My last week in the land of smiles

It is Monday morning here and I am at my house in Thap Sakae packing and getting ready to come home.  I am feeling so many mixed emotions.  I am very sad to leave my friends and new family here but I am also excited to see my family, friends and all of my teens back in the states too. 

This last week I made the most of everyday to enjoy Thailand before I leave.  Here some of the highlights.  On Wednesday I went back to the border school to say goodbye to the students and teachers.  It was a fun day.  The students were doing a science project where they took a 2 liter soda bottle and made them into rockets that were shot into the air using compressed air from a bicycle tire pump.  We had lunch and talked to the teachers about next year and what still needs to be done to help the school.  Next year the Power of One program might paint some of the classrooms and we are going to start raising some funds to get the school a decent printer.  The teachers thanked me again for volunteering and asked me to promise to return.  I told them that I would do my best to come back some day.

 On Thursday I had one of the best days in Thailand.  About 20 of us, mostly teachers and also Juelle and Dono from Power of One and another friend of ours, Talitha, who was down visiting from the Elephant Nature Park, chartered a boat out to a beautiful island called Koh Talu in the Bay of Thailand.  We snorkeled in the most amazing turquoise water I have ever seen.  The Island has huge areas of beautiful coral about 10 feet below the surface with thousands of colorful fish.  This was my first time ever snorkeling and it was wonderful.  Juelle and Dono have snorkeled all over the world and they said that this was now one of their favorites.  It was surreal for me because I have only seen this kind of sea life in aquariums but now I was swimming around in it.  You will see in one of the photos that we were feeding the fish and hundreds of them with the most brilliant colors swarmed around us.  It was a great day, one that I will never forget.

 Yesterday 4 of the high school boys and I took the train North about 2 hours to the city of Hua Hin.  We walked around and saw the beach there.  It was nice and the train was a great way to experience Thailand.  It was also a great day.

 Tonight is my last night here so I am having dinner with some students and teachers on the beach in Thap Sakae.  It will be rough saying goodbye.  And how do I thank everyone for everything?  They have treated me so well!  They fed me, provided me a home, kept me safe everyday, and provided for my every need.  How do you thank someone for all of this?  My heart is overflowing with gratitude.

 I hope that I made a difference here and that the students have gained some confidence in their English and that it helps them in the future.  I hope that I have helped to pave the way for other volunteers to come to Thap Sakae to volunteer.  The schools in this area desperately need English speaking foreigners to speak with the students so that they can build confidence in the English that they have already learned from text books.  They need to hear how it is used in everyday type situations.  They don’t need professional teachers with a teaching degree they just need friendly people to talk with and to assist them in the pronunciation and the rhythm.  This Provence cannot afford to pay a salary to a teacher and many volunteer teachers would rather teach in a bigger city where they have shopping malls, movie theaters, and night life.  Thap Sakae has none of these things but it has warm friendly people, amazing beaches, and great food.  I wouldn’t trade my experience here for anything.  I love the peace and quiet and the quaintness.  Being away from a touristy area and the big city gave me the gift of time without distractions; time for personal reflection, time to be in the moment, time to soak in every experience fully, and time spent near the sea, which I cherished.

 I have made so many wonderful friends and I now have family here.   Kru Lek, (or Ba Lek as I call her which means Aunt Lek), and I have bonded like family.  She has been there for me at every turn, through the good times and the not so good.  She was there for me when I got word of my Grandmother’s passing.  She helped me to be a good teacher and was always translating and explaining the “Thai way” for me.  Her heart is as big as the ocean and I wish every good thing for her.  If there are Angels here on earth, she is truly one.  The work that she is doing on this planet is that of a Saint and the lives that she touches are forever blessed and lifted.  I will miss her terribly but I know that we are destined to see each other again.

 This trip has not only been about volunteering and spending time in a beautiful country, but it has also created a huge shift in my life.  During my travels I have been given insight into my life and it’s purpose.  I have been given the gift of awareness both spiritually and personally.  I am forever grateful and I am poised and ready to take all of this great energy and insight into the next chapter of my life.

 This will be my final entry.  Thank you for reading this blog.

 Peace and Blessings to you,

--Christian

 

Teaching Mission Completed

I have finished all of my teaching assignments and I am now relaxing with lots of free time.  I will spend the next week sight seeing and getting ready to come home on the 18th.  Just a week and a half away!

As some of you may know, my beautiful Grandmother, Helen Jones, made her transition on Tuesday.  She was 91 and died peacefully at her home with family by her side.  She was in my eyes a true Saint and one of the most influential people in my life.  She was the best Grandmother that a Grandson could ask for and I will miss her terribly.  I know that her Spirit is here with me now in Thailand and forever more.  Her funeral was held on Friday afternoon in Denver, which was about 6 am on Saturday here in Thailand.  I contemplated coming right home but after talking to my family and Kru Lek, I decided to finish my commitment to the students here as I am sure that this is what my Grandmother would have wanted too.  Saturday morning I got up early with Kru Lek and Thor and Am and we made an offering to one of the local Monks and in return he did a Buddhist chant and prayer for my Grandmother and my family.  You will see a picture of the four of us waiting for the Monk.  Thank you to everyone for your kind words, prayers and healing energy.

I taught at Ban Hin Turn last week and it was great.  Thursday was a scout camp day where the school set up several stations to teach scouting skills like tying knots and a small ropes course.  I was manning one station where we sang songs and it was a very fun day but not without some excitement.  There is one dog at the school that has never really been very fond of me.  And despite my best efforts to gain his trust and friendship with food and sweet talking, he decided that he would give me a farewell scare on my last day.   As the day was coming to a close I was walking from the playground area back to the office to get the rest of my things and just like in an old western movie where the bad guy and the sheriff meet in the center of town with a serious as a heart attack stare I spotted this dog about 50 yards away growling and staring me down.  There was no one around and he was standing right in my path to the office.  I continued to walk slowly towards him speaking in a friendly voice and after I had only taken about three steps he burst into a full sprint right at me barking and growling.  I don't know if I did the correct thing, (what do you do in this instance anyway???), but in a traditional fight or flight response, (with emphasis on the flight part), I did a 180 and ran the fastest I think I had run since maybe high school.  I ran back into the playground where several students were finishing up the ropes course and I got behind about 15 third and fourth graders.  As soon as the dog saw me get behind the students he stopped his pursuit and went back to his day as if nothing had happened.  The adrenaline was intense!  I told the students that "that dog just tried to eat me!"  The funniest part of this story is that one of the students, Phil, a 6th grade girl that is the epitome of cute, said as calmly as could be said....  "Christian...  walk, don't run."  I am not sure if she was scolding me because I was running on the school grounds and that is frowned upon or because if I didn't run the dog wouldn't chase me.  In any case, the students and I had a good laugh about the entire incident.  The rest of the day one of the teachers escorted me around and ran the dog off every time he would bark and come in my general direction.

I taught the final Saturday at the Buddhist Temple yesterday.  We played Pictionary and sang songs to practice English.  It was a blast.  The Monk that sponsored the 3 Saturday classes came by to say thank you and give me a certificate of appreciation.  You will see above a photo of he, myself, and all the students.

Today I am back chillin at the beach and will stay 2 nights here.  This next week will include some sight seeing including taking a boat out to some beautiful coral reefs for snorkeling and I might take a train to Hua Hin, the next biggest city near here, with some of the high school students.  I think the train will be a great way to see more of Thailand.  Can't wait to write all about it and post some photos next week.

Namaste

Back at the Border School

The High School students have finished the year and are very happy to be done with the exams.  There is an energy of relief in the air.  I am back teaching at Ban Hin Turn primary school with  students aged pre-school through 6th.  This last week we had fun singing songs and playing English vocabulary games.  The students are so adorable.  I have taught more days at this school than any other so I am becoming very close to many of the students.  

I have to share a story that may be off the "Awwwww..." scale.  You will see a picture here of one students holding a homemade guitar.  His name is "First" and he is about 7 or 8 years old and the smallest boy in his class.  First is totally enamoured with me and my guitar.  Every time I play and sing he is always there right by my side watching with absolute concentration.  One day, about 2 weeks ago, while I was teaching his class, he hastily constructed his own guitar from his notebook and a ruler and while I would play he would strum along in unison.  The next day he showed up to school with a guitar made from a cardboard cut out and it was decorated with flames and lots of color.  He carried this guitar with him to every class and I would see him sometimes walking between classes strumming it and singing "This little Light of Mine".  The guitar in the photo is version 2 of his guitars and he always has it with him.  Ok...  all together now....  "Awwww".

I taught again at the Temple on Saturday and will teach again at the border school this next week.   Then that's it.  School is closed for summer break and I will have about a week and a half to relax before I head back home on the 18th.

I am sitting at a coffee shop that is right on the beach in Ban Krud and it is a beautiful day.  Very hot, about 90-95 degrees but there is a slight breeze and the ocean in calm.  It is so beautiful here.

Peace and Blessings,

--Christian

Another Week of Teaching

I finished up teaching at Chaikesem Whittya on Friday.  What a great week.  Once again we sang songs and practiced our English.  Kru Lek loaned me one of her motor cycles for the week to get to Chaikesem.  It is kind of a cross between a mo-ped and a motorcycle.  It is a 100cc, 4 speed, semi-automatic.  It's a very fun way to get around and see Thailand.  Chaikesem is a bigger school with 800 students.  Their English is very good and they are, for the most, part very disciplined students.  I was supposed to teach one class with Kru Patty, (one of the teachers that attended the Power of One program), and when she told me to take a break instead I was surprised to find out why later that day.  She said that several students in the class did not turn in a big assignment that was due that day so she had to discipline them with a bamboo switch across the bum.  I told her that this was something that is never allowed in America because of the litigious way of Americans.

 There is a sense of urgency in the air at all of the high schools this week as all the students are preparing for final exams coming up next week.  The 12th grade also has there University entrance exams this weekend.  The exams are taken in the city all day Saturday and all day Sunday.  Just like American students, there is a lot of pressure on the students to do well on these exams so that they can get into a good college.  I will be glad when they are done with exams so that we can celebrate and hang out again.

Today is Sunday and I am back at Ban Krud for a hot shower and relaxing on the beach.  It is very hot here.  About 90 -95 degrees everyday and there has been no rain for several Months.  The farmers are praying for rain everyday as it is unusually dry.  The humidity is high but they desperately need rain for their crops.  The bugs are out of control right now.  I have gone through several bottles of bug spray already.  The sea is calm and beautiful.  I will miss it terribly.  The beach has been my escape every weekend and sometimes after school.  I love to just sit and enjoy the sunset and I try to soak in every minute of it knowing that I only have 3 weeks left.

Kru Lek is taking such good care of me still.  We have dinner every night and she is always having me try new dishes.  She seems to know when I am craving American food because she will occasionally take me to a restaurant in town that serves pizza and spaghetti.  It's not the best but it is still delicious and a nice departure from rice and fish.  She takes my dirty laundry every few days and always makes sure that I have lots of snacks and coffee at my house.  I am so spoiled.

Yesterday I taught English to about 70 kids at a local Buddhist Temple.  I was so amazed that these kids, aged 7 -15, came to learn English on a Saturday.  We studied for about 3 hours but it was really fun because we sang several songs and I played guitar for them.  We also played Simon Says, all in English.  I will do this again for the next 3 Saturdays.  The students will then get a certificate upon completion.  Their teacher, Kru Dang, sent letters to all of the parents of her school and asked them to encourage their kids to study English with a foreigner.  She says it is a rare opportunity for them and is invaluable in helping them learn to speak and understand English.  After the lesson several students stayed for a picture and wanted me to sign their notebooks.  I gave them my email and asked them to email me anytime.   They are so adorable!

Monday I start back at the primary school, Ban Hin Turn.  I am excited to go back to see the students and teachers.

Life is good!

And so it is....

Namaste

On to Chaikesem Whittya School

I have finished up teaching at Thap Sakae Whittya High School.  On Monday I start teaching at another local High School called Chiakesem Whittya.  I will teach there for only one week because the following week the students will be taking exams and wrapping up their semester to start a 2 month summer break.  Then the plan for my last 3 weeks is to go back to teaching at the primary school called Ban Hin Turn, grades pre-school through 6th.  I can't believe I only have one month left here!

Last week was very emotional for me.  On my last day at Thap Sakae the students and teachers gave me a huge send off, (one that probably would have been appropriate if I had been there for 2 years and not just 2 weeks).  In the morning I said farewell to all of the students over the PA system at their regular morning assembly.  I thanked them for being so great to me and for being such great students.  I told them that they should be proud of their English and that I was impressed by their hard work and dedication to the English language.  I told them that I sincerely hoped to see them again soon.  Then the director thanked me and gave me a beautiful bag that has an elephant embroidered on the front.  Inside was a little money.  I am extremely grateful as I know that the school has no budget for this and it makes me wonder if the teachers might have passed a hat.  I will never know but as I said, I cannot find words to say how grateful I am for their kindness.  If that was not enough....  each class had a student come to the front and bring me a gift.  I was overwhelmed and am not afraid to say that I cried throughout the entire ordeal.  The gifts were amazing.  A picture frame, 2 beautiful jigsaw puzzles with beautiful scenes from Thailand and a beautiful hand carved bamboo flute.  Then students lined up by the dozens to give me candy, cards, letters and little hand written notes that said things like, "I will miss you", "I love you", and "I hope you can come back to teach at my school soon".  It was so touching.

My last day at Thap Sakae was a blast!  I am not sure how it came about but it seems that all Thai teenagers love the song "Zombie" by The Cranberries.  It's a great song because the lyrics are about peace and the tragedy of war.  It is also a blessing because the lyrics have many words that are difficult to pronounce for them.  Like the "Z" in Zombie and the "th"sound.  This is because the Thai language doesn't have these sounds.  So in each class throughout the day we read the lyrics and focused on pronouncing each and every word correctly.  Then I played guitar and the students sang the song over and over again focusing on the words.  (See the video below).  It was fun and rewarding as I could see their pronunciation improving each time.  The teachers would stand in the hall and listen and afterword thanked me for getting the students so engaged and told me that they could see much improvement in their English.

Once again...  I cannot begin to describe how rewarding this experience has been for me.  I feel so loved and appreciated.  The teachers and students have gone above and beyond in making sure that I feel this way and for this I am so grateful.

Namaste

Teaching High School

I have finished teaching my first week of High School at Thap Sakae Wittya.  What a great week.  I would sometimes teach 6 classes per day keeping me very busy.  The school has an English department where all students attend once per week.  They study grammar, vocabulary, and reading comprehension.  They work very hard at English because it is very important not only for increasing their marketability in finding a good career, but also for getting into a good University as the University entrance exam, (similar to our SAT and ACT), has an English portion.  My role is to speak English in class so that they can hear it used in normal context, to listen to the rhythm, and to hear certain words pronounced correctly.  Thai is so very different from English in that many Thai words can have different meanings just by the tone used.  For example, a Thai word that is said with a rising tone can mean something totally different if pronounced with a downward tone.  This is true with some English words but tones are the foundation of Thai language.  So this makes it sometimes difficult for the students to pronounce English if they have only read how to speak English from a book.  This first week I talked about America and where I am from.  I talked about Colorado and how we are very far from the ocean.  I talked about the food we eat, which they think is sometimes strange and unappetising.  I talked about the mountains and why Denver is called "The Mile High City".  I talked about sports and American hobbies.  The students would always ask about my trip from America and how long it took.  I would explain each leg of the flight and how it takes about 30 hours total travel time to get to Thailand.  They also wanted to know how much it cost.  I would tell them that a one way ticket costs about $800, or 32,000 Thai Baht.  So for them to visit America it would cost about 60,000 Thai Baht for a round trip ticket.  Each time they would gasp and then become disappointed because this is an astronomical amount of money for them.  One student told me that her mother works full time and makes about 175 Baht per day!  So even with a good job, it would be very difficult if not impossible to save the money for a trip to America.  I told the students what it might be like to attend High School in America.  That most students drive their own car to school when they turn 16.  In Thailand you have to be 18 to drive a car and most families don't have a car.  But, many students do drive mopeds to school when they are 16.  I told them that American students can wear pretty much anything they want to school.  All Thai students wear a uniform everyday at public school.  On one particular morning I noticed that one of the female teachers had pulled aside all of the female students.  I then noticed her pull out a ruler and a pair of scissors and she measured the length of each students hair.  If the students hair was any longer than the equivalent of a short bob, she would cut it right there!  I thought of the diversity of American students hair with their mohawks, green hair, purple hair, dreads, etc.  This is the same for the boys.  Every couple of weeks one of the male teachers will give the boys a military style haircut with clippers right at school.  The students work very hard at their studies but are never on time to class.  This is the norm.  Students often show up to a 1 hour class 15 or 20 minutes late and many of the teachers don't say a word about it.  This makes the class very short and offered an opportunity for me to practice patience.  The students can only understand about 50% of what I say, even when I talk very slowly.  So one of the best ways to practice English is to sing songs.  I have been teaching each and every class the song "This Little Light of Mine".  It is easy and has a good meaning behind the words.  The students love to sing it and they love to have me play the guitar for them.  Each class I tell them that we are having a competition to see which class can sing it the loudest.  They love it and let it rip!  They have asked me to learn some other American songs to sing and I have been working on them.  One is Kelly Clarkson, "Because of You"....   yeeesh;)   But, they love it and it helps them practice their English.

I have one more week at this school and then I teach for 1 or 2 weeks at another local High School.

Tomorrow, (Monday), is a very important Holiday in Thailand.  It is called Mugha Puja Day.  It takes place on the full moon of the 3rd lunar month, (usually late February or early March).  It marks the anniversary of the day the Lord Buddha first recited the teachings of Buddhism to his disciples.  It is a National holiday so all schools, banks, and government offices are closed so that everyone can go to the Temple in the morning to worship and give offerings to the Monks.  In the evening there are many candlelit processions through the city streets leading to the Temples.  I have been told that it is very beautiful.  Ironically, tomorrow is also a partial lunar eclipse.  I am looking forward to taking part in the festivities.

I can't wait for another week of teaching at Thap Sakae.  I am making many friends and I really enjoy connecting with the students and teachers.  Sorry for not posting any photos this week.  It seems that my camera stayed in my backpack all week.  I will try to take some more pics this next week.

Happy Mugha Puja Day!

Namaste

The Big 40!

I have finished teaching at the "Border School", (it is called this because it is about 60 kilometers from the border of Myanmar), for the time being.  On Monday I start teaching High School at Thap Sakae Wittya.  I am very excited and a little nervous.  I will be assisting the English teachers in all of the English classes with pronunciation, grammar, and slang.  The students are in full-on mode right now getting ready for final exams that take place in about 3 weeks.  I will be playing guitar and singing in the classes too.  Last week a student gave me the sheet music for 3 popular American pop songs that I am learning.  Singing songs is a great way to learn and practice English.

This last week was my 40th birthday.  It was very special to mark this chapter of my life in Thailand.  On my birthday I taught at the elementary school and in the morning I heard one of the teachers mention my name several times during the morning announcements.  Then throughout the morning every single student approached me individually with a freshly picked flower and presented it to me with a wai, (Thai greeting where you put both of your hands together as if in a prayer and bow), and a "happy birthday".  It was the sweetest thing I have ever experienced.  I had to fight back tears each time one of the little ones approached me.  No material gift could ever match the sincerity and warmth of each beautiful flower and birthday wish.  In the evening several teachers and some of the High School students from the Power of One took me to a fantastic dinner at a restaurant right on the beach in Thap Sakae.  The food was amazing.  We had large grilled prawns, (nearly the size of my fist), oysters, fish, and fresh squid.  (In this region of Thailand one of the primary things they fish for is squid, it is always available at the local restaurants and is so fresh and delicious).  We ate and talked and laughed and ate and ate and ate until I thought I was going to burst.  I taught the rest of the week and then last night, (Saturday), 2 of the adults from the Power of One, Silvia and Diane, took several of us out for dinner at a very nice restaurant, also right on the beach.  I actually had a steak! Beef is not available at very many places in Thailand and is sometimes very expensive.  So this was a very nice departure from 1 month of rice and fish and was very delicious.  It only cost 150 Thai Baht, which equates to about 5 US Dollars.  We were celebrating 3 birthdays on this night and when the owner heard this he approached us during dinner and said that they didn't have any cake so he would like to make us a birthday pancake.  It was just that too...  a very delicious pancake with candles and the whole nine yards.  I really enjoyed myself as this was my first evening of dinner and conversation with just adults.

Thank you for all of the Birthday wishes.  It truly has been one of my my most favorite and memorable Birthdays.  Now...  on to High School!