Thursday, July 5, 2012

A good week

The summer is almost halfway over!  It sounds like such a long time and then it goes so quickly. J For the first time in my life (as far as I can remember), I do not have something concrete to do with my time.  So I am taking things as they come up, taking some Khmer lessons, and doing some work for school. 
Last week—perfect timing because I was starting to get bored—I got to help lead a service trip with some of the high school students who are here this summer.  We went to an orphanage called Jumpah in one of the nearby provinces mainly to help with jobs needing to be done around the site.  It was my first time spending more than a day in rural Cambodia so it was a good experience for me to be sleeping on the floor, using squatty potties and bucket showers. J I was challenged again with thinking about the lifestyle I live and the way I use my resources.  Besides the manual labor we got to help with evening English classes, play volleyball and just spend time with the kids there.  I also got to teach a music class to a few of the students there, which was one of my favorite things.  I wasn’t sure where to start with them or what their musical abilities were so I asked if there was anything specific they wanted to learn, and one of the young men said “I want to learn anything that you know”.  J With the music and with English classes it was so encouraging to remember the joy of learning as we interacted with the kids.  It was also a joy to watch the students that came with us step out and love people and be challenged themselves.  At the end of the week we were dirty and sore but we got to serve and get to see more of God’s work and His people in Cambodia.  Here are a couple pictures from the week…