Nowadays when I actually have time to sit in front of the computer by myself, I just don't feel like writing. It doesn't help that I seem to spend more time running around here. And I'm definitely getting tanned! By the way, did you know that girls in Cambodia are obsessed with becoming "white"? They like having lighter colour skin. I think the obsession is generally quite prevalent in Asia. When I was watching local tv programs at the hotel, there were many commercials about what you can take/use to have whiter skin. It was quite funny... Anyway, I think I'm going to start to do what the girls here do... wear long sleeved shirts or jackets when they go out. Not for the sake of preventing myself getting tanned... but to protect my skin! I can never remember to put on sunblock when I go out... And sometimes I can't predict if I'll be under the sun for long...
Anyway, I've totally detracted from my original post.... I wanted to tell you guys about my day. Went to Lvea Em yesterday to help with doing some interviews for Marc and Ann. Brittney (a volunteer who's staying with me for a month) and I were tasked to interview some villagers there and ask them some questions. They wanted to show these video clips to their churches in the States that many people in places like Lvea Em in Cambodia have never heard of the name of Jesus or have very little contacts with Christians. I guess this is to expose the Christians in the churches about mission work. Before the interview we helped with the RDI staff with some health and medicine work, like checking their blood pressure, giving them some herbal medicine and cleaning some wounds.
So far, the results of the interviews have been surprising. Almost everyone we interviewed said they have heard the name of Jesus, but their understanding of Jesus and Christianity is... not much. Some of the things they mentioned were pretty sad, about Christians. I'd have to see the actual translation to decide if what I heard was actually true.
On the way back, we were caught in a heavy rain, and ALL 8 of us got completely soaked.. I'd have never imagined that it could be that cold outdoor in Cambodia. As we were waiting for the ferry to get us back to the other side of the river, we could see the rain line approaching us fast... It was pretty cool actually. This was my second time getting caught in a heavy rain. Even though we were "sheltered", it was useless. The wind was so strong that everyone on board got thoroughly wet, except for those who worked on the ferry, who quickly put on their raincoat. For a moment, I thought we weren't going to make it back and that we'd have to spend a night at the village. And that would not be funny... because the roads would be so muddy that our vehicle would probably be stuck in the mud anyway... God was gracious, the rain subsided as we reached the other end of the river. I remember looking up the sky and saw the sky and there was this beautiful light shining amidst the dark clouds and heavy rain and I thought how wonderful God has been. It was quite reassuring.
A nice surprise at the end of the day when Date and Ma Ma brought out some cakes they made for me. I showed my driver's license to Date the day before and I guess she saw some information... So they decided to make some cakes. I didn't expect it at all. Anyway, after certain age, it really doesn't make any difference anymore. Just another day. Didn't really tell anyone since I didn't really know anyone all that well.... You don't really go up to people and say, hey yo, it's my big day tomorrow or something... That was very sweet of them. Good kids they are...
