Refocus...
So many things happen all the time here, so fast it seems, it is hard to explain. Since I last wrote you, the following has taken place in a matter of 6 days.
When I was actually clicking on “post” for the very last blog, I thought I’d better head downstairs to see what was up, as I could hear what sounded like mourning and wailing! Thought maybe Julia was just in trouble for something.
I got downstairs to see both Julia and Steph in tears, and Maya comforting them. Our landlord’s dog Rosie, had just been killed. Rosie was the adorable little puppy we met upon arriving back from Canada this summer, and the girls, especially Julia, had grown so fond of her. We have written about the dogs often here, and there is Lilly as well. Lilly is not the brightest dog in the bunch, but Rosie was very smart, cuter, and since we’ve spent so much time caring for the dogs (they share our yard) they really feel in many ways like ours.
Anyways, the story is fishy, but it’s something like this. Lilly is in heat, so there’s been packs of male dogs hanging out around our gate almost all the time. When Lilly gets out, when we’re opening the gates for cars, etc, quite frankly, it’s a free for all. The girls are getting quite an education. They are certain that puppies are on the way. So, that night, Mr. Dara the land lord opened the gate to go out, and it all happened so fast. The male dogs got Rosie, Lilly was around but we’re not too sure on the details of her involvement, but one bite to the jugular, and Rosie was gone. The girls were informed of the horrific event by a teary eyed Mony, and they saw the carcass in the back of the truck. They were going to bury her at the farm.
It was tough sledding that night. Everyone was verifiably upset at the uselessness of her death, the violence of the attack, (this is not the first dog on the street that’s been killed by that gang.) It just wasn’t fair, agreed, but such is life out here, I’m afraid. People aren’t always treated much better. So, it was a late night, but the next day, everyone was settled a bit more.
This of course was Friday, the day Dean and I were leaving for Singapore. We had no idea if the teacher that was planning to stay with the girls would be OK—she was very sick the day before, so we were making some bleak “B” plans, but Erin did show up to school and was up for the challenge. It was such a super things for the kids—we found out after just what a great time they had, with sleepovers, hanging out with friends, visiting, a soccer tournament, and church with Pho afterwards — just all around a fun time for them. Erin, we love you and thank you so much for loving our kids. They were fully content to spend time with you and they honestly had a blast.
So, Singapore. .. What a beautiful city. What a cherished time apart. I really had no idea how much either Dean and I needed this weekend, or just how much it would mean to us. I think the timing was something amazing, cuz we’d just prior had the marriage enrichment weekend, so this following weekend was in many ways a follow up to that, or a proper debrief. Call it what you want, it was lovely. We walked for 2 days, enjoyed food the kids probably wouldn’t have. (We could never afford to take them all to Singapore—to expensive!) We went to Sentosa island, beached it for a couple hours, saw the harbor, did a bit of shopping (You need to mall it when the heat is as extreme as it is—just to cool off!) Even though it was really only 2 days, with travel til late Friday night, and starting back Monday morning, it was still so great. The city was such a change from Cambodia—neat, clean, orderly. You just remember what it is like to live in the first world again.
A chance to refocus. What is really important in life?
We came back Monday night to preparations for the MEI missions team that we were supposed to meet up with on Tuesday! Can’t wait, it’s always such a treat to have people from back home come and see this world. We hooked up with them by late morning at a Khmer Christian school (New Life) as they did some singing there, then lunched with them, and headed off for an afternoon ministry in the “slum.”
OK, I have lived now in PP for 1 ½ years, and what I saw that afternoon, was something that is well hidden from the public/tourist eye, it is something I’ve never seen, but to be honest, it’s something I’ve not wanted to look for either. Turn a blind eye? In a way, yes.
It was a small strip of shanty houses, backed onto a magnificent brand new apartment –type building, just a long, narrow, muddy lane of poverty. The connection was with New Life church, who Maryanne Quirring, one of the team leaders, had connected with previous on one of her past trips. (PS, Although I’ve e-mailed Maryanne and connected with her, I’ve never actually met her formally until now! What a special woman, and I look forward to sharing our hearts for Cambodia in the future, as her story is so unique in her desire to be here and share God’s love! Really cool to hear.) A Khmer team led the MEI team into the area, as they have been ministering there often with food, medical help for people, often pregnant women in need, and with the Love of Christ.
Basically, the people who live here, half of which seemed to be small children, have nothing, they can’t/don’t work, many of the men there were obviously drunk and were gambling, while the women sat around, some were gambling, playing cards, passing the time just keeping house in what was flat, broken up boards with ripped up tarpoline, cardboard and whatever they could find over them. The poop, the pee, the garbage, the dog and cat feces, the bathwater—everything went to the ground, the same ground the kids played on, everybody walked around in, and lived over. Simply unbelievable. You know those World Vision ads you see on TV, with extremely poor people in Africa, kids with distended bellies, white edged hair from lack of nutrition, head lice, little to no clothing—you know that type of TV drama? Well, here it played out for us in real life.
Do you know how weird it is to just walk, this big group of foreigners, into an area like this? This is where people live, it’s their homes, and we walk in there like there’s something to see. It’s hard to take pictures, because of the sensationalism of saying, “wow, look how poor these people are!” It’s personally disgusting, yet at the same time, absolutely necessary that people go in there, see the disadvantage, tell the story and then get off their pampered keisters to get up and do something about it.!
The best way in is of course, for Khmer people to minister. We walked around, talked what little we could with the people. And played with the kids. They are so beautiful, big brown eyes. Some are so happy, just playing with pieces of garbage they could find, and running, ignoring the discipline of the adults, laughing and talking with us. Some, on the other hand, don’t smile. They shy away, look the other direction, cry a lot, or just look forlorn. One tiny baby we found all alone on a large flat chair, just sucking on a water bottle, sitting of course in his own urine. Someone eventually showed up to do something in the house. Steph noted that no one was taking care of him, at an age in North America, where you rarely leave your child out of sight, let alone unattended. One toddler was just crying loud and long, as 4 women sat beside her and played cards, completely ignoring her. Hey, I remember ignoring my kids sometimes when the crying was for ridiculous reasons. This too could have been the case. Or not.
So, the girls got an eye full that afternoon. Maya was stuck like glue to one of the MEI boys (she always picks a favorite and won’t let them go!), Julia kept saying she wanted to get out of there (it was hot, very hot, and one of the MEI girls was not feeling well and had to be attended to.) Steph held some babies and could talk a bit. Dean and Joel Reimer, Henry and some of the New Life Khmer people talked with the people. Basically, what more could we do? Finally, the MEI team put out a brand new tarp, kids from everywhere came out to watch them sing and do a drime (A play to music without words to share the gosopel) and it was complete chaos! I laughed thinking of how these priveledged MEI kids had probably practiced this drime many times over in the comfortable, spacious settings of a gym or large classroom, with the sound systems of the future—here, Henry was prantically trying to get batteries that wouldn’t drain out after one song before we got to the slum. The tarp that was set out, was probably supposed to be for the team to act on, but as soon as something that clean and nice was set up, whoa, the kids flocked to it, and then you couldn’t get them off if you tried. The kids doing the acting were squeezed into this tiny little muddy lane, maybe 2 metres wide, nothing but filth to bend their knee too. It was certainly surreal, that’s for sure. Couple that with wailing children, the khmer team leader yelling over a mega phone, people trying to get around the crowd, walking in and out of houses, mothers showing up with their babies (they would get a small food bag if they watched the show) and even one woman coming to make collections for who knows what, striking off a name and an amount as one lady paid up.
All I could think of was the scripture about God is not a God of chaos , but of peace, order, sanity. Insanity was what this little visit felt like. Truly, it was a step in time that is comparable to very little. I’d never experienced anything like it. We left after about an hour in the heat, saying goodbye to little kids running after us. Back out onto the nice street, into our air coned vans, and headed to Logos for a tour.
It was a great day, really. The MEI kids were able to jump into our pool at school, I headed home first to make some small preparations, as Sokhom had cooked for the better part of the day to feed all the kids, her famour chicken/pork curry! Henry and Joel got a tour of our great new facility and both were considerably impressed. Seriously, the new Logos is not something you see everyday in PP. We again, are so thankful to have it and be a part of it there.
Supper came and went. The kids were very thirsty and we really enjoyed some great time getting to know them. Dean had only taught one of the kids, so it was a new crop for us. The team was 10 kids, 2 leaders, them we had Joel and his coworker Candy, and another Khmer friend. All in all, the whole group thankfully polished off 16 ripe, juicy mangos! Tis the Season.
After supper, we worshiped. What better thing to do? Joel and Dean played some guitar, and it was such a blessing to sing along, send these beautiful sounds up to heaven, out our doors, hopefully through the gates and around to the people close by. It was truly spirit filled, and wouldn’t you know, in the middle of worship, we hear something outside—starting soft, then louder and heavy: RAIN! The heavens opened up in the middle of our worship time! We haven’t seen rain, significant rain like that, in months! What a miracle it felt like. Some of the kids ran outside, it was so warm. We just couldn’t believe what it felt like, seriously, like a cool down, a bit of manna from heaven.
What a time to refocus on our purpose out here in Cambodia. I get way to easily caught up in the planning for the next school break, deciding what we’re going to do on the weekend, you know , those day to day things, the immediacy of life. This was good for me, very good, to reflect on the days events, be thankful for food and a clean house and a floor and a roof, and to remember the cry for the heart of the nations.
Wed, we rested a bit and regrouped a bit from the intensity of the past days. The lost dog, the trip, the babysitting, the team visit, the slum. And the list doesn’t end there. When we saw Sokhom on Tuesday morning, she was telling us of a huge fire close to her house, that had consumed many houses that past night, and that she was so afraid her house would get caught on fire too! Can you imagine that kind of fear?
We investigated further. Something like 150 homes (if you want to call them that, the wood, shack-like homes along the railroad, the kind we see off our roof, behind our house) burned to the ground, leaving many homeless, just the night before. This area is very close to Sokhom’s house, in our area of the city but not close to us. I haven’t been to the sight, but other friends of ours have. They went the day after to hand out waters, and it’s complete devastation.
There is more news on that though. Our friends who speak Khmer and have been here for years, say it was most likely in intentionally set fire, to clear the squatters off the land to be developed. Nobody died in the fire, meaning everyone knew it was coming. They’d probably been told to get out and hadn’t moved yet . and apparently the fire started in the head area guy’s house, meaning he’d been bought off to let his fire get out of control. It’s so sad. Not a decent thing seems to happen here sometimes. So, they’ve set up camp where they can, those who lost homes. There’s been fencing put up already to clear the land, and we’ll see what starts to go up. The city has also closed up on of the only optional ways out of Toul Kork to the rest of PP, but putting up a median, so now there are only 2 ways out of our section of the city to the rest of the city, (think Vancouver and 2 bridges!) and the traffic is UNBELIEVABLEY bad. It’s honestly a good thing we’re not still at the old Logos, cuz it’s quite close to the main traffic circle that gets backed up. Parents would have even a harder time coming in and out now. Just crazy stuff.
Finally, we head back to school today, Thursday. Back to the priviledged kids, yet Cambodian kids all the same. Similar faces to what we saw in the slum, but these kids are clean, well fed, getting an education. The exact opposite of the sadness over there. Time to refocus again. Reflect and remember what the purpose of all this is.
Tomorrow is Friday! I checked the long term weather for PP, and for the next 2 weeks, the highs in the afternoon are varying from 38 to 40 celcius, with lows in the evening anywhere from 24 to 28. And yes, we might get more rain! Otherwise, hot and sunny!
Well, I’d better run, but hope to post a few picts soon. Please keep us in your prayers, but keep Cambodia in your prayers, and pray for the poor, the lost, the destitute. There are so many people here living like that. God have mercy.
