A Fond Farewell, and an Excited Hello (With lots of photos!)

I'm sitting at gate 1 of Yangon International Airport as I write this. I am about to leave Myanmar, and go to Vietnam. It seems appropriate that it should be downpouring. As I'm sure you can imagine my feelings at the moment are quite complicated. Happy, sad, excited, thankful, nervous (flying always makes me a little nervous, especially when flying to foreign countries) Rather than risking boring you all to death talking more about my feelings, I shall now recap the last week for you.

Last weekend Peter's friend from Singapore came up to Lashio for a long weekend. He observed my Friday evening English class, and wound up being somewhat of an assistant teacher as he fed the boy he was sitting next to the answers if the group couldn't think of it fast enough. Which seemed to please and amuse the boy very much indeed.

Saturday was spent with my afternoon class hiking up a small mountain near their home. Hiking could be more accurately discribed as bushwhacking/clambering up, and mud sliding/trying really hard not to fall down. Before we set off, Jenevy split the kids up and assigned them all to an adult and said we were to all forage for edible wild plants. My team harvested hardly any food, and perhaps part of the reason is that the older girl in my group focused almost all her energy on trying to make sure I was okay, and helping me. At times she would offer me her hand at a particularly slippery or difficult part. I would look at her small frame and think "Honey, if I slip and we're holding hands, you're going down with me. I appreciate the gesture, but you're really too petite to hold me up." However, I could not really refuse her when she looked at me with her sweet quiet smile, said "Teacher." and held out her hand. She is one of the quieter ones in class, and just in general. She has a very soothing motherly spirit. She surprised me with knowing more English than I realized at one point saying "Teacher Iana, come over this way." Which might not sound like much, but the students didn't know all their colors and didn't know any shapes, and most struggled to even answer the questions "What is your name, and how old are you?" So for her to pull out a six word senance with proper word order that I had not taught her was surprising and comforting as I continued falling down the mountain with her doing her best to find me a good way to follow the trail. Once we got down, some of the kids laughed at how dirty my pants had gotten from my slipping in the mud so much, which was pretty funny. My little tour-guide/mother for the day just calmly, without many words got some water from the other kids and helped me to clean my hands and my wounds from sliding through a thornbush at one point. Then she ground up some leaves in her palm and dabbed my wounds with it, which stung so I assume it had some cleansing property. Just in case you are wondering if it was worth it since I got hurt, it absolutely was. The view at the top was amazing, and it was nice to see the kids outside of school and doing something that they love! Just spending time with this beautiful young lady made it totally worth it.

Before heading up. I think the hill behind us might be the one we climbed, but do not let it deceive you into thinking it was easy. It might have been fine with stairs....there were no stairs, handrails, or even a path

My team! Can you tell how sweet and motherly the girl in the back is?

This is the trail after being hacked at with the machete

Such a cool kid

Thankfully someone mentioned this makes
you itchy right before I touched it! 

Two of the most giving (and fun!) people I have met

This is my arm after being cleaned and having the leaves rubbed on.

This is how dirty Peter's hands were at the end.

Sunday brought a service at Peter's mother's compound. Weiguo, the friend from Singapore, shared some of his testimony and encouraged the children to run the good race. The service was in Mandarin translated to Lisu, so the only part I understood was my own opening prayer! After service we ate a delicious lunch (as always. The Lisu are fantastic cooks!) and then took a bus to Hsipaw.

Our bus to Hsipaw was not a VIP bus.

The purpose of going to Hsipaw was strictly tourism, and I did not really want to go, especially because it was my last week in the country. It was only for a day and a half though, and everyone was encouraging me to go, so I agreed. In the mysterious way of life and God, I went for rest and to get away from being surrounded by languages I don't understand, and then the very first thing that happened was we were invited to a Lisu home where no one spoke English. We went back again the next morning and one of the most touching moments on the trip happened. We had just finished praying for some of the people in the house who were a little sick when a new young woman I had not seen before came in. I was told she wanted prayer because she was sick too. I could tell this already. She was so frail and way overdressed for the heat in her fuzzy sweatshirt. After I'd prayed for her, which was a more moving experience than usual, I felt an overflowing love for the woman and the strong directive and need to hug her. I asked through Peter's translation if that would be okay with her, and was apprehensive of getting a no as hugging is not common in her culture. I got a shy yes and squatted down in the dirt to be level with where she perched on a stool. As I started to hug her I said "May the Lord bless and keep you." and asked Peter to translate that. Once he did I was suprised to feel her body start to shake with sobs. I held her while she cried, and until her own arms wrapped around me loosened minutes later. She thanked me, and then disappeared behind the house after some handshakes and headnods. I do not normally have people crying in my arms, and am very thankful I went to Hsipaw and had the chance to show this woman that she is loved by God. 

The rest of the day was spent biking around the city. We saw some beautiful rice farms, a corn factory, and a number of muddy, but very picturesque rivers. It was a very lovely day that ended with very lobster skin, which had both of my Asian (and barely sunburnt) friends laughing.

Little Began

Corn Factory

Tuesday morning we took the 5:15am bus back to Lashio, only to discover that both the Bible students, and my afternoon class were busy with other things and I therefore did not have teaching. I wound up sleeping all the way to lunch, and then went out with Peter to buy snacks for the kids as a goodbye present. One of the women in the market commented on the fact that I was wearing a floor length skirt like the Burmese women traditionally do, while many of the young Burmese women are wearing short skirts today. She found it ironic that I would be more modest, and was very approving of my outfit.

Wednesday was a day of goodbyes for all my students as I took an overnight bus down to the capital Thursday afternoon. My afternoon classes sang some songs for me in their wonderful enthusiastic fashion. They also gave some thank you speeches through Jenayvy's translation after we had our final English lesson. They came so far, and I'm so proud of them. They were the hardest to leave because I spent the most time with them. I'll admit to you I started to cry a little bit as we drove our motor scooters out of there. The only reason I was not crying a lot is because I am confident I will return, and if I do I should see most of them again. I am thankful I was able to get a group shot, and a photo of me with each child one by one. I wanted to give them all huge hugs goodbye, but instead resigned myself to the standard left hand on right elbow handshake, lots of waving, and lots of smiles. A few of the boys went running along side us as we drove out. It reminded me of my little brother who regularly does the same.

I love these kids!!

My sweet little mama. Some of us get the mother spirit young and strong.
So happy to have been able to bond with this quiet one who reminds me of
myself. She's the only one rested her head on my shoulder for the photo, with
the rest mostly posing like the young man below.

For dinner that night we went more than half an hour outside of the downtown to a river with lakes and a dam. The view was beautiful, and I really enjoyed the extra long motorscooter ride.

The kids used the dam as a free water slide

After dinner it was time for another goodbye party with both my evening class, and the Bible students. They had a small church service of sorts with hymns, a thank you, a present of the most colorful bag I've ever owned, and prayer. Then it was my turn to say something, and to give the kids the snacks I got for them. One of the women joked that I was the best kind of teacher, one that feeds their students!

A meeting before my farewell party

They really wanted me to take pictures of them eating their snacks and I kept hearing "Teacher!" yelled from different tables, only to turn and see them ready and posed.

These kids have personality and enthusiasm!!

So many lasts one after the other. Thursday was my last day in Lashio. I slept very little that night because I stayed up painting thank you cards for Peter's family because I literally could not find any cards at all in Lashio or Hsipaw, except at one shop where I found some unloved rather dusty looking birthday cards.Then it was off to the bus station for a fifteen hour bus ride to the capital.

How did I do?

My favorite was the one I painted for Peter's mother

Heading off to school after lunch break.

Thankfully we had a very good driver for these crazy turns

Now, the day after that long bus ride, I'm finishing this in the Ho Chi Minh airport. My flight has been delayed, and I've walked some laps around the airport, gotten food, and finished writing up this monstrously long post. So if you are bored and forcing your way through reading this, blame me being stuck in an airport without internet or people to talk to. Also, if you are bored and forcing your way through this, I can only assume it's because you love me. Thanks, I love you too!

The view at the restaurant where I ate my last diner in Myanmar

Ho Chi Minh City!

That's well over enough for now, I'll go back to reading!

Please be asking that:

• I do what I was brought here to
• The children back in Myanmar are well
• That I stay well, I do not really have time to get sick.
• That I would get enough sleep
• That my planning meeting for volunteering at Vision Cafe will go well tomorrow night.

Thanks y'all!!!!9