pride comes before the fall (literally)

Man, if I got a dollar for every time I have made a fool of myself while here in Vietnam…I would be one rich girl. Last week was no exception. Like I mentioned in a previous post, I recently got a motorbike!!! Well I have been driving and practicing a lot on said motorbike over the past week. Its like learning anything new…riding a bike, driving a car…its awkward at first but improves with practice.

One of the things that is taking me the longest to get used to is the weight of the bike. It is so heavy!!! Once I am on it I am ok, but the weight difference between moving a bicycle versus a motorbike is quite substantial :)

So, the other day Christa and I were out and about. I was starting to think “Wow, look at me-I’ve got the hang of this motorbike thing!” Mistake number one…I was starting to get cocky. Mistake number two…as I was backing the bike out (while I was on foot-not while on the bike) of the parking area I somehow lost my balance and allowed the bike to fall over and subsequently followed. Don’t worry, I didn’t sustain any other physical injuries other than some pretty bruises on my legs…emotional bruises though, well…they sustained a little bit more damage. No, I am kidding, I am being melodramatic but I did manage to allow the bike to topple down for an audience of about 20 Vietnamese guys, cool. Yes folks, if the blond hair didn’t give it away-the motorbike handling skills surely did- I am a foreigner! :)

Later that day I was reflecting on what happened and a few things occurred to me. First…yes, pride comes before the fall. I was getting a little bit too confident in my driving skills-not that confidence is bad, but more confidence than skill warrants is just not a good idea. Second of all, I had to laugh at my reaction. Seven months ago if I were to make a spectacle of myself like I did, I would have just about died of mortification. Instead, yes…I felt somewhat sheepish but was over it within a minute’s time.

You see, like I said earlier-the incident last week is but one in a very long string of events where I have made a fool of myself here. I thinks it just a part of living in a different country, different culture, language, etc. I have learned to not take myself so seriously. Learned to laugh more when things don’t go as planned. Learned to not care so much what I look like. Learned to be more comfortable with who I am-flaws and all.

Yes, its a bit painful at times but mostly... its freeing.

Grace and peace and the third way,

Kait

Of course

This will be short (and I promise there will be more to come soon) but I just had to share. I think that this definitely falls into the category of best quotes from my time here in Vietnam thus far...

So tonight we began a new unit in one of my classes. This particular class is 9-12 year olds. We began to talk about hopes and dreams-I intro'ed the idea of a "dream job". I had the students get up and talk to each other about what their dream job is...while watching the kids interact...I was caught off guard when a student came up to me and turned the question on me! "Teacher Kait, what's your dream job?" To which I stumbled around a bit, for simple words that would convey what my dream job is...to which I finally came up with "Well, my dream job is to be someone who helps people." I looked anxiously at my student's face to gauge her reaction-did that make sense? Would that answer suffice?

My sweet little 9 year old student quickly nodded in acknowledgment. "Oh" she said. "Of course. You want to be a fairy."

To which I just had to smile and nod.

A fairy.

Of course.

:)

Grace and peace and the third way,
Kait

Expecting...

Don’t worry, I am not pregnant. As I wrote that title it occurred me how many different ways it could be interpreted, ha! Anyways, though its already over 2 weeks into the new year…I find that my thoughts remain in that wrap up of one year/launch into the next mode…that reflection and anticipation mode.

On the first day of this new year, I journaled pages and pages worth of the advenutres that encompassed 2009. There is a pretty broad spectrum-all within the 12 months of the past year, I was a social work intern at a girl’s group home, a Resident Assitant for on campus apartments, a student trying to finish up her last semester in college...and then came graduation where all of a sudden the tables turned. That benchmark that I had worked my entire life’s time up till, now had a check mark beside it! Oh the persistence of time! Then I moved home for 2 months, then moved overseas to Vietnam where I became a teacher and NGO worker. What a full year! What a full year indeed!

I find my thoughts reflecting on all of the incredible stories, relationships and new experiences that filled 2009. All of the reflecting leads me to be very expectant…expectant of all that the good Lord might have in store for 2010 (which has ALREADY proven to be eventful-two weeks in and I am a proud new driver of a motorbike!!! Watch out world!!! And yes mom, I will wear a helmet, I promise J). All of the reflecting has made me excited-not wondering about whether the Lord will do incredible things…rather, what those incredible things will be!!!

2009 was a great year and I couldn’t have fathomed even half of what ended up happening…so bring on 2010. Can’t wait to see what will fill my journal entry as I write on January 1, 2011!

Grace and peace and the third way,

Kait

Welcome 2010

My goal of writing weekly in this blog has dwindled, so I thought with the new year here...what a better time of a time to recommit to that goal.

As I look over my previous entries there are some missing pieces that I figured would be good to fill everyone in on.

First of all, the Christmas party was great! We ended up having 50-60 of our friends show up on Christmas eve. We served them a full course meal...including mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, green been casserole, salad, rolls and chicken. We of course did not neglect the most important part of a meal (the dessert) as we had pumpkin pie, chocolate cake, gingerbread men and peanut butter cookies. We decked the house out with tables and chairs with christmas decor and tealights. It was truly a beautiful experience to have everyone there. It was truly a beautiful experience to look around and see so many different cultures, nationalities and backgrounds represented. So many of my friends came up to me and said "Kait, I am so happy because this is my first time to celebrate christmas." What an incredible experience indeed.

Second of all, I don't think I have properly introduced the other half of what I spend my time doing here. It has been a few months now that I have been working with an NGO called AOG World Relief. It has been like a dream come true to work with the team there. In a nutshell, the agency does everything from child sponsorship to medical surgeries to community development and beyond! When they invited me onboard it was with the initial invitation to start some research on human trafficking. You see truly, it is a world wide issue but Southeast Asia especially shows a large representation of the problem. When they first approached me with this, I could hardly believe my ears! You see, this is the issue that I initially wanted to be involved with before I even moved here...but hadn't been able to find an organization that worked in the area.

All that to say, for the past few months I have been working at AOG World Relief. I have been connecting and networking with agencies and individuals across the Mekong Delta. The idea is that is to first get a clear picture of the state of the issue, what agencies are already doing, what the need is, etc. We want to be a part of coalition that attacks this problem-not a lone agency wanting to play superhero and assert itself where there are already those doing good works. We want to collaborate...because collaboration is the name of the game when it comes to such a widespread issue like human trafficking.

My involvement at AOG World Relief is not limited to that area though...everyone helps out everyone else...we are a family and a team there. I have done everything from become a certified SHINE trainer (an INCREDIBLE program created to empower women and tell them of their worth) to hand out pigs in a village (as part of the child sponsorship program we help give families a means of providing for themselves. They are to breed the pigs with the promise that they will pass along 2 healthy piglets to a neighbor).

I absolutely love working at AOG World Relief. My heart soars there...and I feel so fortunate to be a part of the team.

On that note...cheers to 2010 and to more up-to-date blogging :)

Grace and peace and the third way,

Kait