.
1 John 3:17 "If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."
1 Corinthians 13:1 "If i speak in the tongues of men and angles, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal."
Our actions and our manner of life need to back up what we say with our mouths. Furthermore, our manner of life should cause others to anticipate what we will say with our mouths.
Ae didn't need to share a common language with me to get the message. Google translate or not, I was speaking loud and clear.
As St. Francis of Assisi says in one of my favorite quotes that has truly impacted my life: Preach the gospel at all times and when necessary, use words.
(Saying goodbye with tear-soaked eyes, Guy, myself and Ae)
