Day One, Day One, Teaching English Can Be Fun

[Monday June 10]

Day 1 is going, going, GONE. It rocked. It was definitely exhausting but so rewarding. We woke up and guess what, homesickness=gone! Sure I still miss everyone back home, but it's easier to deal with when you're busy. 

We woke up and got ready for the day then headed down to the lobby to wait for Sokhom's daughter *I cannot remember her name for the life of me* and Selah to come pick us up. They came and got us and we headed to the ATM where we got money out to pay for our hotel room and then we headed to the grocery store. 

Traffic is just as insane *if not worse* during the day. 

But luckily Selah is an experienced Phnom Penh driver. 

The grocery store had a lot of things that appeal to westerners as well as Khmer things. It also listed the price in Riel as well as US dollar which is a wonderful thing! Sarah and I bought peanut butter, bread, apples, eggs, and cheese to keep in our room. It all cost like $7. Love it. 

After the grocery store we went to an open market to buy some meat for lunch. The market was just like the movies. Loud, smelly, busy, and full of color and life. It's kinda of gross to know where the meat that you're eating comes from... but I haven't gotten sick yet, so I guess that's a good sign.

After the market we headed back to the school and watched while our hostess prepared lunch. She worked with 2 other women and a little girl. We soon learned that the older woman is Sokhom's sister and is "shy" when it comes to speaking to us. The younger woman is her daughter which makes her Sokhom's niece and his daughter's cousin. The little girl is 9 years old and is Sokhom's niece's daughter which makes her his sister's granddaughter. 

Phew. 

So we sat on mats and attempted to speak with them as they peeled mango and onions. We shared English words and Khmer words with them as they cooked. Then we all ate lunch and then Sarah and split up to begin teaching. 

My class is full of boys that don't understand English. There is one boy that can kind of understand what I'm saying but that's it. Even though we can't understand each other we have so much fun! They are constantly making me laugh and they make fun of the way I excitedly I say "good job!" They know a lot of words but they struggle with the pronunciation of the words. "Th" and "ch" are especially hard. How are you supposed to explain why church has a "ch" sound but stomach makes a "k" sound? Yeah I don't know either. But it's okay! We just went over a TON of words. I think I may have stressed them out, but they did so well! I won't do as many tomorrow. 

After English we decided to go on a walk while dinner was being prepared and Sarah and I were waiting on the children t o get out of school. We had 4 wonderful tour guides that wanted to take us to see the Mekong. So we set off and walked down the main road and then turned off into a neighborhood type of thing. There were a lot of tarps and shacks and things and people stopped and stared at us as we passed. I assume we looked pretty funny: two extremely white girls with 4 Cambodian boys. Oh well. We stumbled across a temple nestled in the neighborhood and saw real life wild monkeys. Then the rain came and took a break under an awning in the temple. There was a group of men playing a type of hacky sack there and they were hilarious. The rain stopped and we continued on our walk. A man from the temple joined us on the rest of our journey and we made it to the river. We stood and looked across the river at Phnom Penh. It was breathtaking. One of the boys asked what feelings we had as we looked across. It was incredibly humbling. 

Then a student came and picked all of us up in a tuk tuk, thank goodness because it began to rain again. And when I say rain, I mean DOWNPOUR. We all laughed the whole ride back to the school. We were all soaking wet but we didn't mind. 

We got back to the school and there were 4 kids waiting to begin their English lesson. Their regular teacher came and helped us get started. He stayed because he wanted help with his English as well. Soon the rain stopped and 10 more kids came in to join us. They are SO smart! We finished the lesson at 6:30 and then ate dinner. During dinner we could hardly speak we were so exhausted. After dinner we were driven back to the hotel and we immediately showered and were in bed before 9:30. 

It was a really good day and I think we both learned a lot. Tomorrow we will do it all again except we will teach a morning session of English as well. Once we establish a routine, it will be easier. 

Until then? 

Here's to going to bed before 10 every night. 

Goodnight to all and to all a goodnight. 

Cassie and Sara

CAMBODIAAAA

[It's somehow still Sunday, June 9]

We're here! We're here!

We flew in about 6:30 pm this evening and guess who was at the bottom of the arrival stairs... SOKHOM! PRAISE THE LORD!

Seriously, Sokhom was a life saver. 

He met us as soon as we got off the plane, took our visa applications, loaded our luggage onto a cart, and then we got a VIP walk through customs. It was amazing. Then we were met by some students from the school who took all of our luggage and put it in the van. We were getting the rockstar treatment for sure. Once we had gotten into the van we took off down the street. 

You know how movies portray driving in 3rd world countries?

They aren't making that stuff up.

There are rules when you're driving. 

Sure there are lanes marked and street signs, but no one pays attention to them.

AT ALL. 

It's INSANE. 

Motorcycle type things are everywhere and sometimes 3 people are crammed on them.

They weave in and out of traffic and honk constantly. 

The cars are all over the road and yet there are no wrecks.

It's ridiculous.

Driving through town was incredible.

It was dark but only like 7:00 pm so people were still out and all over. 

There are stalls set up all over the sidewalks and vendors sell everything. 

People are everywhere! Sokhom said that Phnom Penh is smaller than Abilene but there are over 2 million people that live here. The smells are interesting here as well. Lots of garbage and filth but also garlic and cooking smells as well as burning incense. It's also so green here! I had forgotten what vegetation looked like! 

We arrived at the school and were immediately greeted by more boys *students* and we were directed to the kitchen where Sokhom's daughter had prepared a dinner of chicken wings, rice, and steamed water lily. IT WAS DELICIOUS! We ate and visited and talked about the plan for tomorrow. We will wake up and be picked up from the hotel at 7:30. From there, Sokhom's daughter will take us to the store where we will buy food needed to prepare lunch for the students. Then we will head back to the school and cook while the students are in Bible class. After lunch we will begin English classes at 2 and teach until 4. At 5 we will begin English classes for the children that come to the school after their school lets out. 

After we finished eating, Sokhom , his daughter, and Tolah (a recent graduate of medical school and a current bible student) brought us to the hotel and we checked in and got our key. We said goodbye and settled into our room. It's extremely spacious but kind of lonely. Not like home, but we'll get used to it and we are EXTREMELY grateful to have it!

Now I'm in my room and Sarah is in her room. We both got to shower {PRAISE THE LORD} and now we're ready for the night. I'm not entirely sure if I'll be able to sleep since it's currently 10 am in Abilene right now. But I'm crossing my fingers since I'm so exhausted!

I'm not going to lie, I'm a little homesick right now. Blame it on the exhaustion or the fact that I just found a stack of letters from my sisters. But I've shed a few tears tonight. It's going to be a process for sure. I just really love my family. But I'm so grateful for that love. I'm so blessed. 

So this is goodnight from Phnom Penh!! Thank you all for everything... seriously. Love to you all!

Cassie and Sarah

Broken in Bangkok

[Sunday, June 9]

Please don't be alarmed by the title of this post!

I was just inspired by my *attempt at* viewing Sleepless in Seattle on our last fight.

And also by the fact that my suitcase broke in the Bangkok airport. 

Why did my suitcase break?

Because life is never boring.

I was grabbing it off of the luggage thing and the whole wheel thing just snapped off. I laughed, Sarah laughed, the man next to us laughed... Then he said something and motioned for me to either get out of the way or throw the wheel away...

I'm not entirely sure.

Or last flight was alright; 7 hours wasn't too bad. Sarah and I are just exhausted and ready to be there. Honestly, I'm just really looking forward to bathing. Although, I have gotten to brush my teeth. So I'm not toooooo upset about the current state of my hygiene. 

When we got off the plane here in Bangkok we had no idea what we were doing. We knew we had to change airlines and go through customs. But we didn't know how to do all of that or where to go. So we basically asked every "official looking" person that we saw. We went through passport control and then security and then found our airline and checked in. Then we went through passport control again. And security again. And finally found our gate. Phew. 

So now we're sitting and waiting for our next flight.

Story of our lives.

Sarah is a pro at sleeping in airports... I'm so jealous.

Although I did get a little 20 minute nap in a little bit ago. 

I'm proud of myself.

Our next flight is only 55 minutes long. PRAISE THE LORD. After we arrive in Cambodia, we'll go through customs and passport control and all of that fun stuff. Then we'll grab our bags and hopefully find Sokhom somewhere in all of that. 

Everyone just say a quick prayer that Sokhom will be there.

You better believe that we'll be praying the whole 55 minutes there. 

Thank you all for loving us and praying over us. We absolutely feel it right now.

Blessings, 

Cassie and Sleeping Beauty  

Ps I'm having to post these whenever I get to wifi so the dates will all be messed up. :( 

Aloha Doha

Well good news y'all, we survived the 14 hour plane ride.

14 hours.

It was cruel.

But we are now *somewhat* comfortably settled into our airport seats in Doha, Qatar. 

It's 9:59 pm here.

It's 1:59 pm in Abilene.

It's 9:59 am in Cambodia. 

I'm slightly disoriented.

Twilight Zone episode worthy.

I HATE TIME ZONES.

Sarah apparently has no issue though.

She's just napping away.

Our plane ride was a little interesting. There were seriously more kids than adults on the plane. Maybe not, but it sure felt that way. There was always a kid screaming. Poor babies, they didn't know what was happening to them, I'd be screaming too! The movie selection was wonderful and included a ton of new releases that I have been wanting to see. The only problem was the fact that every time I began a movie, I fell asleep for random parts of it. Les Mis? Fell asleep as soon as the guy from the beginning stole the priest's silver. Beasts of the Southern Wild? After her house burned down I was gone. Amour? I didn't even make it past the airlines promotional message. I watched 2 episodes of The Big Bang Theory but I don't think they were from season 1... I had no idea who was who or what was happening. I was awake for the majority of Mulan though. Probably because it was daylight, or it might be because Mulan rocks. Who doesn't love a Disney gal who can save China?

Anyways.

Sarah and I kept waking up at different times and trying to make sense of what was happening around us. There were so many different languages and so many different ethnicities which was so cool. There was a family in front of us with a little girl that kept playing peek-a-boo with us. The man behind us was arguing with the flight attendant and the boy behind us threw up probably 50 times *slight exaggeration* but we all know how well Sarah deals with people vomiting. As soon as I heard him even move a tiny bit, I made sure Sarah had her ears closed or was asleep. Poor Sarah. Poor boy. 

We are now waiting for our next flight to begin boarding at 12:10 and then fly out an hour later. From there we will go through customs in Thailand and then board a flight to Cambodia. I'm so nervous about customs.. Oh well, we'll be practically invincible when this is all over. 

Thank you for all the prayers and support, we're almost there! 

Love you all!

Cassie and Sarah

Live From the Bottom Bunk

It's midnight and we leave in 20 hours. 

That could be wrong... 

We all know how math is my best subject. *sarcasm* 

Anyways, the point is that we leave tomorrow at 8:20 pm. 

Whattttttttt? 

It seems like I just posted about our trip being five months away.

Time flies when you're having fun... Or slaving away in college.

So it's the night before we depart and I'm lying on the bottom bunk in the kids' room of the family beach house in Galveston, TX. I'm also currently wondering what on earth I've gotten myself into. I leave for a FOREIGN country tomorrow. For two months. TWO MONTHS.

[Imagine me making an absolutely petrified look] 

[Actually I can just show you.]

[Remember this is coming to you live from the bottom bunk... I'm looking quite rough right now.]

So that's basically how I'm feeling right now. 

If we're being honest.

There is no doubt in my mind that God has held me in his hands throughout this whole process. I'm an absolute worrier and a control freak to the extreme. This whole trip is out of my comfort zone and almost completely out of my control. Basically the only things I got to control were the ticket purchasing and the stuff that is currently in my suitcase, and even then, there were rules to follow. We can plan and plan and plan, but we have no idea what to expect until we get over there. And guess what? I have not had one worry about what will happen once I'm over there. Even with everyone (unintentionally) flooding my world with doubts and fears and their own personal worries for me, I've been able to remain confident and ecstatic. That is absolutely God-given comfort and I praise him for that! 

It's just tonight I'm feeling a little anxious.

Two months is a long time. 

I have no idea how Sarah and I will teach 18 preaching students English. 

I have no idea how we'll teach 25-30 children English.

Or put on a VBS for them. 

I have no idea how to communicate with anyone in this country.

[Minus Sokhom, his family, and a few others of course.]

But you know what? 

I absolutely love this.

I love the fact that I have no idea what I'm doing. 

I love that I will have to be incredibly intentional in my relationships due to the huge language barrier.

I love that my actions are going to speak louder than my words in most cases.

I love that I'm going to be able to be the hands and feet of Christ in another country. 

And I love this drowning feeling.

It's forcing me to rely completely on God.

And that's extremely hard for this control freak. 

So all that to say, Sarah and I have no idea what to expect.

And that's okay. 

We are SO ready to begin living our Cambodian lives. 

You all rock and we love you. 

Blessings,

Cassie and Sarah 

Bring On The Rain

Hello friends!

We are currently 11 days from leaving America!
WHAT?
We are SO excited and cannot wait to begin our adventure.

Sorry this post is full of scattered thoughts but that's kind of what our lives are like right now: trying to see everyone and spend quality time with the people we love, babysit all of "our" kids, and do a million little things before we leave.

MY MIND IS GOING TO EXPLODE.
*deep breaths*

We've been doing last minute things like mapping out our lesson plans for teaching english and getting all of our shots and pills taken care of.
One word.
TYPHOID.
My first typhoid pill KILLED my stomach. It was awful. It was horrendous. I ate crackers and drank ginger ale for 2 days and wrote my last will and testament. But I survived and tonight I prepare to take typhoid pill number 4. It's been a long road, but it was worth it. No typhoid for me. *knocks on wood*

Sokhom called me day before yesterday just wanting to check in and see how we were doing and if we had started packing yet (I haven't even gotten the suitcases I need). He told me that we will have 18 student preachers to teach english to during the week. He also told me that anywhere from 25-30 children will probably show up during the day. Whenever they see Americans they tend to flock due to their desire to learn english. He asked if we could possibly provide english lessons for the children in the evening and I gladly told him that Sarah and I would hold english lessons around 5:00 pm everyday for them. It will be crazy, but it will be absolutely amazing.


Now onto another thought.


"He comes to us like the rain."

I stumbled across this verse in Hosea the other day.
Weather in general has been on my mind a lot recently. Our hearts absolutely go out to the people of Moore, Oklahoma who suffered unimaginable damage and heartbreak this past week as the F5 tornado swept through their town. The pictures, stories, and news reports were heart-wrenching. Natural disaster has a way of bringing out the best in people though. My heart is always thrown into extremes in these situations. It's broken for the people who are hurting and doubting. But then, at the same time, it is absolutely full. Even as broken people, we are able to show God's beauty in such magnificent ways. We were created to love like our creator and this love is so apparent during times of trial and strife, when people just need a hand to hold. I sat and watched a homemade-storm-chaser-video-type thing the day after the tornado hit. The people who were videoing this horrific storm were all so full of compassion. As they watched the storm roll in, they began praying for the people in its path and after the storm hit, they stopped filming in order to begin helping immediately. It brought me to tears. The weather can do incredible things: lift up buildings, flood entire towns, and destroy everything in a split second. And yet it can help produce the most delicate flower. It can destroy an entire town and bring relief to an entire country.

Sometimes we feel God in this extreme way... Not in the sense that he goes around destroying towns and flooding houses. We just seem to feel his presence in what seem like huge downpours. Downpours that leave us with hands high and hearts opened. Other times he comes to us as a light rain, you know like when it rains and the sun is still shining? A rain that refreshes and rejuvenates us. One that allows us to catch our breath and turn our faces toward the heavens. Both of these instances show us how incredible our God is. He completely floods us with his mercy and grace. Drenches us to a point where all we can do is look up from our knees and declare his power. But he also refreshes and, like a spring rain, cultivates a growing spirit within us. It's a daily thing.

We just want to run out and spin around in the rain. We want to feel it and taste it. We want everyone else to experience it too. That's what this trip is all about y'all. It's about being eager to know God and awaiting his daily arrival. It's about having the desire to stand out in the rain. 

So sorry this post is all over the place. Like I said, that's just kinda how things are right now. Crazy. Basically all we're saying is:

Bring on the rain Lord.
We are so ready.

"Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—
how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him."
-Psalm 34:8

Blessings,
Cassie and Sarah

Ps: Did I mention it's the rainy season in Cambodia? 

T-29 DAYS Y'ALL

We are so so SO close to being Cambodia!
It's unreal.

After much preparation and many hours of researching, we bought our plane tickets! Our flight path is a little bit crazy... Here's a quick look at the itinerary:

Leave from Houston airport on June 7th at 8:20 pm.
Fly 8,047 miles for 14 hours and 35 minutes.
Arrive in Doha, Qatar on June 8th at 6:55 pm.
Wait for 6 hours.
Leave Qatar on June 9th at 1:10 am.
Fly 3,287 miles for 6 hours and 55 minutes.
Arrive in Bangkok, Thailand on June 9th at 12:05 pm.
[Just in time for lunch]
Then hop on a little plane and fly to Phnom Penh.
[Super short flight]
Cambodia at last!
[Stay until July 31st]
Fly back to Bangkok.
Fly to Chaing Mai.
Attend Asian Mission Forum.
[August 3-7]
Leave August 7th.
Fly back to Bangkok.
Back to Doha.
Back to Houston.

THEN HOME.

It's going to be a whirlwind you guys.
But we are so ready.

We found out more details about what we will be doing while there. Sokhom's school is without English teachers for the month of June. So we will jump in on that when we arrive. We will be using material from the BEST program which teaches English through the use of the World English Institute material written by brother Dick Ady. We are SO SO grateful to have this program available for our use.

In July, we will be working with the children in the area and putting on a type of Vacation Bible School for them during the day. By providing this VBS, we hope to build wonderful relationships with the children and attract their families to the church for Sunday worship. It would be a lie if I said that we aren't worried about the language barrier. We are. But we know that God is good and that he provides. If Jesus could feed 5,000 people, I bet we can teach these kids about how GREAT our God is.

Recently, I've been discovering how amazing God is at being an operator, you know the operators that were used back in the day on the telephones? It's a little old school for me, but I do know what their purpose was. :) And like and operator standing by to help you reach someone, He knows exactly who you are needing to contact and simply provides opportunities. I was feeling anxious about the VBS and so I decided to Google "Cambodia VBS" and I happened to find a blog post from 2011. It was by a woman who put on a VBS in Cambodia on a mission trip. I read the post and loved it, so I emailed her and explained our situation. She emailed me back he next morning with the names of contacts in Phnom Penh as well as lesson plans and encouragement. It was an absolute blessing! Now do you understand my reference to God being an operator? He is such a mighty fine "connector."

Isn't God's kingdom incredible?

We are so incredibly thankful for the support, prayers, and words of encouragement that we have received. We love you all dearly and cannot wait to be back in the US of A. The stories are going to rock.

Blessings.
Sarah & Cassie