Oishi means "yummy"

I love this green tea drink called "Oishi". It is a Japanese product, flavored with honey and lemon, and is delicious. Of course, when I found out that the word actually means "yummy", well that made perfect sense to me as a bit of genius marketing! Years before when I lived here, I was similarly addicted to coca-cola---so I hope this is a slight improvement!! Refreshing cold drinks are an absolute necessity in this hot and humid climate. I am just back from three days up on the mountain at the annual Chiang Mai Womens Retreat. This event attracted over 200 women, some from as far away as Egypt, and was a splendid and refreshing time. It is a great chance to get caught up with old friends that you otherwise do not get to see, and for me, a real highlight of my trip. The mountain is so beautiful, and is so close to the city that it seems like just a short drive until you are heading up, up, up---on a winding and narrow road of course! I will try to post a few pictures later today to give you an idea of what it looks like.

Happy Birthday Party Part 2

Happy Birthday Party!

Every Agape Home child has a celebration of their birthday each year---for many, the first ever birthday celebrations they have ever had! It still touches me after all these years to see how excited they all get...the build-up, the anticipation, and the HUGE smiles on the "big day"! I love being here to share in some of those special days...and with 72 children and young people in residence currently, chances are pretty good that I will catch at least one party no matter what time of the year I am here!! In the "old days", we used to be able to celebrate each day separately...but with so many now, the practice is to group children who share the same day/week for their party. The practical impact is just the same though---as no matter how many birthday boys and girls are being celebrated, each sits in their own specially decorated chair, has their own birthday cake and candles to blow out, and thier own bag of presents chosen just for them. We had such a celebration just this last Monday---and it was as great as ever! My favorite part comes at the end though, when one child is chosen from the celebrants to step forward and offer a prayer for the birthday child. It is a special moment indeed---often followed up with squeals of laughter, and cake-eating, and at least one balloon "fight"!!

A day in the life

A precious heart

I love the photo that I chose as the front page for this blog. Not because of the part with me in it, but because it captures the beautiful smile of one of the most precious children I have ever met. His is the kind of smile that makes you feel good when you see it, no matter what kind of day you are having or mood you are in. The kind of smile that you can't help but smile back at. The kind of smile that radiates from a pure and noble heart. I met this little fellow (whose name I will keep out of these posts for privacy sake--as a matter of fact, that will be true for all the children I may write about here) last year, shortly after he came to live at Agape Home. It was the smile that instantly drew me---that and his natural warmth and personality. He is, in fact, a bit of a magnet! Tomorrow is his birthday. When you see that smile, you would not know the grown-up things he has already had to deal with at his tender young age. Like how he cared faithfully for his mother at the local government hospital during her final illness, and how sometimes that beautiful smile is replaced with a cry of deep grief at her loss. Or how he struggles himself with fragile health, and a body that does not always work the way it should. Still in all, he handles these things with a grace and courage that I don't believe I could muster if given the same circumstances. He does it, I think, out of a reservoir of love poured into him by his mother, and from a deep faith that she also modeled for him, and taught him to embrace. The fact that he is able to transmit that love and faith so naturally into the lives he touches is nothing short of beautiful.

The week that was

What a week I have had---fun, productive, and a bit frustrating all at the same time! Fun?-well that comes from being back with the kids at Agape-seeing how they have changed, grown up, and hearing all of their stories and news. This latter bit comes out in drips and drabs-and gives rise to some of the frustration, a., that I don't have enough time to hear all they want to say, when they are ready to say it, and b., that my language skills are so rusty that I can easily miss the significance of their words, or lack the words to respond in the way I wish I could. I try to compensate with the all-purpose "ummm/ahhh" and a hug or pat on the arm...but I know that as they get older I must slow down and improve my language skills to give them the attention and respect they deserve. Fun has also come in the form of being back here amongst my community of friends. Once again they have opened their hearts, homes and lives to welcome me home in full force-in a way that thank you just simply can not cover! I had a great day yesterday for example, with a round of golf AND a wonderful party to celebrate my 50th-great location, amazing food, and so much laughter that my cheeks will hurt for the next week!

Productive has come in the form of some terrific planning sessions at Agape where the staff has been willing to step out of the press of their everyday repsonsibilities to think, dream, and plan for the next phase of this incredible ministry. We have more work to do together this coming week, and I am looking forward to the opportunity. As an amusing aside, I spent the first three days in the office remembering part of the reason why my back always hurt here---the desk chairs are HORRIBLE! The one I was using was one I am sure I bought 9 years ago (everything gets used until it can not possibly function another day!), and after trying to make do, I did a very "frustrated Farang" ("westerner") thing and stopped at the furniture store (called "Global House"), and bought a new one! Well, you would have thought I drove a "tricked out" Mercedes into the middle of the office from the audible oohhs, and aahhs, and "Can I sit in it?" response! It is a nice chair---and I have a feeling will find it's way behind any number of desks after I leave!!!

Frustration---well, you can probably imagine how that comes up, including the language issue there is the heat and humidity, the crazy traffic and the "almost" recollection of how to get places without getting lost, the feeling that the time is already slipping by too quickly and the fact that there are only so many hours in a day, and you have to sleep some of them! Certainly manageable, and part of the experience to be sure!

Back in Thailand

What a relief to arrive safely in Thailand. Of all my trips to this part of the planet, this was by far the roughest. I had an up close, and personal view of the volatile climate as we flew around, over, and through a typhoon bearing down on Japan, and thunderstorms all across Southeast Asia. We spent a good deal of time belted in, and the sights outside the window were impressive and intimidating. All of this added up to about two extra hours of flying time, and a very grateful heart on arrival! I sat next to an elderly couple from Tokyo on the first half of the trip...one of the best things about this journey is having the opportunity to chat with folk from all over the world. All those hours of forced confinement in close quarters can lead to some interesting exchanges---particularly with a language barrier. I speak no Japanese, and this couple spoke no English, but we managed to have a good laugh about the husband's extraordinary ability to sleep through all the excitement of the trip (a skill I have to admit to envying), and the way the tray table in front of me kept slamming down at various unannounced moments throughout the journey. It was very easy also to understand the way their eyes shone with pride as they pointed out various sights around our approach to Narita Airport when we could finally see the ground through the heavy fog and enjoy the view of their beautiful country.

It was much easier to chat with my seat companion on the way to Bangkok, although my rusty language skills must have sounded very much like his three-year-old daughter! He had been in Wisconsin for business, and was happy to report that he loved the cheese!! Much the same with the young businesswoman from Bangkok who I met on the trip to Chiang Mai yesterday, and who, as we bumped and swayed our way through the storms around the city, grabbed my hand and exclaimed "Pii (roughly translated as older sister/one), I do not like this!" I could relate. In the gracious and kind way of the Thai people, she gave me her card as we got off the plane, and insisted that I must come to stay with her family when I am next in Bangkok.

I arrived in time to join the September meeting of the book group I have belonged to here since 2000, and we had a great time discussing Barack Obama's Dreams of My Father, with the conversation ranging across a variety of subjects! They surprised me with a happy birthday Pavlova---a heavenly desert that originated in Australia---and is a miracle of meringue, tart passion fruit and strawberries that is an amazing feat to pull off in such a humid climate. It is a favorite of mine and was a wonderful surprise!

Today it is rest, church, and hopefully a normal night's sleep as I look forward to my first day at Agape Home tomorrow and catching up with all of the kids. It is good to be back!

The plane ride

I chose the title for this blog for obvious reasons---Thailand is a long plane ride away. 21-22 hours of plane ride depending on the winds. That's 6 movies, three dinners, one breakfast, and a mid-flight snack! I used to take along all kinds of reading material, a walkman and assorted cds, and a few magazines to supplement the in-flight entertainment. This assortment meant that my carry-on "bag" weighed more than it was possible to lift into the overhead bin! That's all changed though, thanks to my ipod---hours of entertainment in one small, easily carried package. I have made this trip so many times now, that I approach it like a project. First objective, make the seat as "homey" as possible---pillow for the back, blanket, and make sure those earphones work! Second, figure out the strategy for in-flight excercise. This relies on careful timing in between the flight attendants blocking the aisles with their carts. Last, take two tylenol pm, and hope you wake up in Bangkok! Tomorrow at 3 pm I get to try it all over again. Yes it's long, but it's kind of fun too---and at the end of the journey are lots of smiles, hugs and a comfortable bed.

Packing is no fun!

I love everything about traveling---the arrangements, the planning, the anticipation---except packing! The very idea of it nearly always makes me want to call the whole trip off! I have two days until I leave on my next trip to Chiang Mai, and a good three days worth of packing left to do. Of course, once the packing is done, you need to worry about the weight, and then about managing the bags, unpacking at the other end, and then gearing up to do it all over again. No matter though as the reward is worth the pain. I can hardly wait now to get on the plane for the 24 hour trip to the other side of the world and my Chiang Mai home. Truly a long plane ride away.