Friday, November 7th and Saturday, November 8th 2008

Dear Family and Friends,

Friday was a long work day and we did not finish our letter. Again today you will get a double dose in the form of a combined Friday-Saturday letter.
We spent a second day (Friday) in Noun Boe at Christ For All Nations Church and Bible School.

When we arrived, some of the young men were already working on the well. The young man who was so helpful on Thursday returned on Friday. We learned that his name is Henasay. Without his help we would not have finished the project. We had hit mud at 27 feet on Thursday. On Friday morning, they hit sand around 30 feet and then flowing water at around 33 feet. Jim had them continue until about 36 feet and then inserted the well liner. By lunch time, we were pulling up sweet clean water!! The rest of the afternoon was spent on protecting the well area and instructing the local group on its’ use and care. Tom did a marvellous job of getting creating excitement and enthusiasm in the younger children. The shouts and praises were audible across the schoolyard. You would have thought the rocks they gathered were candy based on their enthusiasm for the task. We used the rock and gravel for the clean area around the well. When it came time to mixing concrete for capping the well area, the young men were far less enthusiastic about the mixing job but they got it done anyway. At the completion of the well, Pastor Jolly gathered the group together to give thanks to God for sending Jim and Tom.

Nearby to the well is a coconut tree. While we were finishing the well one of the boys asked Tom and Jim if they would like some fresh coconut. Mistakenly we said yes, and in about ten seconds a five-year old scampered up 25 feet of coconut tree. He was not strong enough to twist off the coconuts and so his friends tried to throw a knife up to him. Tom stopped the knife throwing. The five-year old came down and teenager climbed up and began tossing down coconuts. We were soon drinking fresh coconut juice and eating the meat.

Jerry and Sylvia completed their counselling teaching in the morning. Attendance was lower than on Thursday. The Senior Pastor from the Mae La Camp joined the class again. Singing by their class again provided a trip highlight. Jerry and Sylvia remarked that is was nice to hear some long familiar hymns such as Alas and Did My Savour Bleed?. Afterward Jerry and Sylvia made a tour of the local village. It is especially foreign for us to find a large number of animals living in close proximity to living quarters. However, the pigs, chickens and cows are also a stark contrast to the occasional satellite dish we see.

Alex became the Community Health Evangelism (CHE) Teacher for the day. He took the lead in teaching about water contamination, and Solar Disinfection to an interested audience.

In the evening we got a good chuckle at Tom’s expense. Ordinary Thai food is spicy to an American palate. For dinner Tom ordered a ham and SPICY cheese sandwich bagel. Within a bite Tom was commenting on the spiciness but surprisingly he kept on eating. The exercise culminated with Tom sticking his tongue in a glass of water and not being able to feel his lips. This did not of course stop Tom from teasing Alex about mixing chocolate ice cream and white rice for desert.

Saturday morning we headed to Mae La camp. A quick stop at the local supermarket was necessary to buy coffee, sugar, and milk. We needed to purchase a ‘gift’ for the camp authorities as ‘thanks’ for having access to the camp.

Mae La Camp contains about 50,000 refugees. We were told that only about 50% of these are actually registered with the UN. Registration with UN is the key for receiving food rations and possibility of securing political asylum moving to a foreign country.

Upon arrival at Mae La, the team split into two groups. Jerry and Sylvia met with the adults and Tom, Alex and Jim met with the children. While Jerry and Sylvia demonstrated teaching excellence, Tom and Jim appeared to be conducting some form of Abbot and Costello routine and Alex played the straight man. The adult session focused on counselling which seemed to resonate with the attendees. After some simple water education for the children, English practice had the children giggling, with phrases such as ‘Tom has a big nose’. Alex managed to build nicely upon the silliness with some relevant bible passages. The adult group sang for us again with gusto – with both groups faith and joy came out across the language barrier

After lunch, three of us were invited to visit Henasay’s hut and to meet his wife and son. This was a chance to learn a bit about life in the camp and some personal insights. Hanasay had built his hut when he arrived in Thailand about 2 years ago. The entire hut was constructed from bamboo and leaves. The bamboo provides everything from structural components to woven floor mats. During the visit to his house, we learned that he risked deportation by joining us in Noun Boe (outside of the refugee camp). Without offering deeper explanation, Hanasay shared with us that his border from Burma one year ago crossing was not any easy affair.

One of our translators for the day was a 23 year old young lady named Geakoh. She is the wife of Mookoh, translator for Jim,Tom, and Alex when they came to the camp on Sunday. Mookoh told us his wife was expecting to deliver their first baby within the next 2 weeks. When Tom & Alex saw Geakoh, we guessed she might be the mom-to-be. Geakoh had been a school teacher in Burma before fleering one year ago. Alex had been carrying a couple of Angel Bears entrusted to him one of his daughters. He was tasked with giving them a good home. Alex gave the bears to Geakoh.

Before leaving Mae La, we handed over medical supplies and Burmese language bibles. In Mae La, as with each of our work sites this week, we have been welcomed with open arms. The people have been friendly and giving. It is hard to imagine that we have been able to give as much as we have received.

We will be leaving Mae Sot tomorrow after worship for our drive back to Bangkok and the final portion of our mission trip. While we have said it individually to friends and family, as a team we want to recognize your sacrifice. We are only able to be here because of your support. Thank you.

Sharing our God given talents and gifts with our brothers and sisters,
Alex, Jerry, Sylvia, Tom and Jim.
Here are some pictures:http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=11267&l=d7343&id=1196427976