Christmas time!

Hello everyone! We hope and pray you are all well. Well, the stress is over, the concerts are finished, we are finishing up this last week of school, trying to catch up on missed curriculum for all the rehearsals, and well, also the Christmas parties.
The elementary concert was a great success! After all the different glitches with the rehearsals (ie; our last rehearsal before the actual dress rehearsal--we had no speakers, they were away getting fixed and were supposed to be back but weren't, the cd player was not playing the burned cd properly, yada yada yada) the evening ran really smooth, all thing considered. The students were all really excited to be in costume and to have their parents as an audience, the gym was pretty full, the crowd was very happy afterwards (heard lots of great compliments) sand quite frankly, it was fun. I was super at ease, not sure exactly why ( well, because if anything went wrong now, there was nothing I could do about it--haha) and of course, I was very excited to be wearing my khmer dress. The kids were so funny... "You look Khmer!" was the stunned expression. One girl said, "You look like my mom!" Then she thought about it for a second and exclaimed, "No, you don't!" Not sure how to take that! haha. Then, they presented me with roses at the end of the concert, which was a huge blessing. They also gave flowers to Karen Kimber, the Gr. 4 teacher who did all the sound. She had a big job, and it went off really good.
So, Friday was Ok with the middle and high concert (I was only accompaning a bit) but didn't flow as well as some would have hoped. Saturday night, relatively the same concert took place at a different venue and it was much better--acoustics were better, and the drama worked better with a "back stage," something they didn't have in the gym on the Friday performance. All in all, Sat was a great success, as well. The high school choir sang a number of really great choral pieces, which they sang really well, and was it a blessing to just sit there and hear "O come, o come Emmanuel" sang a capella, in a non-Christian nation like Cambodia, where organized choral, or classical anything is pretty few and far between. It was even more special for that reason--to hear that name sung out in worship! really great. Kudo's to the high school choir who seem like a great bunch of kids.

Saturday afternoon was the staff party at our house. We had lots of time to get ready for it, as we had the whole morning, and Sokhom had helped clean the roof and made the pastry for my meat pie (My donation to the buffet luncheon.) It is still feels sheepish for me to have so much help, but we invited Sokhom and our landlords to the elementary concert, and I think they enjoyed watching the show, and maya. So, at least I hope she can see that her work is helping me to work out here. I asked her to trim down a table cloth that I bought at the market that was a bit too wide for our table. She brought it back to me all gorgeously serged! I asked if she had the serger, and she said no, she didn't like how her maching was hemming (too bulky) so she took it to the market, and they serged two long sides for a buck! (How much time did she spend on this one simple request??) And If I had gone and asked for the same thing, easily $5. That's just the way it is here. I got my toes painted at a little shop, a minor pedicure, and they charged me $2. I was thrilled (although it's still no great job, and it is easy to do myself.) Anyways one of the more "mature" gr. 5 girls ( if you know what I mean) was enquiring about my toes, and asked how much it was. (That is the world's most common question out here for EVERYTHING, next to "how old are you?" It's great!) When I told her $2, she gasped! "That's so... " I was sure she was about to say cheap, cuz I've paid $7 for a pedicure out here. But she exclaims..."expensive! 2000 riels! That's what it should be. (That's 50 cents.) "But, you're a foreigner, so I guess they charge you more." EVen the kids know how it runs out here.
Bye the way, I've yet to meet one single person here, who does NOT know how to make change for any amount of money, whether it's child or adult, american to riels. Not a single one yet, who get's lost in making change. And it's really confusing, when 100 riels is 2.5 cents. So 4, 100 bills is 10 cents, etc. Our kids can't figure it out yet, but everyone here knows the value of money way too much, so market, store, no matter where you are, you are getting correct change the first time, and quickly, and all counted out for you, and handed usually with two hands, very carefully. Not like North America!!!
But I digress....
Sunday was our coworker Sokcha's wedding. I had only met his fiance once recently before. He invited alot of the staff, and because and his wife are Christians, and the wedding was at the Adventist Mission Church, it was actually quite Western, rather than Khmer, so we didn't experience some of the traditions. But it was still an adventure. Lots of clothing changes. The entire wedding party, bridesmaids and the groom wore white for the service, then the bride was actually in ivory, with a pink veil, so it was interesting. (The groom had a red tie!) THen they changed for the dinner which was held immediately following the service down in the parking lot. It seems most weddings out here set up tables and chairs in parking lots or just right out on the streets, outside someone's home. A big tent goes up, lots of music. Very fun to see them all (apparently right now is the big wedding season, when the weather is tolerable, and there is no rain.) We ate a number of dishes that were served to us by the caterers. That part is interesting. I can't really describe all the food, cuz I don't know the names of everything, but lots of rice, stir fry, lots of meat, because that shows in Khmer culture that you are rich (if you eat alot of meat.) and a complete fish, steamed, head intact (no eyes, though. good thing). It was quiet tasty, but the food is cooked similarly to the wedding--under a makeshift tent, with people just chopping, cuting, cooking, all outside, with little sanitation. So far we are well, but our brother-in-law Adam, who is a health inspector, would shut ABSOLUTELY EVERY WEDDING DOWN if he were to come here and inspect. So, we ate cautiously, but it was good. People got up and left inbetween courses. There was no head table, but a mic and a mc, and the bride and groom did not sit down and eat--just the guests did. THey had to go around the tables and greet people, in yet another set of clothing. Very beautiful traditional gold Khmer dress for the bride. ANyways, it was fun, and a good experience, and we were pleased to be invited. THe girls came with us too.
So, that brings us to this last week of school. Sorry, we have no news officialy about anything for Thailand yet for Christmas, due to the last nature of the timing, and us looking for something cheap enough for our family of five, in just the right location, etc. We will go, but nothing is actually booked yet. Today or tomorrow, I guess.
I have baked my first batch of Christmas cookies, mostly for gifts for my teacher friends who were so helpful with the concert. Other than this real batch, I haven't baked anything from scratch except once, I think, scones. However, I've been collecting ingredients, and got everything I needed for some shortbread. Hope they like it, because it seems like such a big deal for me to get it done! haha
Also, I have to say that things are flowing so different now than in our first few months. Me personally, I'm definitely not so tired, as the first few months--that is one sign of culture shock. I can actually stay up some evenings and do stuff, like bake, instead of crashing at 8:30 when the kids go to bed. Nothing is strange anymore, or so unpredictable. It is normal now for things to take a long time, messages to get mixed up, workers not to show up when they say they do, things to break down quickly, or be made cheaply. Stuff like that doesn't surprise us anymore. Seeing things on the streets, loads on motos, the garbage, the people. It is just so natural now. If any of you have even lived abroad, maybe you know what I mean. I am so enjoying this time in my life. I am so thankful for it. I think I can safely say we all are, all 5 of us, enjoying our time here.
We are also getting better at getting around. Once you know your way, and have a few instructions in Khmer, it is SO much easier to direct drivers, either tuk tuk or motodop. I am duping a little more these days, only for short distances, usually in the Toul Kork area, where we know some of the drivers around the school, or by our house. There is one kind "uncle" (that just means he is older than I) who we see everyday (actually, there are many on our route to school we see everyday and say hi to) but he will drive me around. If you don't know much about motodoping, (dup, dop, I don't know) then google it and find out. I'm not going to tell you more, save my mother have a heart attack! haha.
So, we are doing so very well. Had so many compliments lately about us at school as a great addition to Logos, kind words for Dean's leadership (and they are well deserved) and lots of compliments about our kids, who, of course, are great kids (well, Maya will be one day --JUST KIDDING!) When they say nice things about the girls, I always agree, and say we are blessed to have them in our family, and to have been given stewardship over them to raise them. That is really how we see it. They are certainly a gift to us. Maya is just the baby of the family and ready for a break! (haha)
There are a couple last things I want to say:
Thank you X-Stream. Your PARCEL arrived today! Dec 12! Looks like you posted it on Dec 4? that's amazing time for out here. We opened it gleefully and took pictures, so we will put them up soon. Everything was great, except all the teasing with the Tim Hortons stuff. That is just not nice. We get some good coffee out here, but nothing like Tim's and definitely without the ease of Tims. Lots of people have iced coffees, full of sweetener. When Dean sends the guards to pick up iced coffee orders, they are charged 2000 riel. (50 cents) When Dean goes himself, $1.25. So, he often sends the Khmer to get it. Same with getting stuff for our Christmas concert. There is one "nekru" on staff, she's been with Logos since the start and was invaluable with getting government paperwork done for the school. Anyways, she


is still on staff, pays bills for the school, runs errands, etc. and she got a ton of stuff we needed for the Christmas concert. I don't know what she paid for some costume materials, and I don't want to know, cuz it would have cost me a fortune.
Also, Steph has written a great Christmas story for her english class. I'm going to post it today or tomorrow. Her friend Alisha gave her this Christmas card with the following poem. This dear girl doesn't have things easy in her home. I hope it is a good reminder for us all this Christmas Season.
Merry Christmas from the Weisses!!!

"Like the waves that slowly cover the sand,
God covers our life with His grace and love...

Like the moon that watches the earth from above
God watches over us from the heavens...

Like the water that picks up the sand and washes it away into the sea,
God picks up our sins and washes it away into the light...

Like the creatures that build a home in the sand,
God builds a home in our hearts...

Just remember that God is ALWAYS there for and with you through Everything in Life....
He will always be by your side no matter what....."

Alisha Escarez.