Learning Thai

Last week we (along with every other household in Thailand) received a copy of the draft of the new constitution. After the coup last September the 1997 constitution was annulled and the country has been under an interim constitution since then. I've found it interesting to observe this process and to read a little bit about the history of constitutional democracy in Thailand. Coming from America, where throwing out the constitution seems unthinkable, it is surprising to see how differently this whole process is viewed here. The preamble to this new draft explains "The democratic rule with the King as the Head of the State has been going through a process of evolution for more than seventy-five years in Thailand. Constitutions have been written, changed and replaced to better suit the changing times and circumstances that befell the country." I believe that this will be the 18th new constitution since 1932. There's certainly something to be said for the stability of American politics - but I also have to admire the ability of the Thai people to adapt, improvise and maintain a general sense of order in spite of all the political turmoil.

Thanks to those of you who are continuing to pray for our visa situation. I met today with the lawyer who is helping us and as far as I can tell everything is progressing as planned. I will see him again on Friday and we'll start planning for advertising an English class in our neighborhood.

And now, for those of you who agree with Candice and think that an entry about the Thai constitution is less than interesting, here's a picture of Claire from today:

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 08:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Friday night was a girl's-night-in with Trish and Sharon- our last sleepover before Trish heads back to the states in a few weeks (sniff, sniff!). Saturday morning we made cinnamon rolls- the first time we've attempted this here.

The girls loved poking and eating the dough and licking the brown sugar.

Today was a beautiful day with a nice breeze and we enjoyed having our team worship time by the lake at the Rama IV park.

And now for Eliza Fest. Sorry, but I couldn't edit myself!

And finally, as for our work permit/visa never-ending saga.....Tom is in the process of applying for a work permit with a language tutoring center (the lawyer who is assisting is a friend of a friend of a friend....). If the work permit works out he could set up his own English tutoring lessons or work for a school. We are praying that all the details will work out quickly and smoothly to receive the visa before Sept. 2.
Thanks for all those who said you were praying- it encourages us and helps us trust God and his timing.

-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 10:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

An elephant on Soi 12! We've fed elephants on the streets before but never right in front of our house. The girls were excited to feed "Nok Bploi" some sugar cane, although E was a little nervous! ("Elephant, not eat me!")

Tom came home from the post office with roses for Claire and Eliza- they are feeling quite grown up!

Hi Folks- working on our newsletter today so most of you will see this news there. However, we wanted to let you know that we could really use your prayers right now. We got a call today from the agency which is hiring Tom to teach. He was planning to begin teaching English in a local high school on August 1. Now they are telling us they might not be able to get us a work permit (one of the main reasons for taking the job in the first place). We've been dissapointed by several other job options already and and all the details had been going so smoothly so far for this one. Please pray that we'll know what God's will is for this job (we have a deadline- Sept. 2 so it's becoming a little worrying).

In other more minor and less depressing news...we've been learning to enjoy some Thai breakfast lately (breakfast here varies little from lunch or supper and consists of the normal staples of rice, soup, noodles, curries, etc). We especially like kaao man gai- a delicious chicken and rice dish with chicken broth. This morning Claire was pondering over her bowl (she is not the biggest fan of Thai breakfast and had told me that she thinks toast has "so much more flavor"). She added, "I wonder how it feels to be a rice?"...and then decided it must feel like "having lots of friends."
And as for Eliza's quotable quotes, Tom just went up to get her up from her nap and she very excitedly exclaimed, "Daddy, I'm playing with your money. I pee peed in my bed and spilled water!!" Wow, what a busy bee.
-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 04:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)

The prayer team on their last day in Thailand.

Rob, Doris, Phil, and Twila: thank you so much! It was such a blessing and encouragment to have you here with us. Your prayers for the city and for our friends here helped remind us of our purpose and strengthened our faith. We enjoyed fun times with you like Thai meals, boat rides, massages, Set games, and just sitting around talking and laughing. We enjoyed the times of worship and singing and felt so refreshed! We really appreciated the time you spent with our girls reading to them, singing with them, listening, being their friends. Thank you for experiencing and understanding what day to day life here is like for us and for sharing our vision for Thailand. It was so comforting to have old friends here at our house and sharing in our life here. Blessings as you take your pictures and stories back home and keep praying!! We love you!
Trish and Sharon, thanks for your amazing help with the girls while the team was here. They will never forget their amazing day at Safari World watching the birds peck "Trishie's" hair, riding in the dolphin stroller, the dolphin show, the kangaroos "that looked like rats", etc. You were great!

P.S. For those of you praying for Tom's new teaching job- he will start on Aug. 1.
-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Here we are all heading off to church Sunday morning. This was the infamous morning that we just missed our neighborhood bus and no taxis would pick us up. As we were dripping with sweat and beginning to consider walking, a taxi finally stopped and all 6 adults and 2 kids crammed into the little car with the taxi driver giving us dubious looks (you need to picture Tom and Phil in the single front seat together).

We enjoyed worshiping with our Thai friends and they even let us sing for them (You Never Let Go) and Tom shared- in Thai! Way to go Tom- the pastor was impressed! We had a delicious lunch of green curry at the church and then worshiped at our house with the team in the afternoon. We had fun playing games and eating together again in the evening.

Day 6- was "Trish Day". We met at Trish's apartment and she gave a presentation on a subject that has been her passion- women and trafficking. We all learned a lot about a very difficult and saddening subject and spent time praying for the women and children affected. We also did a tour of Rahab, an organization helping women come out of the bars and begin a new life in Christ. We prayer walked the bar area surrounding the ministry too. Had a great lunch at S & P including sweet and sour fish, spicy sausage salad and garlic and pepper ribs.

Day 7 we began by touring the ABAC University campus where Ben is studying and leading a Bible study. We enjoyed the beautiful campus and met Ben for lunch and prayed for him.

We enjoyed the peaceful and beautiful campus- these beautiful water lilies, swans, lake, a horse fountain, beautiful architecture, orchids, palm trees, an ornate chapel with lots of amazing stained glass, etc.

In the afternoon we headed to Bang Bo where Joe lives and works (he's currently in the States). Here we are praying for the site of the future coffee shop which is now under construction.

Finally, we headed down to the canal for a boat ride. We required two boats for our large foreigner selves (they said 10 Thais would have fit in one boat) and enjoyed views of duck farms, a wat, swamp land, farmers fishing and tending water vegetables/plants, egrets, etc. It was perfectly overcast so not to hot and we all enjoyed the fast ride down the canal.

-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 11:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

We've had several very full (and good) days with the prayer team. Here's a quick summary of what we've done.

On Friday we went to the Grand Palace, one of the most sacred spots in the country for Thai Buddhists. Claire and Eliza have really enjoyed having the team here - I think that they will really miss all of the activity (and extra people willing to read to and play with them) when the team leaves. In this picture they are sitting with Rob and Doris on the boat headed to the Grand Palace.

On Saturday we visited the huge Chatuchak Market and then stopped at the Erawan Shrine - a shrine on a busy Bangkok street corner that is known as a place to pray and ask for favors from the resident spirit. We spent some time watching the activity there and reflecting on God's power.

After visiting the Erawan Shrine we went to the Baiyoke Tower, Bangkok's tallest building. The view from the observation deck is amazing and we spent a long time up there asking for God's blessing on the city. We ended the day with a dinner buffet on the 82nd floor.

Yesterday (Sunday) we visited a local Thai church that our family sometimes attends. The team sang a couple of songs and I got a chance to stretch my Thai speaking abilities by introducing the team and talking a little bit. In the afternoon the prayer team met with the rest of our team at our house. We had an encouraging time of worship, prayer, and fellowship.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This morning we went with the prayer team to Bang Phli, the area where Dan lives. We toured a wat and the old market area of Bang Phli before walking back to Dan's apartment for a time of worship, discussion, and prayer. Before heading back home, Dan treated us to a meal of grilled chicken, somtam (spicy papaya salad) and sticky rice.

It was a good day of learning more about Buddhism as well as being encouraged by the fellowship and prayer.

At the temple in Bang Phli

Rob & Doris at the shrine to the Buddha's heart. This is inside the large reclining Buddha statue at the wat.

Eating lunch beside the canal. The team seems to be enjoying the variety of Thai food they've tried so far.

Praying in Dan's apartment.

Eating an authentic Isaan (northeastern Thai) meal in the proper way - on the floor.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 10:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Phil, and Rob and Doris arrived safely late last night. We were really happy to see them and they were doing great in spite of the 24 hour trip to get here and the disorienting time change. Today we had a really encouraging morning here at our house with devotions, singing, prayer and blessing our house. We were strengthened and blessed by the time and were impressed again by God's power and his purpose here in Thailand. The team also tried out some unique Thai fruits like mangosteen, rambutan, and lychee. For lunch we ate at the noodle shop near our house and tried a variety of Thai "comfort foods" with noodles and rice. We prayer walked home in the bright sun and then they headed over to Sharon's for an afternoon praying for her. Apparently sleep last night was pretty light and sketchy for all of them, so pray for a good night's sleep tonight. They are going to try to go to bed nice and early. Tomorrow we'll spend the day in Bang Plee with Dan.

The girls were very excited to open the suitcase of presents from the church- what a huge blessing! Pamesan cheese! Macaroni and cheese! Hair Spray! Paint! We love you guys at LCF. Thanks for all the presents- it really was like Christmas! We're looking forward to reading your cards and letters too.

Rob led us in a time of worship.

Eliza getting reacquainted with old friends.

Lunch at the noodle shop. Everybody tried everything. Everyone's stomachs seem to be doing okay so far! Pray for health!

- Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 03:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Last evening we enjoyed a fun, multi-cultural experience. Two of Dan's friends from Bangladesh are currently visiting him and they wanted to cook a Bangladeshi meal for us. They also asked us to invite our landlords since one of the Bangladeshi men had met them on a previous visit to Thailand.

They cooked a delicious meal and we all enjoyed the food and the conversation (and managed to translate between the three languages without too much difficulty) . It was one of those experiences that makes being here meaningful and I'm especially glad that Claire and Eliza can participate in events like that. We had American and Bangladeshi Christians, Thai Buddhists, and a Bangladeshi Muslim eating together - not something that happens everyday!

Pijush, the head cook.

Eliza enjoying the Bangladeshi food (but mostly the Pepsi).

After supper Pijush (an art student) entertained Claire by drawing pictures for her to color.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 06:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday we tackled several "spring-cleaning" projects. The girls helped me wash our window screens and did a great job of stacking the clean ones in the sun to dry. Eventually, of course, the running hose was too hard to resist and they abandoned work in favor of getting soaking wet.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 05:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last night I went to the opening match (Thailand vs. Iraq) of the AFC Asian Cup that is being co-hosted by Thailand. Unfortunately there was a heavy downpour before the game and a continuous light rain throughout it which kept a lot of people away. The fans that were there were very enthusiastic (but in a polite, Thai way - very different from the more raucous fans that are infamous in other parts of the world).

It was a very "Thai" experience - starting with the 2 1/2 hour bus ride through traffic jams typical of rainy Bangkok evenings. At the stadium they sold steamed dumplings, sushi, and dried fish snacks. There were hot dogs, but they were on skewers, not in buns.

The game ended in a 1-1 tie. Next up for Thailand are games against Oman and Australia.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 04:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We had a 4th of July party at our house on Wednesday. The whole team was able to come plus a few other friends and we had a great time. Our landlords helped us out by setting up a Thai style barbecue so we could grill. We had lots of American food that none of us had had in a very long time like grilled chicken, potato salad, sausages with peppers and onions, baked beans, and even apple pie!

Sharon and Claire put finishing touches on the apple pie. Delicious!

The mutual admiration society. Our landlord Khun Seri firing up the grill and his big buddy Eliza Grace.

Eliza in her favorite pose.

The red shirt girls (and Joe). Without planning it, almost all of us girls wore red shirts. :)

The girls got their own little table on the patio.

Multiple games of dominoes, set, take one, and settlers. Apparently Claire was the big winner of dominoes.

Yesterday Twila took us on a special outing to the aquarium. The girls loved the giant crabs, grape cotton candy, watching the penguins eating their fish lunch, seahorses, otters, and a car full of fish. Here's a couple of pictures of that too....

I've been meaning to take a picture for awhile of Ronald McDonald doing the wai. The girls are not worshipping him by the way. :)

Eliza and Tom checking ot the giant crabs.

Claire and fish.

-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 09:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Since the coup that took place here last September, the interim leadership has been working towards the installation of a new government - starting with the drafting of a new constitution. One part of that which I've been particularly interested in is the debate over whether or not to make Buddhism the state religion. This past Friday the Constitutional Drafting Assembly voted against doing that. In Saturday's Bangkok Post the head of the Constitution Drafting Committee was quoted as saying "Lord Buddha did not leave Buddhism in the care of this kingdom or any particular power, but his disciples. He asked them to observe and study his teachings. According to the Lord Buddha, whether Buddhism thrives or deteriorates depends on how the disciples behave."

I was struck by how closely that reflects Jesus' instructions to us, his disciples.

To me, Thai culture is often confusing mix of spiritual and secular and I have a hard time figuring out which beliefs are strongly held and which are more like superstitions or legends. But I'm sure that a Thai Buddhist encountering "Christian" America would have some of the same feelings.

And now, on a less serious note...here's a picture of Eliza at the pool (bathing caps required!) and one of Claire with a bird that ended up on our veranda.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 03:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)