Susan Brown
Mar 21, 20183 min
Late! I stumbled out of bed and began throwing on my clothes. The rice won’t be done in time, I thought frantically. They won’t eat without rice and I can’t send them to school hungry.
I tripped in my haste and stubbed my toe on the footboard of the bed. I jumped around holding my foot as pain sizzled through it. Suddenly I was totally awake…and I remembered. School is out. There is no hurry to get breakfast. I looked at the clock again as I rubbed my sore toe. 5:50. Not so late after all, but there is always a day full of tasks ahead of me, even in break time. Just as well to get up and get busy.
It’s been an unusually hectic time these past couple of months – which explains why this blog is the first one to appear in a while. Sometimes I’m too busy living life to write about it.
“Show me strong,” I called out to the group of 30+ men. With much laughter they flexed their muscles. “Strong!” they repeated. The guys are uninhibited and participate in class with childlike enthusiasm.
I also taught a class on stomach troubles – how to prevent them and to treat them. We often send medicines back with the men from Myanmar to distribute in their villages. I felt like it would be a good idea to teach them some of the basic medicine I’ve learned from the medical teams who have come to Thailand, and from the valuable book, “Where There Is No Doctor.” Stomach ailments are perhaps the most common complaints we hear, so that’s where we started.
It’s exciting to see these guys eagerly listening as Paul teaches and to hear of their zeal in reaching out with the Gospel. I was thankful for the chance to have a small part in this important ministry.
The day after the wedding, another set of guests from America arrived. Bro. Joe Head, who pastors the Winton Place Baptist Church in Cincinnati, came with his wife Carolyn, and Joshua and Sabrina Johnson. We enjoyed having them – but I fear their trip won’t go down in their memory as an unqualified time of joy. Sickness and accidents plagued their time with us and they experienced the Thai medical system from the inside. All but Sister Head made at least one trip to the doctor, and even she spent a couple of days laid up from a bicycle wreck.
Next on the agenda came a trip to Bangkok for an educators’ conference for Accelerated Christian Education (ACE), the curriculum we use for our kids.Paul and I flew there and spent a day sight-seeing before the conference. I made a major error in pla
Soon after we returned, there was the end of school rush as kids took tests and finished school projects. Some finished before others, so Andy left first (with medicine packed and double-checked). Then Jay and Bang departed. Molly and Danny stayed an extra couple of days to see William graduate.
And what a blessing that was! He is the first of our kids to complete high school. That diploma will open many doors for him. He is considering options for more education now,
Now life is settling down — a little. There is still Thai class for me, visits to the villages every Sunday, preachers’ training next week, and school to finish up for Moses and Nora. Kimmy is dreading the day everyone leaves and the house is quiet. Me? I think I can handle it! Seriously, I know I will be ready and eager for them to come back and to start on a new school year.
Lots of unknowns are ahead. We are still looking for a place to buy. We found one place that looked nearly perfect, but a problem came up with the title and it fizzled before I could write about it. But God is writing our story. All we have to do is wait and see what He has in store for us in the next chapter. He is good!