Doin' the dance

Some missionaries reject the surrounding culture altogether while others try to blend in completely. I prayerfully decided to waffle. Hahahahaha! That is, altho' I'm learning to "do the dance" here, now & then I throw in a new step. 'Course there are times I miss a step too.

My ministry partner Jane Truax loves the account I gave her of dealing with an old woman who was hassling my brothers about the way Ruth treated her during a dispute over rent payment (Ruth is definitely a reject-the-culture kind of missionary). That was a time I had to do the dance & had to do it very carefully. My brother Boonie, in the photo, bravely agreed to translate my words as I demonstrated all the proper body language. It was a complicated dance, but I got thru it without laughing or being spit on, thank God. Totally Cambo culture for that one....until I ended the dance with a dip. Hahahahaha! I was just so happy that peace had been restored that I reached out & rubbed her arms & even hugged her. The brother with me nearly passed out thinking I just blew the whole deal we worked so hard to achieve. Hahahahaha! Thanks be to God, the old woman received my behavior with delight & even kissed my head.

Then there was the time I stopped a trash picker to love on the filthy baby he was carrying amongst the rubbish he collected in his cart. Trash pickers are not considered people, but trash pushing trash. (I know, I know. Really honks me off too.) Not only did I make eye contact with the man & smile at him, I played with the child & even kissed her lice-infested head. Gave the guy my water bottle too. That was a totally freestyle dance there; just moving to the rhythm of my spirit. The small crowd that gathered to stare was aghast, but the man & baby smiled, & I think Jesus did too.

When one of my sisters, an older, thought it would be "sooooo nice" to have a western mom take her shopping in what Americans call a mall, I gave her a taste of it. Took her into one of the city's largest & nicest markets (like a gigantic, old-fashioned department store), headed straight for the undergarments, & embarrassed the stuffin' out of her. Hahahahahaha! That there was some dirty dancing. Hahahahahaha! Before you jump me for that dirty trick, please know I behaved very well as I bought her a nice pair of shorts in another section of the market. Srey Peck loves the shorts, but as for wishing for an American mom, she'd rather sit out that dance! Hahahahahaha!

Sometimes I have to show someone else how to do a new step too. Sopea (pronounced "soapy") is a new Cambo staff helping at the girls' house & the team house. [THANK YOU, JESUS!!!] She's a living doll who loves the children & works diligently to run their household well. In customary fashion Sopea showed her respect for my authority (When we met she assumed I am in charge because I'm white. Sheesh.) she offered me a chair & knelt in front of me, face toward the ground with her hands above her forehead, palms together. I quickly snatched her up by the elbow so we were both standing & drew up her chin so we were face to face. Before I could speak she said, "Oooh so sorry. I afraid Madame not like me." I held her face with both hands making her look me in the eyes & said, "Sopea, I love you. I am very, very happy you are here. I thank you! You must never bow to me. Never! We are sisters. We work together. I don't want to see the top of your head ever again!" We both cried a little & embraced a long time. I still have to lift her chin occassionally because the new step still feels a little awkward to her, but she's getting the hang of our little tango.

I missed a step just this week. Still feel bad about it too. Lyn is a moto driver who picks me up early in the morning Monday-Friday for breakfast & house checks. Lyn informed me (thru my bilingual brother) that he would like to go see his family out of town from Friday night to Sunday night. Very dramatically I said, "Three days gone?! Oh no! What will I do? I will miss you too much!" Lyn immediately apologized & promised to stay in the city forever. It would be hilarious if he weren't totally serious. I forgot that Cambo's don't do sarcasm, rhetorical questions, open criticism, nor a host of other communications common to westerners. That was some fancy footwork: missed a step, stepped on Lyn's toes & put my foot in my mouth all in one quick move. Ugh! It took some doing, but Lyn agreed to visit his family, believed I still like him, & trusted I still want him to drive for me. ... He did call me Friday evening to ask if he could leave at 6pm tho'. Sigh.

As far as I'm concerned for Cambodia, the dance I'm most looking forward to is the one we'll do when we "dance upon injustice." The peacemakers, the trash pickers, the orphans, the oppressed, the meek & one wild-footed barang are really gonna' cut a rug!

10/16/10
Hallelujah!
~We have a WONDERFUL new staff member!
~All the sibs have all they need to start school!
~ My visa is FINALLY valid & up-to-date!!
~ Short-term mission teams are coming in!
~ My khmer is expanding & improving! It's muuuuch easier to talk to people about Jesus when you can say His name in their language! (In case you're wondering, His name is pronounced "yay-soo."
~ Little Adam is thriving!

Help!
~ Nasty, nasty water has been thigh high at the boys' house, including IN the house, for a couple of days. The storms are way-cool, but sometimes the results are not. On the bright side tho', they have been able to catch some small fish with their mosquito netting.
~ A friend's 20 month old son has some fairly serious heath problems & we haven't the resources available to help him. Good doctors are scarce & expensive here.
~ I'm a little nervous about running the place while Ruth's away the first two weeks of November.

Personal Notes:
~ Isaac Roe, I miss you only a LOT. I love you, Son.
~ Gena Taylor, you're on my mind.
~ Lucy Carr, thank you for checking on my husband. You're a blessing, Sister!
~ Lora Sherfey, I heard you're still planning on coming. WOOOO-HOOOOO!