THE END IS NEAR!!!!

So, I’m sitting in Taiwan’s airport….I’ve been watching SNL for five hours and I’m ready for a little depth to my evening. Haha….

I’ve been sitting here for a long time, of course…and even though Taiwan, especially after it rains, is beautiful, I miss Thailand already. Everything.

I miss walking to the San Sai market and being greeted by the ever familiar face of the kind Thai woman who feeds me almost daily on my diet of moo pbing and kao nyo. I miss feeling like I’ve just seen a giant Twinkie as the yellow song-taew pulls up to the curb where I’m standing and picks me up so I don’t have to walk in the drenching heat of Chiang Mai in the afternoon. I miss seeing mountains ALL THE TIME. I miss hearing chinchooks croaking everywhere I go, letting me know that they are aware of my presence and have no desire to make their presence visually known. Tonight I will not fall asleep to the sound of drunken women singing random karaoke songs so loudly it’s hard to even close your eyes, instead I will fall asleep to the sound of the plane’s engines cutting through the Pacific.

I’ve only been gone for a few hours, but I’m well aware of how much I took the wonder of that mesmerizing country for granted. I won’t be riding my precious motorbike anymore, and I won’t be learning how to perfect my basic Thai.

I’ve had a wonderful last few weeks. Work was amazing…I wish I could bundle up the Free Burma Rangers office and take it with me. The people, the work…..I really felt like I had a purpose. Though I don’t lack that feeling back home, I know that this was a different and sincere feeling of having helped people who were suffering from the brutality of their country. If you are unaware of what is going on in Burma right now, get educated. I will miss FBR, and I appreciate the opportunity they gave me to help them, if even for a small amount of time.

I am excited to see my family though…. I’m a very blessed person, thanks to my Saviour. Lord willing I’ll make it through the next day and a half of travel, and be back home in Danvers, Illinois. Thanks for coming along on the ride. ;)

Has it really been two weeks?

Seriously, where does the time go here?!?! I can't believe it's been so long! I'm sorry, I am....well, not really, but I'll sincerely try to do better in the next few weeks.

SO! What all has happened? So much.

First of all, I love my motorbike. I love it. I went on a nice Sunday morning ride yesterday, and I just knew that I had to get one....I can't imagine life without it anymore. I feel as if it's a part of who I am inside. Am I exaggerating? Perhaps....but I think you get the picture. My friend Autumn and I rode all around Doi Saket, and it was breathtaking. Seeing the morning dew on the rice fields and watching the water buffalo wake up was one of the highlights of my week. I wasn't ready to stop! But my gas tank was. My friends, there is nothing like a sunrise in Thailand. At sixty miles an hour. ;)

Angela (my roommate) and I have sponsored a young lady at our apartment. We hosted her for ten days, and it was awesome. Her name is Mariah Herington, and she was the perfect guest! Seriously.....so willing to get involved in missions ministries and just as willing to do whatever tourist conquest that we forced down her throat. Haha! She came to FBR with me one day, and I was excited to show someone around the place that I work. We went to waterfalls, The Tiger Kingdom, and many other adventures. One of the best being the children's prison. Chiang Mai has a secure, but spectacular facility where they house a couple hundred kids that have been pushed and pulled through the Thai drug ring, and have found themselves in the most desperate of times. I stood up to speak to the group that had filed into the open room where we were teaching, and saw the faces of kids who had been forced to grow up much too soon. A lot of them were happy to see us, knowing that we had games and prizes prepared for them, but others couldn't hide the sadness of the things they'd seen and experienced as I spoke to them of the time I'd spent working with young people their age at the Lake County Juvenile Detention Center. It was a wonderful day....we all had a great time.

I also got to go to a Lisu village for the weekend! Three hours up a mountain, which to me felt mostly uphill, is where we stayed. The people were more than welcoming and we feasted on potatoes, rice, and plants that were picked from the very yard we were living in. We slept on mats on the floor, surrounded with mosquito nets and praying that the rats that were falling off the ceiling would not creep in through our safety nets. Haha....oh to be that terrified again....I've never felt closer to God. So we held a Bible study/worship time on Saturday night, and then had an all-day service with some families in the village. A family was led to Christ and baptized down by the river near the village, and oh what a sight that was! All of these Lisu people singing hymns as we walked down the bank to the steadily flowing river beneath, and three white people trekking through the mud trying to get pictures of this fantastic occasion. I couldn't have asked for more!

Lisu is a simple language, and one that I tried to somewhat grasp during my short stay there. I learned the alphabet and how to read the Lisu music, which to me is so beautiful. They sing either a cappella or to the strumming of a guitar....I tried to hide my cheesy smile as the villagers sang, their voices carrying to the clouds, but I couldn't. It was some of the most beautiful words I've ever heard, and I barely understood them. :)

I went to a special Thai dinner on Friday, and wasn't shocked in the least to find that for a very small amount of money, you are provided a feast as well as hours of entertainment. I was able to see the full culture of Thailand by watching each tribe that resides in Thailand show off their tribal dancing. I was also influenced, probably by too much sticky rice, to join the dancers on the stage. In the words explained to my friend John here at the office, I looked like a "Seizuring duck". That is literally the best description that I could give you.

I went to Burma to renew my visa, and other than wanting to vomit upon stepping over the border, I had a great time! The Burmese know how to cook. I ate basted duck and maple sugar balls. Haha! Great mixture. I loved it....it's a poor country, but the people enjoy your business and were very welcoming....not too mention the scenery around there is beautiful! I took a lot of pictures....I'll try to post some here.

Well this has been a boring post! I'm trying to fill you in, but I can't describe to you in detail everything that happened without writing a book. So stop reading and come with me sometime! :)