Spider Town

Apr 29 - May 3rd we had a work/pleasure trip to Kampong Thom & Siem Reap. On our return we stopped in the small town of Skun, better known as "Spider Town"! As soon as I stepped out of the van, friendly Sokha linked arms with me asking if I would like to buy bananas. As we walked about 3 steps Bopha came up and linked into my other arm asking if I'd like to buy some pineapples. Then I SAW what was on Sokha's blouse!! But I was unable to move away from my sweet captors! Sokha noticed my shocked stairs and said "no bite, no hurt" and then offered to let me hold her "pet"! NO THANK YOU, but please hold it so we can take a picture of it. Then Noch approached us wanting to sell us mangos telling us "money so I go to school".

Bopha, Noch, & Sokha

As we stepped back into the van, Sokha reached in & put the spider on Dad's shirt, a phot that couldn't be missed!

Does Elder Nelson look courageous? Below are the fired spiders for sale, a Cambodian "delicacy" and the common fired crickets which we did not purchase! Yes, we did go home with delicious mangos, bananas, & pineapples as well as with warm hearts and a deeper love for these precious Cambodian people.

When we travel by bus, it always stops in Skun for a "rest break" and many a time we have seen women climb back on board with small sacks of fried spiders and crickets for their eating pleasure. They seem to enjoy it as much as we enjoy eating candy! When we see them sharing with their children, it is all I can do to keep from saying "STOP, don't feed it to them! It isn't good for them!" But who am I to judge? Doesn't every mother want her children to get their daily allowance of protein?

Happy 65th B-day!

As we are walking home from our office on Wednesday evening our cell phone rings. It is Sameth, our ERC office manager calling to wish Dad a happpy birthday. Then he asks Dad where we live. Dad inquires, "Why?" "Well I might want to come and see you sometime."was Sameth's reply. We knew that Sameth works at the ERC office until 8pm. We didn't think he would come after work because he has a wife and darling little girl waiting for him at home, but just in case, we'd better not be in our pj's! Sure enough at 8:15pm there was a knock on our door and to our surprise not only was Sameth there, but half of our ERC staff (the other half were still in night school but sent their birthday wishes as well)! L to R: Vannak & his wife Boroth, Sameth, Lumang, Kompheack

Here is the cake they brought and below is gift they gave Dad. Each of them had written a personal message to Dad on the Cambodian flag and signed it. We truly enjoyed their company and had such fun sharing the cake with them.

After our special friends said goodbye and we closed the door, we were overcome by their act of love and kindness. All five of these students have served a full time mission and are valiant in living the gospel. They are all going to school on PEF loans. Four of the 5 are married, Sameth has an 15 mo old little girl, and Lumang has a 2mo old baby boy. Only Paul could envision the homes they live in. They are always so happy & optomistic one would never guess their lack of what we consider basic necessities of life! Our hearts were touched as we felt the truthfulness of the story of the "widow's mite" from the new testiment! We have learned so much about life and the hope and joy that the gospel brings to people!

Dad made me PROMISE that I wouldn't tell anybody when his birthday was, which promise I kept. Next day at work, however, Elder & Sis. Liggett stopped by the CES classroom with a surprise birthday cake for Dad! Two cake is a great way to start on the road to Medicare (OLD)!

Khmer New Year-a 3 Day Celebration (or longer!)

So Wednesday morning I woke up at 3:20am and took this picture from our apartment window showing all the lights decorating the street & houses for Khmer New Year. It is a 3 day event and everyone leaves Phnom Penh and goes to the Province where they were born (home-land) to celebrate with extended family. The only ones left in the city are those who were born in Phnom Penh, and they stay in their homes celebrating, so the streets are virtually empty! As I was getting ready to leave our apartment, I heard loud cymbols clanging. Dad didn't have his shoes and socks on yet, so I hurried down 2 flights of stairs with the camera only to miss the scene. The cymbols and drum kept beating as the small band of 7 people went in and out of various homes. Dad quickly finished dressing and we left, walking quickly down the street until we passed the "music"? Standing on the corner he got these shots!

The drummer's drum is in the cart.

The second man who's costume looks like a "baby" is representing the "New Year",

and, ah yes, "Father Time"! Does this remind you of "ring out the old, ring in the new"?

As we pass other homes, we can't help but notice the beautifully decorated table with food, flowers, and incense that have been placed in front of the house.

We asked this young mother & daughter if we could possibly take a picture of their table.

The 1st day of Khmer New Year is called Moha Sang Kran and is the "inauguration of new angels" who come to take care of the world for a one year period. People clean & decorate the house and prepare fruits & drinks to welcome the arrival of new angles at every single home.

(You can see by the background that this mother is a "Tailor". Most of the Cambodian's have their business right in front of their home on the sidewalk.)

Half a block away we come to the corner of Monivong, a major street in Phnom Penh. Yes, this family is ready also and it is only 7:30AM.

The 2nd day, called Wanabot, is a day of offering gifts to the parents, grandparents, & elders!

Our Monk friend, David, told us that the 3rd day is called Leung Sakk, "which means the year starts to be counted up from this day". To complete the New Year festival, people will go to the pagoda at noon to perform the ceremony called "Pithi Srang Preah" or giving a special bath to the Buddha statues.

Be careful if you are out walking on this day, because everyone has fun throwing water and powder on each other, especially the unsuspecting passers-by! No wonder President Smedley told all our young Elders there would be a "Sports Day" from 8am to 4pm at the North District Center on Friday with American Pizza. :)

2nd Easter in Cambodia!

I remember Easter last year in Cambodia and the great disappointment I felt at the end of the day because no one in either of the Branches that we attended that day had said one word about the Atonement & Resurrection. I promised myself that I would not let that happen this year. I wanted so much for the Primary children to know about this glorious event! So today I went prepared to share the Easter Story in Primary, complete with pictures and an art activity (the tomb, round rock, and Savior) that could be colored, cut out and then they could place the Savior in the tomb, roll the rock in front of the tomb, remove the Savior from the back of the tomb and then "roll" the rock away and see the empty tomb! I asked a young man who has submitted his mission papers and is waiting for his call, to come to Primary with me and translate as I told the story. (I had hoped that I would be able to be fluent in Khmer by this time, but speaking it only one or two days a week doesn't cut it!) There were 12 children in Primary ranging in age from 4 to 12. One little girl, just 5 or 6 years old gave me a big hug at the end of Primary. They are so precious and I felt so humbled & grateful that I could share the life of the Savior and His great gift of the atonement with them today.

There was an 18 year old young lady in class who had come to assist the teacher today. She asked the young man to ask me to tell them how we celebrate Easter in America. I told about our early morning nature walk on Easter Sunday and how exciting it is to see signs of life when everything looks brown and "dead". Then I told her about coloring hard boiled eggs on Saturday, putting them in the children's Easter baskets, adding lots of candy to each basket (one for each of our 9 children) and then having our Father hide them outside (hanging them on a tree branch for the younger children, and digging a hole in the ground, placing the basket in and covering it with a large rock to make it harder for the older children) for the exciting hunt! Those were great years! It is so fun to see the traditions carrying on with our sweet little grandchildren!

Cambodian Treasures

Here are some of my favorite Cambodian treasures. Mekong quilts is an NGO (Non Governmental Organization), non-profit, community development program that works with poor women in rural areas to provide employment and increase family income for the women. They do excellent hand quilting. The stitches are small and very even! To the right is a beautiful necklace that Dad gave me on Mother's Day last year. It is 92.5% silver inlaid with natural Cambodian stones.



Quilt size 40" x 47"

Mystery Guess

On Tuesday night (Feb 2nd) we get a phone call from someone who only speak a little English, but she is excited to come and visit us on Sunday night (Feb 7th) and bring me a B-day gift. She said she is Sophat's sister. As I am talking to her (trying very hard to figure out who she is-Dad had already asked her who she is, but couldn't understand her name before handing me the phone), I mention that we love visiting Br. 9 and feel badly that we have had to visit other Branches for the past 2 Sundays. Then my mystery caller said "I want to live in Br 9. I looking for house in Br 9, but I not find yet." So now I REALLY don't know who I am speaking too. We have visited Sophat's home a couple of times. We know her family (11 extended fam. members living in the home), but now my mystery caller doesn't live with Sophat, so WHO IS SHE?

After 5 days of curiosity Sunday evening finally arrives. I thought it would be wise to bake some oatmeal raisin cookies to share with my "mystery guess". Dad wisely suggested that we make "rice & some stir-fry veggies" for our visitors. We were counting on Sophat coming with the "mystery guess", as Sophat knows where we live. So we busily work together in the kitchen to be ready to receive our company. The ladies arrive and we are so happy to see Sophat (left of me) and our "mystery guess" (far right) whom we recognize but still don't know her name. As I am talking to her, Dad quietly pulls Sophat aside to ask what the other lady's name is. He then said to Channak "I didn't know that you were Sophat's sister." "I am Sophat's good friend" came Channak's reply. Why didn't we remember that the Khmer custom is to call anyone you like sister, aunt, uncle, or brother!

Our dinner was a surprise to them and very much enjoyed. It was a break through for us as we communicated for 1 1/2 hours without a translator! Sophat doesn't speak any English, but Dad kept talking to her in simple Khmer sentences, and she would help him with correct word order. Channak, a return missionary sister, likes to practice her English, so she kept talking to me and I had to listen very carefully to understand her. We had a wonderful evening! I was very humbled that these two special sisters would give me gifts as I have been blessed with so much more temporaly than they. Channak gave me a nice lady's wallet and Sophat gave me a lovely "gramaa" (Cambodian scarf that I am modeling above). I have become very close to Sophat during the past year. I have seen her reach out and help the poorest of the poor members in Br 9, have been with her and the young Elders to visit the less active in the Branch, have tasted her delicious cooking at Branch parties, and have had the privilege of having her in our home to teach us how to make Khmer curry. Sophat keeps our branch alive and well. She has been a member for 9 years and is precious. How blessed we are to have made eternal friends while serving in Cambodia!

Our apartment is made bright by the beautiful, precious grandchildren that bless our life. Reed's gingerbread man and Kayla's trees with colorful fall leaves make the kitchen/sitting room complete. Company are always fascinated by our beautiful little angles!

Don't be fooled by the word "Gourmet" B-day cake. Heidi mailed a Betty Crocker 18.5 oz mix half way around the world at the golden price of $13.85! But oh, did it every taste heavenly! Every bite was fill with LOVE. This was my second birthday in Cambodia. I remember thinking on the 1st one here in Phnom Penh "The year ahead is so hard and far away." It seemed longer than the next Christmas does to a young child on the morning of Dec 26th! And yet a blink of the eyes and the year is past with many treasured memories of people, places, sights & sounds that have been invaluable and greatly educational.