Standing on the Edge of Something Large

We’ve left Bangkok, Thailand and are currently in Tokyo, Japan. Here are some of our good byes:

Let that one sink a little and I’ll be back with more.

For my high school softball warm ups, all of the team would have to run a timed mile. We’d tie our shoe laces tight, stretch, and coach would yell, “Go!” She stood there with her clipboard taking note as everyone started off at similar paces. Somewhere within the first lap, you’d see the leaders of the pack maintaining, if not increasing, speed and competing with the rest to finish first. In my eyes, it didn’t seem like there was an end in sight. I hated that warm up! I’d prefer to be in the weight room, or even on the field doing drills and running bases. So, there I’d be running round and round the nasty track, wandering how I could possibly be conditioned to like Monday afternoons and those sweaty mile runs. The worse was the fact this was only warm up and there was still more conditioning with bleachers and wheel barrels up and down the football field. It always felt like enough reason to quit.

Have you ever felt that way? It’s human to want to throw our arms in the air and give up on things, especially when the end isn’t visible. Or sometimes it just feels hopeless and like there’s no result of what we’re doing. I’ve done this and have witnessed Jade and her loving patience with her girls. Yet, back again, she shows up every day to take on the challenge.

When I first came to Thailand, one of the first bits of news we received from our hired company was that we were going to be split up. The “original” plan that we had travelled 23 hours to another country for, was tossed out the window. People were being shuffled around to other schools and places to live. It was instantly overwhelming. 

But we still stuck with it. We continued the race.

Then, the dynamic of the group got very interesting when someone took it upon themselves to request further accommodations. It changed all previous discussions and caused a big mess. I remember sitting outside our place and crying. I was thinking, “This was a huge mistake.” Maybe I shouldn’t have even done this. What in the world was I thinking? I wanted the next flight back to the states.

But, one leg after the other, I kept pace and continued to pump my arms.

Most of the drama took place within the first month. If I had quit there, I wouldn’t have seen all the things I’ve seen along the way. The people. The ministries. The city. The cultures. A whole new world for me and all my loved ones, whom I’ve shared the experiences with. 

Right now, the last stretch is overwhelming.

This has been my home where a new family was created. My life has been transformed and shaped in living abroad, especially in my bond with Jade. But now we’re just supposed to point to a date on the calendar to grant our wish on the day we’d like to make it back to Texas?  

Yes, it’s overwhelming.

Lately, I feel like I’ve been looking at a calendar at least 3 or 4 times a day because I can’t believe it. All the tears cried, the dances danced, the laughs laughed, and all the traveling. My roots were dug in deep, tended to, cared for, only to produce the richest fruit I’ve ever seen manifested in my life. Yet, the days are counting down, like pages being torn away and thrown in to the trash. 

It’s overwhelming to begin a run that wasn’t appealing in the beginning, and then it seemed worse when there was no end in sight. But somewhere along the way, just when muscles and endurance could give up, running became like breathing. There’s a steady rate, and it’s natural. This is what has happened to me.

Teaching is down deep in my soul now. Reaching out to girls of all ages has become incredible. For example, in our cab ride home, I was telling Jade about my experience in substituting for a matyom teacher. Essentially, I am with these adorable 7,8,9 and 10 year olds, so I rarely interact with any junior high or high schoolers. So, the opportunity came about because of a game of paper, rock, and scissors. I lost and got the 17 year olds.

So, with little experience, I had some whiteboard markers, my wallet, and some M&Ms in a bag. I had just run to the store right before walking over to the class. Upstairs, in a building that always seemed forbidden to my little ones, there were more girls that could see eye to eye or even ones I had to look up at. It was exciting.

I was given some instruction for their assignment, but it turned out to a big bunch of girls that wanted to talk to the young American lady. They scooted their desk closer to mine at the front, and there I was answering questions from prom to movie stars to music. They enjoyed having a teacher that knew about Beyonce, Orlando Bloom, and New York. One girl even requested that I sing our country’s national anthem. 

Needless to say, relating to girls on all different levels has become easier. Not to say that I’ve perfected the skill in problem solving among girls, because Lord only knows women are unique in the different drama and crises that are formed. But, just when I thought I wouldn’t understand or get the purpose for being at an all girls’ school, across the world – it’s hard to fathom our departure.

I question: “Will I come back?” Or, “Maybe I should just stay?” 

It’s overwhelming these days. But, I am going to finish this all the way through, having learned much more since I first began. The Lord knows how He’s sealed my heart and written His name on it. Even though we’re not leaving today, tomorrow, or next week, I’m trying to not start missing this place already.

“Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed [overwhelmed], for His compassions never fail.” Lamentations 3:22

For your viewing and experiencing pleasure, I have something better than photos – video! Somehow the videos from our October trip never made it anywhere to be watched or played. So, we dusted these babies off, and got them loaded on YouTube.

As a forewarning, you should know that our commentaries are a little dramatic. Put yourself in our shoes and imagine being in our place. Imagine the overwhelming sense and the culture shock. Before seeing other countries and loving nationalities, I hadn’t known a thing. For example, in one of the videos I call the people of Nepal, “the Napalee people.” No, that’s not correct. I was close, but they’re actually “Napalese.” In playing these, we’ve learned how silly we were and overall how much we miss some of these places. I’d go back some day and hope you’ll get a small glimpse of a whole other world that you may not be used to. Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing, think of other people. Politics, economic crises, wars, and many other circumstances across nations deserve our attention and prayer. Think of the whole world.

OUR ARRIVAL IN KATHMANDU, NEPAL

FIRST TAXI RIDE TO THE HOSTEL

A WALK THROUGH THE BUSY STREETS

There are more. Unfortunately, we couldn’t plug in the charger anywhere along the way, so we don’t have videos of India. I’ll just have to get around to those photos soon. 

In the meantime, I hope all of you are continuing to follow your dreams and allowing your hearts new things in this new year.

Good news from Bangkok …

The countdown has begun. In about 5 weeks and 5 days, I’ll fly across the continents and back to the states. I’ll do my best to be patient until that day gets here. All along the way, talking to everyone has inspired me to greater depths. Thank you for the times you helped the Lord carry me.

In peace,

LL

This blog has taking me months to post! I am kicking myself for not updating sooner. As a matter of fact, I am looking at the blogs I started over the passed months and never posted. I’d start them but would get distracted with other stuff. There are some moments in Singapore that I never shared with you, along with my experiences in countries like Nepal and India that changed my life. As you know, (if you don’t know, read the previous posts), I did in fact travel to Singapore, Nepal, and India throughout the month of October. Flipping through the pictures and looking back on the whole experience, I absolutely know that I started and finished the trip a different person. My wildest dreams could not have prepared me for the things we saw and did. The Taj Mahal, Nepalese people, cows, bugs from a plague, the Himalayan mountains, monkeys, temples, Indians, homelessness, lots of children begging, people pushing, dirty streets, etc. You picturing it a little better now? First, I’ll post about Singapore and hope to get a single entry for the others these next few days. 

SINGAPORE : Where they talked funny. It’s Singlish, that’s why.

It was an expensive place where money burned holes in our pocket. But it was a place where I saw the greatest mix of people, language, and culture. My first impression, “This is it?” The airport was pretty small or at least it didn’t match up with the picture I had of the Westernized country. There were only three terminals – A, B, and budget. Given the amount of world we were going to try and conquer on a low cash flow, we were part of the budget crowd. Fresh off the plane, we rode the bus through the city and started the search for our hostel. The buses were impressive – clean, with AC, and roomy. Not bad, I thought. We rode passed some ritzy neighborhoods that had a Benz or BMW parked in the driveway. I was sure, this is probably the side everyone had described to us. But we kept riding and I quickly started to notice we were getting further and further away from “that” side of the country and in to a different part. What immediately grabbed my attention was the presence of so many nationalities and languages. The country has four official languages, which makes them a quad-lingual society! This was incredible. A not-so-incredible part was getting off at our stop and reaching our destination. We were definitely in the red light district and it was obvious when nighttime rolled around. But, we stayed there for the week and learned about things we didn’t ask for. We made it through with just enough to get us back to Bangkok. My favorite part of the trip was our visit to the Esplanade, which is the Singaporean version of the Australian Opera House. We didn’t think know what to expect, so we went without cameras. We regretted it when we walked through the arena where they were hosting different cultural shows. It was awesome. We flew back on Sunday to make it to church in time, but we were so exhausted we fell asleep during the sermon. It’s funny thinking back on how excited we were to make it back to church, but only to doze off. What a trip!

Singaporean woman on the sky train reading the morning paper.

 There I am on the train, too.

 Here’s a homeless monkey in the park. We took an extremely long hike through this place because we got lost!

This is before getting lost when i was still smiling about our “adventure.”

They had instant mashed potatoes right out of a slurpee machine!

Everywhere the signs were in 4 languages. It was incredible to see Singlish, Malay, Chinese, and Tamil.

This was an incredible beach with imported sand from Hawaii :)

after sunset, there was a beachside concert. we listened to some  jazz.

baby girrrrl at a restaurant :)

Underwater World was a blast. There were so many fishies. 

Look Josh, there’s a crabby like on Sponge Bob.

This will be all for now. Look forward to more coming these next few days. I can’t wait to see all of you in just a couple of months now. Wow, surely the Lord has carried me through the times I didn’t think I’d make it back to you. 

Take care and love each other.
 ris

Translation of title: to be amazed. 

I am amazed with my time here. It is amazing to be in this sort of place. Let me tell you what’s happening.

For the month of October, we have a holiday. All of us are off from teaching and have been looking forward to this break. Believe me when I say that it was a relief to get down time. A holiday has come not a moment too soon. The bad side of this freedom to go away and spend a month NOT teaching is not being able to make plans and follow through. We’ve changed plans at least 20 or 30 times now. 

At first, we (Jade and I) were wanting to explore the world. Before ever knowing that we’d be going to Thailand, we already had certain countries picked out that were simply places on the planet we desired to see. We never fully understood why or how it would happen. But this was the opportunity – a month long break to set out and really see Asia. I’ve been wanting to go to India and Jade really wants to go to Cambodia. As the plans began to roll out, we understood the following factors were of high priority: money, time, money, and money.

We are teachers. Does it need to be said that on this sort of salary we may not get to go everywhere and do everything? Well, we had to face this reality with bitter sweet frustration. I can only laugh when I look back on how this process started out with our intentions to travel: Singapore, Mecau, Hong Kong, Beijing, Kathmandu, Delhi, Agra, and finally Kolkata. Insert burst of laughter!

My hope was a little naive, I know that by now. We discovered our wonder lust when the visas and plane tickets began to weigh us down. They’re expensive and a painful process – some taking as long as a week to be completed. I wanted to pull Jade’s hair, but couldn’t as she was already doing the same to me. We were nuts.

So, with emotions of defeat, we picked only a couple of countries and decided to get the ball rolling. We’ve had plenty of time to take action, but we just started to run these errands a few days ago. I know, the procrastination cloud lingers over my head all the time. However, I have good reason this time. When all was falling through last week, we decided to escape for a weekend to the beach. The other couple of teachers (Steven and Audrey) came along with Jade and I to Kho Samet. It’s the most beautiful little island I’ve ever been to. No exaggerating.

Those were just a few photos here and there. I’m sure I’ll put more up later. But, the food and little bungalows we stayed in were relaxing. I haven’t found any other moment to compare to that of reading a book and taking a nap while listening to the waves. (No wonder I got sunburned and the color of a lobster)! At night, we went along the beach to find a restaurant, seated in the sand. We listened to some good music and watched the pyrotechnic-men. They’re crazy.

All this is to say, now the travel plans are completed. With miracles and tears of not understanding the bigger picture, we’re going ahead now in full faith and a new kind of gratitude. We’re leaving the Kingdom of Thailand. No, I’m not leaving to the states just yet. But tomorrow morning (in Thai time) I will be on a plane to Singapore. Five days from now, I will be back in Bangkok to finalize a visa to India. Then, I will depart again to Katmandu, Nepal and Delhi, India. It’s exciting and overwhelming at the same time. I’ll be traveling with one of my best friends in the world. Together, we’ve had many, many adventures. All the while, we continue to be changed and love each other. 

I can’t deny how much of Jesus I’ve seen in her life. At the same time, it’s unbelievable to say I’ll be finding the Lord in these other countries. God has met me in Bangkok by giving me the community at Evangelical Church of Bangkok. Those people have been solid examples for me. I’ve met friends who I hope to keep and grow with. 

Ma-ha-jan-jai.

I’ll definitely update how the trip is going when I get back. Please keep us in your thoughts. I hope you know how much I think of you and hope you’re well. Although I am across the world, I continue to keep you in my heart. Like St. Augustine said, “My weight is my love. Wherever I go, I am driven by it.” Word up.

Be blessed and take care. Gotta go pack now.

*hugs*
LL

Another month has gone by. Wow! It has just occurred to me that around this time, four months, I landed in the Bangkok airport around 6 a.m. My first memory of the Suvarnabhumi airport was getting off of the plane and thinking I landed somewhere else. I asked myself, “Self, are you really in Thailand?”

Sure enough, we travelled along the pathway to pick up our luggage and check in with our Visas. The rush was incredible. We met the staff for our company. We jumped in a “limo” van. We were shown where we’d be living for the next 10 months (which didn’t last when Jade came). I was completely lost in which direction was which? What roads were we traveling along? Who was who? What was her name? My “welcome home” was a bit overwhelming.

Now, in only four months, things have changed dramatically. The city, the people, my school have all grown on me and I continue to allow this experience to help shape how I view the world. I’ll candidly say that the horizon has grown to be so much more broad. I’m hooked to learn more. It’s such a big planet with beautiful places.

So, as always, in celebration of life here in Bangkok, I’m posting more pictures! Keep me and my buddy Jade in your thoughts and prayers. We’re currently planning our travel adventures for the month of October. We will have the entire month for a holiday. My current desire is to be able to see some places in India, Nepal, and China. If at all possible, a trip to Tokyo, Japan would be sweet, too.

We’ll see what happens. I’ll be sure to keep you posted.

(This is the view from our apartment. Oh Bangkok!)

(In the taxi on our way to school – 7:40 a.m. on Monday. It’s yellow day in case you didn’t notice.)

(Our girls getting the day started with morning announcements.
Singing, bowing, and more is included).

(Fah, Premier, and Prim. A few of my students).

(Ploy, Jin-Jin, Premier, and Pin. Crazy little girls).

(Have you noticed the different colored ribbons? The blue are for 10 year olds.
The pink are for 8- 9 years olds).

(It’s time for a milk break. Every day at 10:30 the girls eat a little snack with their pouches of milk).

(These are the little ones in our school. They’re not my girls, but I took photos in my friend’s classroom)

(Jenny and I – we’ve come a long way in understanding each other).

(Our after-school-snack-lady among the other street vendors).

(My after school girls – so dear to me).

(I was a little worried, but I gave the head student my camera. She wanted to take a photo of me).

So I hope you enjoyed the pictures. I am always looking to hear of any news from you. Send me a message on this blog or send an e-mail at: ladylaurisa@gmail.com. I know for a fact I am missing out on this year’s anniversary. Don’t talk about it, yet. Please take lots of pictures. I want to see everyone all dressed nice and looking sharp.

Much love until next time,

LL

Hello all of my loved ones!

Things are going well on this side of the world. So sorry for not keeping up. I have photos from the rafting experience, my life-changing trip to Cambodia, and so much more. This is just a preview:

(I’d swear my helmet was made for a small, Thai head).

(A man in one of the temples at Angkorwat, Cambodia).

(I almost got pancaked by one of these big guys because I was standing in the way!)

(Cambodian lady outside of a temple. She wanted $1 for me taking this photo :).

There will be many more to come. But before I headed to bed in this new place (with Internet), I just wanted to write a few words stating the latest of life in Bangkok:

**** Jade arrived from the states! (Many stories have been in the making for the last couple of weeks).

(See what we do in our time off?)

**** We moved out of our old place (which was not old at all, and in fact nice and big). Our new place is cute, simple, and on the 24th floor. Remember – I am scared of heights. So, let’s just say I will stay away from the windows. The view is amazing, but I’ll enjoy it from the kitchen :)

**** School has been closed. Not too many of you may know of the current events occurring in Bangkok, so you may want to read a few articles about the political protests and demonstration rallies. Last week and this week we’ve had days off from work. It’s a bitter sweet circumstance because Jade and I have taken advantage of our time away from school, but the political unrest is alarming. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers. 

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/09/02/thailand.protests/index.html?iref=newssearch

**** And as always, I miss each of you. Don’t grow tired of reading that I miss you because I’ll keep writing it until the day I arrive in Texas. As more and more time keeps passing, I am always thinking of you and hoping you are enjoying life wherever you are. Note to the family: sending pics of Eli is killing me! She’s growing too fast.

Until next time,

LL

Due to my lack of blogging, I feel inclined to write pages and pages to fill you in on my journey in Bangkok. If time does allow me to write thoroughly, then you will be able to tell by this lengthy entry. Or else, I better stop talking about writing and actually do it so you have something to read.

For starters, I wanted to mention how hard it was to receive news of the death of my great aunt. She was my extended family, yes, but that doesn’t mean the emotion wasn’t there. I imagined all of the family getting together and expressing their sentiments with one another. I thought of my cousins who I miss spending time with and the number of great aunts and uncles I only get to see on occasion. Meanwhile, I was here by myself wondering if this trip was a selfish move on my part? I questioned,  “What am I doing here and why do I have be away from all the people I have loved most?” There were so many thoughts that triggered because I missed my family more than normal. 

But after some talking with my parents and their peaceful assurance that it wasn’t practical for me to try and fly home in such a short notice, and that this was a trip of a lifetime. Their words were of support, love, and guidance to keep going. And so I have been doing my best since then.

Work has carried on to different levels of laughter and becoming more familiar with my students. They know when it’s time for Teacher Laurisa to dance across the front of the classroom to explain Jolly Phonics. But they also know when they are getting rowdy and it’s time to get down to business.

I shouldn’t fail to mention that this week has been loads of fun because the girls are testing. It’s probably not an exciting time for them, but we (Audrey, Steven, and myself) have had some lessons cancelled because of it. Yesterday, we had most of the day off. It’s great since we just got back from a holiday.

My first holiday in Bangkok was, of course, an adventure. It was exciting and really fun. A friend of mine, Judi, and I travelled a few hours outside of Bangkok to enjoy a greener side of Thailand. Our plan was to make it to the national park, called Khao Yai, do some hiking, see wild animals, and go white-water rafting. Believe it or not, I did all of those things!

Nothing looked promising at first. We had to wake up at 8 a.m. to get started on Thursday morning and we were shocked when we got to the bus station. It looked like the end of the world was happening and every citizen of Thailand was taking over the buses. Later, we did receive word that this was one of the most traveled holidays because they are religious, Buddhist holidays. This meant everyone had time off. 

(bus station)

(inside the bus when we first got on)

We got in line, paid for our tickets, and waited an hour for our bus. We were seated and on our way in a full, air con bus when all of a sudden we pull over on the side of the road. The bus we were on stopped every few minutes only to pack people in like sardines. I’ve never seen so many people on one bus in my life. It was art.

Finally we made it to the town where we still needed to catch a ride to the park. So we got in the back of a truck with other Thais and head down to Khao Yai. We were making our way through some of the greenest mountains I’ve ever seen. It was beautiful. About 30 minutes later the driver pulled over and motioned for us to get off because we made it to the park entrance. How were we going to get in the park and get around to find a place to stay?

(in the back of the truck)

Low and behold, there was a man by the name of Mr. Narang who came to our rescue. Basically, we hired him to drive us around Thursday, Friday, and back to Bangkok on Saturday. It sounds weird that we hired a man to drive us around, but he was more than willing and of course we had to pay good money.

The first afternoon and evening, he showed us the park and we saw monkeys. They were in little groups and so fascinating to watch. I got a little scared because I thought they would jump in our window or onto the truck. Thankfully, Mr. Narang was a resident park ranger and knew what he was doing. He got just as excited as us when we saw them, especially when we spotted a couple of elephants. They are really big and scary. Well, they were cute in a frightening way. It made me glad to know they were free and running around free. They could just play, eat, sleep and live a good life, I hope.

(One of the view points of the park).

(mamma monkey, baby monkey, and a monkey checking out it’s nails)

(let the deer cross the road)

(Ew. Thank you for killing the snake and putting him in a jar. I saw the real deal on the road. It was black and really scary)

(oh look, an elephant going for a nighttime stroll!)

[edit]

I forgot to mention how we also visited the gorgeous waterfalls inside the park. One of them is featured in the movie called the Beach. On the day we went, there was a director of another movie and some special effects men that were filming a scene with dummies jumping off the cliff of the waterfall. It was funny watching it all in action. The Park Ranger was nearby and I asked to get a photo with him. I told him, “Thank you for keeping the park safe. It is beautiful.” He was very sweet and held my hand in order to get me across the rocks or else I would’ve fallen in the water.

(THE waterfall)

(Park ranger and I. Can you see his little leech socks? I wanted a pair, but we weren’t in any danger zones).

Afterwards, we went to eat at a Thai restaurant  where we could enjoy the fresh air and bargain with Mr. Narang. He took us to the bungalo (which is like miniature hotel room in a house) where we were staying and we rested for rafting the next day.

Judi has the photos from our rafting experience, so I’ll post when she gets them loaded. Then, I’ll have to tell you how it all went down. What a blast! My first holiday here was a success and I couldn’t have enjoyed the outdoors more than this past weekend.

(My brother would be proud. I’m sporting Texas on the back of a truck in Thailand).

Until next time …

LL

Blogging is often short winded. I was on a roll in keeping updates and writing out some experiences, but lately I’ve been tired. 

Don’t get me wrong, I am not tired of writing. I don’t think I could ever loose enough force to write. It’s my work days that have left me drained. Every ounce of my energy  is unleashed during an 8 a.m.- 5 p.m. workday. 

I was recently writing to my brother about my schedule. Up until that point, I hadn’t fully realized my days extend as long as 17 hours. I am up by 5 a.m. to turn off the air con. We can’t use too much electricity because it’s supposedly expensive. Afterwards, I climb back in to bed only to toss and turn until 6:15 when I really should be out of bed. 

A cold shower starts the day and really gets my blood pumping. By 7:10 a.m., I meet and greet my roommates, who are usually ready before me and waiting downstairs. We head out towards the busy streets and begin the adventure of hailing a taxi. If we are lucky, we find a driver who is willing to make the hour commute to our school. On a good day, we get the a taxi in minutes and arrive to school on time. Other days, we ask a few drivers to take us and they’ll laugh. We’re standing on the side of the street long enough to work up a sweat and that’s when I get impatient. I love a good sweat, really. But when it comes to being dressed for work and getting puffs of exhaust every second, the circumstance takes a toll on my frustration. Usually when we wait longer and longer it means also arriving to school late. It makes me cringe my bag when we are stuck in traffic and I’m trying to calculate how we’ll travel the long distance ahead in the little time we have. I’d say I’ve gotten better since I first landed here.

Then, Monday through Friday I have a lesson that starts right at 8:30. Sometimes I’ll get a morning snack and get anything prepared if necessary. Otherwise, I hit the school grounds running to my first lesson and Joe has already started. Being late hasn’t occurred as much because we know the traffic now. What calms me down in all of the mad rush are my students.

I’ve laughed so hard there have been tears in my eyes and my legs feel like Jell-o. They are natural comedians. Some days they are full of compliments. Others they challenge my limits as well as the strength of my voice.

My schedule varies with different classes I see on different days and the breaks I have in between lessons. School finishes at 3:40 p.m. and we teach after school for another hour. Usually, time flies by. 

Afterwards, we grab another taxi either to the BTS sky train or straight home. It depends if I am up for going to work out or not. It makes the difference of getting home by 6 or possible as late as 10 p.m. A good work out is definitely worth it. I release any energy I have left and it gets me ready for bed.

Next time I’ll fill you in on “eating in Bangkok: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner.”

******** The following took place a few weeks ago. Just thought you’d enjoy this for the read.

Joe asked if I would call it a “fight?” If you remember Joe, he’s my co-teacher and also the English coordinator for Pratum levels 1-6. Today, he caught me by surprise.

There’s one class with two boys in it. I was told that these boys are among the few at our school. The only reason boys come to an all-girls’ school is because their mom or dad is a teacher here. Fair enough, but what happens to one of those boys who constantly disrupts the class and even challenges the body-building Joe? 

Well, this is the way it went. The first warning came as the boy started to make an airplane with his worksheet. Usually, Joe and I split the class in half. It’s much easier to manage a class of 25 instead of 50. It had started out that this boy came with my half because his number falls between 25-50. (FYI: The children wear Thai name tags that are pinned on their uniform shirt. They are designated a number according to their Thai teacher). 

Anyway, we didn’t have a chance to split the class because they were at an assembly. We only got them for half a class period. So with all of the students fidgeting and making ambient sounds, Joe took over the class and got tough in teaching the lesson.

The little boy decides to crumble up his worksheet, after getting a warning, and Joe grabbed the worksheet. He held it up for the rest of our girls to see and asked, “Is this good or bad that he’s doing this?” The girls replied in Thai, “bad.” Joe asked if he should take this paper to the principal and tell her how bad the boy was acting in class. In sweet compassion, they told Joe to give him one more chance. So he said, “Ok. No more.” He put the paper back on the boy’s desk and carried on with teaching.

As soon as we continued on with the lesson, this student folded all corners of his worksheet. He couldn’t have expected what was coming next. Joe grabbed his desk, slid it out in the hall, pulled the boy’s chair out from under him, and threw it in the hall as well. He told the boy he could either sit in the hall at his desk or sit on the floor of the classroom. Joe looked at me as I was wide-eyed in disbelief, and said “I don’t know if we’re supposed to do that, but I just did.” Just so you know, Joe has had to teach this kid for the last 2 years. I asked Joe if he’s ever done anything like getting that upset at him and he said, “I put him out in the hall a few times now. But he blatantly showed me to my face that he was going to continue to disrupt class.” OK. So this student, kicks and acts silly, so Joe picks him up by his arms and escorts him outside. The boy grabs on to the edges of the doorway and would not let go. He refuses to go outside and makes a dramatic scene. The girls could only laugh with embarrassment (it’s especially common in Thai culture. They smile or laugh at awkward moments. That’s part of the reason why I fit in here :)).

“Take over the lesson,” Joe tells me while handling the kid. I reversed the roles and said, “I’ll take the boy if you finish the lesson.” 

Surprisingly, I was able to get his kung-fu grip off the door and calmed down in the hall. I got him to sit on his bottom and explained why Joe was upset with his behavior. This was the first time anything like this every happened. 

Now I am scared of Joe because he almost made me pee in my pants. (Just kidding, sort of).