This has been a very fruitful week with some adventures, personal growth, and lots of fun.
Another Week, Another Temple
You read the heading. Once again, I got visit another one of Thailand’s beautiful temples, specifically, the sacred flagship temple for the people of Maha Sarakham province. Once in the complex, my Thai family and I stopped for a delicious treat of homemade coconut ice cream. Sure, it’s not the perfect and superior flavor of mint chocolate, but it’s a strong second place winner. Honestly, the coolest part (besides the temperature) was that the ice cream was served in a coconut. In other words, it was zero waste!
Once in the temple, I learned that, supposedly, a piece of the Buddha’s bone resides at the top of the temple’s spire. After being given some flowers and some incense, we walked around the temple three times barefoot in silent meditation. They then presented their flowers and incense and made their wish.
Afterwards, we went around and rang the gongs and bells. The tradition is to ring the gong three times while making a wish in order to try and manifest it. I was instructed to try and get the gong to sound by rubbing it. Apparently, sounding a gong by rubbing it with your hands is an indicator of being a good person, which I guess is unfortunate for me as my gong was absolutely silent.
This was my most enjoyable temple experience yet, which is really saying something considering I’ve had some awesome temple adventures. I just loved the bonding experience with my Thai family. There was lots of laughter, smiles, and fun times had.
School’s Back In Session
This week began my two-week crash course on basic English. The first day of class was expectedly lively, especially with ten students. We spent the class learning everyone’s names and learning some basic conversational greetings. The students completed a worksheet that covered the differences between different greetings (such as good morning and good afternoon) and tested their comprehension of a general first encounter with a new person. Of course, they also played a matching game on different call and responses to hopefully curb some of the first-day disinterest. Ultimately, everything went according to plan. The kids were learning and having fun, and I was enjoying every minute of it.
The rest of the week largely followed the same structure of the first. I started class with a fun game or video, moved into the main lesson, and then solidified understanding and checked for comprehension through the use of worksheets and group activities. For the most part, everything has been going great. They kids are enjoying class and are improving with each passing day. I am struggling with some of the more abstract concepts (like personal pronouns), but I’m hoping that will be reinforced as I incorporate them into future lessons.
This whole teaching saga has pulled me quite out of my comfort zone. Talk to anyone who really knows me and you’ll learn that my affection for children is, well, lacking. In an unexpected turn of events, interacting with the children everyday has now become one of the highlights of my day. It’s such a joy to witness the smile on their face when they correctly say an English expression. I’ve even gotten to the point where I spend some of my free time playing games with them, and trying to provide an organic way for them to practice English as well. I guess you could say that my grinchian heart is starting to grow.
The Section of Misfit Stories
These stories are too short to justify their own section, but too important not to post, so enjoy this conglomerate of misfits.
Home Alone in a Foreign Land
On Friday, I spent my first night alone at TBA. Everyone who normally sleeps here was out of town, so I was on my own. Naturally, I decided the best thing to do during my night alone in a foreign village was to watch not one, but two slasher films. That really set the scene for when I had to take a trip outside in the dark to go to the restroom. Unsurprisingly so, I was fine, unconcerned, and slept splendidly.
TV Show Encounter
On Saturday, I was greeted by a dozen or so people with fancy film equipment, makeup, and lighting. I was informed that some kids from the TBA were going to be featured on an episode of Mor-Khao Mor-Gang, a kids' show on Thai PBS that showcases Thai local food. I got to meet Bpan (ปั้น), the host of the show. Her and I talked about my time in Thailand, the differences between American and Thai culture, and lots of food. It was very fruitful and enjoyable conversation. Between being able to watch all the effort that went into producing the different scenes and playing lots of UNO with Bpan and the kids, it was a very pleasant day.
Running Update
I started a 10K training plan and have been sticking to it religiously. Everyday, as soon as class ends and I finish grading papers, I head out for my evening run (and I make sure to wave as I pass my Thai running “friends”). My mileage this week was 16.5, which is probably more than I should be doing right now, but it is just so hard to cutback. It’s a tranquil time.
My Weekly Reflection
Once again, this has been a really good week for me. I’m in a workflow that I’m really happy with. I’ve had time to explore the area and culture here, while also having time for myself. Teaching has really provided me with the humbling experience I so needed, while also providing a new avenue for me to learn. I really don’t have any complaints about this week and I hope that I can maintain this balance for the rest of my time here.
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