Learning Thai

On Thursday evening our family (and the REACH team) will take the overnight train to Ubon Ratchathani in northeastern Thailand. We’re going to stay with host families and join the group of believers there for an early Easter celebration on Sunday. This will be a time for the REACH team to learn more about Thai culture outside of Bangkok and for all of us to fellowship with a “sister church.” Our family will also spend a couple of days in Laos since we need to leave the country to renew our visas. We’ll all return to Bangkok on April 2.

We’re looking forward to this adventure – and it should be an adventure as we travel by train and pickup truck, eat different kinds of food, and adapt to living with another family. Of course we’d appreciate your prayers – that we would be kept safe and healthy and that the kids (especially Silas) could make these transitions without too much stress.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Our kids have recently enjoyed playing with a couple of classic Thai “toys” – the banana-stalk horse and the banana-stalk gun. Bananas are grown all over the country and Thais have found uses for all parts of the banana plant. They use the leaves as food wrappers, use fibers from the trunk to make string, eat the fruit, flowers, and inner core of the trunk, etc. And they use the stalks to make horses and guns for their kids’ enjoyment.

Our landlady, Khun Ulai, introduced the kids to these simple pleasures...

With just a few cuts, the banana stalk becomes a horse.

Khun Ulai helps Silas saddle up

Eliza shows off the gun. By quickly running your hand across the pieces that are standing up you can make a popping sound that does sound vaguely like a machine gun.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Claire and a group of Karen kids

Our trip last week (see previous post) took us to the border of Thailand and Myanmar (Burma). As is the case along many borders around the world, this area feels different from the rest of the country. I was impressed again by the mixing of cultures, police checkpoints, refugee camps, poverty, and the resilience of the people who live in that unstable area.

We spent some time with Karen people who have been forced from their homes by Myanmar's military and their offensive against this people group. In one informal settlement where our friends are working the 15 or so families living there had recently experienced the deaths of several young children. Some of the families had been close to making a decision to follow Jesus when these deaths caused them to reconsider. While we were there another child was sick and we spent time praying for her. After we left we heard that she was not getting better and that the entire settlement was considering moving elsewhere because they had seen or heard a ghost and were afraid that more people would die. A Christian lady and two Christian teenagers whom she is discipling used this opportunity to reach out to them again and share about the freedom from fear that they've found in Jesus. Today I called to find out if there were any new developments and was blessed to hear that the girl has recovered - and that many of the refugees have decided to be baptized this coming Sunday!

Please join us in praying for them - that they would grow in their faith, that they would not become discouraged, that God would continue to protect them physically and spiritually, and that God would use "the least of these" as witnesses of his love and power.

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 03:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last week Claire and I went with the REACH team to northwestern Thailand. We have some Thai friends working in that area and this has become an annual trip. For the last 3 days of our time there we ran an English camp for 3rd - 6th graders in the town of Mae Ramaat. There were 80 some kids there - all eager to practice their English skills. The REACH team did a good job of simultaneously teaching and keeping them entertained. Claire enjoyed participating in the camp and quickly made a lot of friends. Whenever I went looking for her I'd find her in the middle of a large circle of girls.

We all enjoyed the cooler weather (even a little too cold some nights!) and the break from the city. We were awoken every morning by roosters crowing. Claire especially enjoyed seeing the stars - something we just can't do in Bangkok.

On our next-to-last day there Claire was bitten by the pastor's dog. (She now knows the literal rationale behind "Let sleeping dogs lie.") As a precaution we took her to the local hospital and she was started on a rabies vaccination program. So far she's had two shots and still needs 1-3 more. I guess they used to give these injections in the stomach - thankfully they're able to do it in the arm now!

Here are a few pictures...

-Tom

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 02:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was really glad for any grown-up company I could get this week. Aside from my lovely friend Chaweewan who you met in the last post, here are a few others who stopped by...

My friend/tutor Ju came over one night bringing us dinner- crab fried rice, omlettes, and...

Donuts! This was before Eliza stomach bug. By the way, she is doing great now. She's done with her antibiotics and feeling great.

We put music on for the kids to dance to and read books to them and Ju and I got caught up. I was so happy for the company!

Uncle Seri spent time over here this week too- he always brings an orange or two to feed Silas and sits and talks or cleans up in the yard. Silas likes to hang out with him.

Ulai and Seri also came over this week to harvest bananas and cut down another banana tree. Doing pretty well for their age, wouldn't you say?? :) (Ulai chopped down the tree with a machete).

Silas inspects the harvest. (why yes, that IS spit out banana on his outfit)

Colleen, our team mate, is also back safely as of yesterday from her 5 weeks of English teacher training. She's coming over this morning for bagels. I'm glad to have my friend back!

Thankful for grown-up visitors this week! Looking forward to Tom and Claire's return tomorrow night. The English camp is going well and Tom is helping in a variety of ways- mostly translation and helping come up with games and activities when plans need adjusting. Yesterday afternoon, they had a little fun outing to a hot springs.
In bad news, Claire was bitten by a dog and had to go to the clinic for rabies vaccine. The dog was a pet and healthy but they did the shot as a precaution. The wound isn't too bad and she told me "she learned a lesson" about picking on dogs. Poor girl. I'm sure they will be telling you more about their adventures here on the blog soon.

-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 08:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Eliza's favorite parts of staying in the hospital:
1- wheelchair rides
2- new slippers
3-her "friend" the IV pole
4-sponge baths
5-Sprite
6-the soy sauce packet that came with her rice porridge
7-nice nurses

Eliza's least favorite parts:
1- needle stick for IV
2 -20 + trips to the bathroom with IV in tow
3-porridge for every meal
4- medicine

Candice was thankful for:
1- friends who pray
2- Jesus, who cares when I feel alone
3- sporadic phone calls with Tom when he was in cell phone range.
4- a good night's sleep for Eliza
5- friends who help.

My friend Chaweewan was at the hospital within a half hour of my phone call and was wonderful enough to care for Silas and even sleep at our house so he could be in his own crib. Chaweewn, you're awesome!

Eliza was in the hospital due to a bacterial infection of her intestine and was treated with antibiotics and rehydrated via IV. She still has some stomach pain and diarrhea but is much better and has three days of medicine and mushy food ahead of her. Thanks for praying for her! This just happened to happen at a time when I was totally alone with the team all away, so I was very thankful for my Thai friends who helped and even a stranger who called to check on us after meeting us in pediatrics.

P.S. A note about the travellers....
Meanwhile, out in the villages, Tom and Claire are of course worried about Eliza, but they are safe and having a good time. They are sleeping on bamboo, experiencing cold nights, playing with kids, swimming in rivers, traveling in trucks, and praying with believers. English camp starts tomorrow. We are very glad for your prayers for them as well!

-Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Our big girl turned seven on Feb. 27! ! It's hard to believe how much she's grown in the last year- learning to ride bike, graduating kindergarten and starting first grade, reading chapter books, jumping rope, etc, etc....we are so proud of her!

One of her favorite birthday gifts- a swing at last! She's been longing for one so she had to try it out in her nightgown.

At breakfast, she loved opening her packages and cards! Thank you grandparents and LCF friends, Aunt Anita, Aunt Gail and Uncle Del, etc! You guys make birthdays great!

Very specific breakfast ordered by the b'day girl including kiwi, bacon, and cinnamon rolls.

For Claire's birthday surprise, we took her and Eliza to Dream World, an amusement park on the other side of Bangkok. It was our first time and all of us had a great day!!! We loved the water rides, the roller coasters, the shaved ice, the petting zoo, the 3D movie, fairytale land (recreations of houses like the gingerbread house from Hansel and Gretel and the giant's house from Jack and the Beanstalk), etc.
Here is my favorite mini-roller coaster picture!

At petting zoos, Claire is always mad at the bully who's eating too much and rooting for the underdog who's not getting his share. :)

Pretending to be Pa Ingalls being chased by the wolf pack. :)

Tom risking his life on the Hurricane- the kind of ride that makes you feel you're falling to your death. (Claire was probably more scared than he was, just watching).

For dinner, she chose Pad Thai and practiced her chopstick skills.

After opening her presents and box from grandparents (lots of books- she's happy!), she had some birthday cupcakes which she helped make.

A few of the things I love about her....her love for Jesus, her kindness to others, her freckles, her love of books, the way she runs to help Silas and plays school with Eliza....and so many other things. Happy Birthday Claire!!

-C

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 11:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Please pray for Tom and Claire and the Reachers this week. They are headed to Mae Sot (on the border of Burma and Thailand) where they will be teaching an English camp at the end of the week. On the way, they will be visiting small villages and playing with the kids there and sleeping in host homes. Tom and Claire left last night (and arrived there safely on the bus this morning) and will be gone until Monday the 8th. Please pray for them this week- especially for safety as they are traveling a lot and will be out of cell phone contact some of the time. Pray for strength and energy and creativity as they teach and interact with the students and that each child will experience the love of Jesus this week. You can also pray for those of us who are staying home! :)
Thank you so much,
Candice

Posted by Tom & Candice Mast at 10:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)