[Tuesday June 11]
We woke up after another restless night [still adjusting to the time change] and began our normal morning routine which includes the following:
Wake up around 6:15 *or before*
Make sure the other one is awake
Have a hearty breakfast of peanut butter, bread, and apples
Get dressed and turn off all the lights and the air conditioner
Head downstairs to the lobby at 7:00
Use the free wifi until we get picked up at 7:30
We got to the school this morning and learned that Sokhom had gone out into the villages to check on the church and orphanage being built. We sat at the kitchen table and I had some coffee and we reviewed our material for today's lesson while worship was held in Khmer in the other room. After worship Sarah and I took our positions in front of our separate classes and taught from 8-10. It's getting better each day and my class (the non-English speaking class) is so funny! We laugh a lot in there and Sarah's class (the advanced class) makes fun of our clapping and loud voices *I'm a lot louder than these quiet people I've come to realize*
Srey Nam is Sokhom's daughter and she is HILARIOUS!
She is very nurturing and VERY loud. She doesn't know too much English, but she is learning. We've had many English/Khmer lessons in the kitchen. She told me yesterday that someone told her that her joy is a lot like my joy. I was absolutely honored. She's contagious.
We just had lunch and Selah (a student that just graduated from medical school) brought us back to the hotel. We figured out that air conditioning cost money and so we keep it on in only one room when we are here during the day and in the bedrooms at night. Although, we may start sleeping in one room so we can save money. The struggle is so real y'all. Talk about an eye-opener.
I'm a complete energy/electricity hog.. I'm learning though.
*Side note: when you're teaching English, pigs don't make an "oink oink" sound, it's more of an "oomp oopm" or something like that...*
So now Sarah is attempting to nap and the rice we had for lunch is starting to make me sleepy. We'll continue teaching today from 2-4 and then break until we teach the children from 5:30-6:30. Then have dinner and head back to go to sleep at our normal time of like 8:00. I could get used to this whole going to sleep early thing.
You might be wondering about the title and what it has to do with this post. Well let me just tell you about this kitchen table life.
Sarah and I spend a lot of time at this table in between classes. We will sit here and watch Srey Nam prepare food or just *attempt to* chat with her. She doesn't really want us to help her cook, which I totally understand. The girl knows how to control a kitchen. I gotchu girl. Anyways, it's hard to step into a culture so we find ourselves being isolated at the table a lot of the time, The students eat on mats on the floor in the other room but our food is always prepared and placed on the table without us asking. I think they may just assume we are there to just teach and that's it. They ask us what we want to eat... as in what food do we want that is not Khmer. Food that is comfortable for us. They always put the fans on us and they sit in the heat. They put us at the table while they are in the other room.
But we don't want to be at the table.
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE the generosity of these people. But we want to know them. We want to build relationships with them. And it's hard. I guess I just assumed since I like making friends, that it would be easy. But we come from completely different worlds. We're all learning though and when we get up from the table, great things happen. We got up yesterday and sat on the mats while the women prepared the food. Sure, we had no idea what they were saying most of the time. But we taught each other English and Khmer and shared stories and things about our family lives. We got up from the table again yesterday afternoon and went on that walk that I told you about earlier. So all of that to say that it's just going to be a daily effort to get up from the table and build relationships. But we won't give up.
Anyways, routine is coming slowly but surely. We miss you all so so SO much. But Texas is in the rearview now. And we're coming to grips with that.
Love you all and talk to you soon.
Cassie
PS I've been signing all the blogs as Cassie and Sarah, but I'm switching to just my name now because Sarah will start posting separately. It's going to rock so keep your eyes peeled.
Here's a super sneaky picture I snagged of half of my class today. I absolutely love them.
Our view from the table. This is Srey Nam cutting up watermelon for us after I mentioned that I like fruit :)
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