Naomi

November 19, 2006

 HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Ahhh! Fall is in the air, football games, leaves crackling, soft snow falling, crisp autumn air….. OH WAIT….it’s about 97 degrees here still. Haha. Happy Thanksgiving all the same. :)

Lets see, since you last heard from me we have mostly just been hanging out in the village (except when we were going other places). We had another team come and we did some p walking and English teaching. :) We have had a lot of time to just hang out with people here in Ban Tum.

Garrett had to head back to Chiang Mai. The girls were all sad, and made up a special dance for him. They decorated our house with balloons and got all dressed up to perform it for him. :) haha. it was great Haha.

Jenn and I decided (with a little convincing from Garrett) that we should not live in Thailand for 6 months without seeing Chiang Mai. So, as Garrett headed north we tagged along. :D We stayed with his family, and it turned out to be amazing. I did not realize how much I was in need of a-- little R & R—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. The Day family provided it marvelously. We got to see all kinds of cool things, eat amazing wonderfulness, and take an extended deep breath. It really felt like family, and that was exactly what I needed. Kim (Mrs. Day) was amazing, and I was able to have several marvelous conversations with her, wherein she provided the wisdom and mothering that I needed. She also spoiled us like crazy….and I’m definitely not going to complain about that. :)

We also got to have dinner and spend the first day with Megan and Melissa. It was great to see them. We went to the day market, a movie in a theatre, the night market, STARBUCKS!, pedicures, hiking, cliff jumping, and rock climbing in the MOUNTAINS, saw the famous Chiang Mai pottery, and even helped with a Book study for high school girls. And thanks to the amazing hospitality of the Days, we spent virtually no money.

At the night market there was the cutest old lady ever. She is Hmong (a mountain tribe) and was selling stuff. Well Garrett warned us that we should not talk to them at all if we don’t want to buy anything because they are very persistent. This lady was different. She was so cute that I couldn’t help it. She had no teeth and she did this batting-the-eyelashes-at-you thing. I knew the whole time that I was getting swindled, but she was so adorable I didn’t care. I told Jenn and Garret, “I am getting ripped off, and I can’t stop smiling about it.” haha. Then she said she wanted to give me a bracelet, making a big deal about being from her heart. Then she never gave me my change, so I guess I paid for my gift. :) Oh well, it was only 2 dollars, and now my little brothers will have the wooden frog noise maker they always wanted (haha), and I have a “free” bracelet….

The mountains were wonderful. They reminded me of home. It was a glorious feeling to breath mountain air again. :) The whole time was almost like a mini America. It was also good because, I feel like I even started to experience a little bit of culture shock because Chaing Mai is so modern. I think it was a great way to start preparing for America. :)

After a 17 hour bus ride home (YICK!!) we spent the day organizing our things and starting to pack. (aren’t you proud mom!! Starting to pack 2 weeks in advance. Wow) It’s so hard to believe that we will be heading home in exactly 2 weeks. Ariel leaves tomorrow morning. I’m going to miss her a lot.

Saturday was the annual Elephant Roundup in Surin (a nearby province). It is the biggest gathering of Kui people, and people from all over come to watch. The show was amazing. I had to climb a deadly thorn tree and sacrifice life, limb, and luad (blood) to see it, but it was well worth it. They do a choreographed reenactment of the history of Thailand’s elephants, complete with “flash bangs.” (some of you know what those are!) It was done incredibly well and I enjoyed myself immensely.

OH, I finished my big paper! YAY!! School work is still a great thing to P about though. :)

Speaking of P requests:
That I would make wise use of my remaining time.
Trusting Dad that our time here has accomplished what was needed.
Starting to say goodbyes.
Remembering to enjoy every day and live each one to the fullest. I’ve been homesick lately, and I don’t want to spend my last weeks thinking about home only.
Preparing for everything that needs to get done when I get home.


I love you all, thank you so much for p-ing.
See you soon!
Naomi


Pics are up on facebook, but they are no longer allowing non-members to view them. So, you can either join, or look at the few pictures I have attached to this email. :)


http://sbuniv.facebook.com/editphoto.php?aid=2008265&success=5&failure=0


Thanks!
Happy Holidays. :D

I figured out the picture thing again, so you can check out the latest batch at:

http://sbuniv.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2008265&l=2e8d1&id=177501000