Learning Thai

Miss Eliza Grace Mast turned 4 on Sunday! Here are a few facts about our "middle girl" (as we often call her)....
*She is a creative girl who loves to draw, paint, make crafts, and help bake.
*Her favorite foods are sticky rice and grilled pork.
*She is stubborn and independent.
*She is still a tiny girl who doesn't like to eat much
*She is going to Thai school now and is very proud of her new uniforms and the fact that she now has homework like Claire.
*She likes to play school, Pollly Pockets, swim,
*She is a very sweet big sister who plays very gently with Silas and loves to make him laugh.
We are very blessed to have her in our family and had a fun day celebrating her birthday yesterday. Her suggestion was that we go to a big park, called Lumpini in the city, so we braved the heat and tried to go as early as possible.

The girls had fun on the playground. Sunday morning was an interesting time to be in the park. We saw people practicing martial arts (some with swords!), older people playing games and getting haircuts, and people drinking tea. We saw some of the huge lizards (some as big as a small crocodile) around the lake also.

Lunch was an American treat- Burger King! and Eliza had fun opening all her presents from her grandparents. Thanks Grandaddy, Grandmom, Grandpa and Grandpa- you know just what she likes!

To our delight, it rained almost all afternoon!! We are happy to see some of the early rains beginning after a few miserable months of heat.

In the evening, we had Eliza's favorite Thai food and the teddy bear cake that she requested as well as opening the rest of her presents. It was awfully hard for her to go to school today and leave all those presents behind, even for a little while!

Earlier this week, we had another birthday at our house!

We celebrated Wa's birthday with ice cream at Swenson's and the Reachers took her out later in the evening for karoke.

Happy 16th birthday, Wa!

-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 04:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

This article about an American-made movie being banned in Thailand renewed my frustrations at the labeling of the United States as a "Christian" nation. We (even here) heard a lot of that kind of talk in the run-up to last year's election and it is increasingly striking me as unhelpful. From what I've read, the movie (Zach and Miri Make a Porno) was a mainstream, R-rated movie, that made a lot of money. Yet in Thailand it will not be shown, because according to the the National Film Board, it "goes against moral principles here."

I am not arguing for more film censorship or debating whose "moral principles" are better. I'm just discouraged to read this article and realize again that this may actually further discredit Christianity in the eyes of people around the world. I'm glad to live in Thailand as a representative of God's kingdom - but I have no desire to been seen as a proponent of "American Christianity." There's just too much of what the U.S. is, does, and exports that I don't want to be associated with - and insisting on calling it "Christian" only makes it worse.

OK, that's my rant for the day. Feel free to leave a comment on why you think the U.S. still should be called Christian if you like.

We are continuing to suffer through the hottest part of the year. I know that doesn't mean much to those of you enjoying nice spring weather, but it is really, really hot! Thankfully the rains should come by mid-May. Today we're all at home, trying not to sweat too much. Tomorrow is Eliza's birthday, so we've got some fun activities planned. I'm sure a blog post will follow.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 04:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The answer is six plus three kids. :)

Last night we had our second annual Songkran party at our house. Most people arrived pretty wet already as they were attacked with water and powder on the way over. We enjoyed some of Tom's delicious grilled food (mango chicken skewers, asparagus) and then had our own water battle- the ice water was the biggest hit. The day was so warm that the pool and hose water just wasn't cold enough!

Silas wasn't too sure about all that fighting and getting sprayed in the face! He was a pretty good trouper though.

Claire made sure to wai to show respect before powdering grown-ups like Pon!
After the water play, the girls enjoyed wild horsie rides from Rebekah, the Reach team leader, and the rest of us enjoyed a game of Hearts.

Happy New Year!
-C

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thanks to all of you who prayed for Thailand (and us) over the past week. On Monday the situation seemed very tense and it looked like it could deteriorate into real chaos. But by yesterday morning the government had managed to clear protesters from the streets. Soon after that many of the protesters at the main site (outside of the government house) decided to leave and then the leaders of the movement announced that they would surrender to the police. So, this seems to have ended (for now, at least) in the most peaceful way possible.

However, there is still fighting going on - but it's being done with hoses, buckets, and water guns! Yesterday the girls, Wa, and I went out on the motorcycle looking for a water fight and we got all we could handle. Groups of people - mostly kids, but plenty of adults, too - set up in front of their houses with all manner of water fighting paraphernalia. We'd drive up on the motorcycle, they would step into the street to stop us and then douse us with water. If it's tap water it feels good, but some people have barrels of ice water at their disposal. The other "weapon" is a paste made with powder and water which is smeared on faces. It's a fun holiday - and it's amazing to see how good natured almost everyone is about getting drenched whenever they leave their house.

After the excursion.

Silas thought his green-faced sister was hilarious - he laughed and laughed at her.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As you may have heard, Thailand is again experiencing considerable political unrest. The "red shirts" (a group opposed to the current government) has been protesting for the past few weeks, but over the last several days they have become much more aggressive. A state of emergency has now been declared and the army has been deployed in Bangkok. We've been checking the TV all day and the images have been disturbing. The protesting mob has seized city buses and gas tankers and there are reports of buildings being set on fire. Up to now the government has promised to use restraint in dealing with the situation but no one knows how long their patience will last or what will happen next.

The good news for us is that we are far-removed from the conflict and have no plans or need to go into the city anytime soon. Our neighborhood is very quiet since many people are traveling for the three-day Thai New Years holiday that started today.

Please join us in praying for a peaceful end to this conflict. Pray that lives would be spared and that both sides would truly consider the interests of the country.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 08:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

As always, on holidays we are happy to have friends here to share the day with. We enjoyed an Easter breakfast with Our girls' favorite part was having jelly beans for breakfast!

It was a really good day of worshipping, being touched again by what a powerful and life changing sacrifice Jesus made for us all. The girls enjoyed the annual tradition of dying eggs, hunting eggs, and getting Easter baskets of treats.

Happy Easter, friends and family! We miss you today!

This year, Easter coincides with the Thai New Year, Songkran, so Tom and the girls are out trying to find someone to len naam with (play with water).

-C

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 05:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posing Thai style
From left:: Nixson, Reyna, Aida, Eder, Efrain

Our five Latin teammates have been with us in Thailand for a year now and in these few weeks are all headed back to their homes in Ecuador and Nicaragua. They will be missed very much!!!! We loved have a multi-cultural team this year, (good for brushing up on our Spanish comprehension). We appreciated their cheerful willingness to endure hard times and strange food and for their compassion and love for their Thai friends. We were so glad for all the new friends and contacts they brought into our lives. They were a lot of fun at meetings and we enjoyed the times of worshiping with them in Spanish. Please be praying that some of them will be able to return to our team after accomplishing things back home (finishing school for some, raising support for others, planning for visas and work in Thailand). There are definitely obstacles to their return but we know and believe that with God anything is possible! We love you guys and will miss you very much!

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, we've filled you in on church happenings lately, so it feels like time for a family update. We are making our way through the hottest part of the year right now. It always feels like a couple of months we just need to "get through" in some ways- the headaches, heat rashes, super-hot afternoons, etc. We eagerly anticipate the rains coming in a month or two! This is one of the ways we survive the heat....

The kids spend hours in the kiddie pool these days. Silas is able to enjoy it more now that he can sit up a little better.

A big happening in our household is the addition of a new member! She is a student that we met in Mae Sot named Wa. Wa was looking for a chance to live in Bangkok this summer, so she's come to live with us during her school break until the first of May. She has been a great help with Silas and teaches the girls fun Thai songs and dances. We all appreciate the chance to improve our Thai language ability.

In other big news, Eliza started school this past week!! She was excited and a bit nervous to start but has adapted very well so far. Many of the other kids in her class are crying daily, and she has had a few tears of her own, but we are proud of the way she is adjusting. She and Claire are attending Tues-Thurs. (8:30-2:00) and Tom is back to teaching kindergarten English.

First day! Right now is "summer term" so they don't wear uniforms. The actual school term begins in early May.

Silas is 7 months now. He is sitting up on his own pretty well (surrounded by a few cautionary pillows). He's eating a couple of meals a day in addition to milk- rice, carrots, beans, potatoes, pumpkin, banana and mango to name a few. He loves to grin with a huge open mouth and squeal loudly. His favorite sound is dadadada (Tom would love to believe he's saying dada). He's also learning to scoot around wildly in this walker and make a big mess!.....

-C

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 09:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)