Ode to good friends

What does friendship look like? This is a question that many have pondered over the years. Personally, I say it's a spark of light in the eyes and a wide grin whenever you hang out with someone. Maybe add laughter.

The 4 Musketeers!

Who are all the people in this post?

This one is Soki (So-kai). The stuff all over her is remnants of one of Jess' famous trips to the island. Typical activities of these trips can include games, laughing, and the occasional all-night dance party.

It's Sak Saum. These are the men and women (some of them) who make up the focus of a ministry dedicated to the restoration and rehabilitation of people that have been basically thrown away - discarded, in many instances - as easily as you or I would discard a paper plate or napkin.

Lady Sasa, the soggy. ;)

What makes them important is not that they've been through lives that would make most of us cringe. What happened, happened. It's not even that they are all walking roads of healing, and of wholeness, though that's remarkable in its own right.

Jess and her 'peeps'. :)

What makes them important is not where they've been, or where they are going - it's who they are. Sweet spirited, playful, and often kind and considerate, the men and women of Sak Saum have learned how to love. They love themselves; they love God; and they love Jess. :)

See the smiles?

Dedicated and hard working, Jessica has poured herself into Sak Saum, doing everything she can to help these men and women, as well as supporting her Mom, Ginny. It's an incredible opportunity.

Why does she do it?

Stiu (stee-u) means 'cool' in Khmai.

Because of who these people are.

I started this post with a note about friends. Ahh, but that's not who the guys and girls of Sak Saum are. Who are they? Ask Jessica - she'll tell you. They're more than friends.

They're family.

End of year one.

Yes, I'm closing the year with cows.

I promised you a year-end post, and here it is. Apologies for the lack of updates recently. There will be more to come, as the following year promises to be very exciting.

As with all things, time, by its very nature, brings change. Here in Cambodia, it's no different. What do I mean?

Channtoun and her new hubby. Outfit # 3 of the reception.

Since I've been here, the country itself has undergone transformation. New roads have been laid, new power outages have occurred (promises to fix these have also been made, and broken, and made... rinse, repeat), and growth is evident in many areas (We have a burger king! score!). On a more personal level, my family has changed.

New family members. ;) We got new birds cuz someone left the door open to the generator and the old birds didn't like the generator that much. Why are you looking at me like that? Hey, everyone forgets to close the door once in awhile...

Jessica, for instance, has found a treasure in Sak Saum and its people. Her association with the ministry has reaped the benefits of getting to know and love a lot of people who were once hurting, but are now healing. She gets to play a large part in that healing too (though I don't think she realizes it).

One-footed football tossing. Patent pending.

She's also a great mom and daughter, and Cambodia has allowed her to enjoy spending more time with Aidan and Ginny and Eric.

Friends. :)

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Aidan, of course, has seen the most change. He's grown taller, as boys of his age usually do, but more, his character has grown. He is no longer bullied, and has found more confidence because of that. He gets to spend lots of good quality time with his mom, dad, and grandparents, and he has made lots of new friends. 

Everyone loves Tom and Jerry.

...and then there's me. Geeky, slightly clumsy, bald... me. How have I changed?

Well, I'm still geeky. I still blunder into the occasional mishap (to the amusement of many, including Mara). I still love video games, Star Wars, and I still get a huge kick out of weird food items (*cough* follow my Pinterest *cough*). 

However, I'm growing too. I'm learning to be a better... well... everything. I'm learning what's really important in life, and I'm learning each day how to put myself aside. It's not easy, and I'm not always successful. 

Navi. Student, and friend.

The rewards are worth it though. Seriously. I've seen more and done more in my short time here than I've honestly accomplished in most of my life. One day, I will look back on the legacy of my life, and I intend to do so with the knowledge and memories of a life well lived.

I think I am on the right track so far. :) Time will tell.

Epic battle! River Monster Vegetable Wall... go!

So what's next? Well, our second year in Cambodia promises to be interesting. There's the big election coming up, which according to my various sources, may include anything from a small-scale war to free bananas. My English teaching should expand, and I will get to see a few more countries.

I will journey across barren lands to the very summit of Mount Doom... wait, that's The Lord of the Rings.

The bird is Sorina. The boy is happy. Aidan, we have enough birds.

We will face high temperatures, monsoon rains, crazy motorists, and an assortment of market vendors. 

Props to Jennifer and Ken for the awesome reading material!

Aidan... will read a book. Ok, more like 40. He devours the things.

Well, that about wraps it up. This is a short summary of how things continue here. More stories to follow (yes, sooner than it took for this one).

Coming Soon...

Well, it's been awhile since I posted. It's also been a while since I arrived in Cambodia! Coming soon, for your viewing enjoyment, I'll be doing a year wrap-up post. Stay tuned for more. :)

Aidan will play some music for you while you wait. :)

The King's (?!?) Birthday

Yup, you guessed it! He's not the King of Cambodia, but he sure thinks he is.

What? You were expecting the real king? Considering how many people stop, stare, and try to touch and fawn over him, I think Aidan makes a fine substitute. :)

Ahh, but the adulation of the masses is not the only similarity this lil guy shares with royalty. You see, Mr. Aidan has turned a whopping 8 years old recently. In true royal tradition, we celebrated his birthday much like they do for the king here - with multiple parties.

Look! Aidan in 3d!

We started off with some low-key stuff - taking just him to Pizza Company for lunch (that's 1), taking him and his friends to lunch there too (2), and of course, taking him there with the whole family and a small team (3!). We also had minor celebrations at home with Jess and I giving him tons of gifts. (4) Ginny and Eric had a turn as well, with more gifts following (5).

Why is this important? Well, prior to moving here, we were not 'party' people. In fact, it was enough to simply survive all the things life had in store for us without trying to organize massive parties and get-togethers. With the bullying he was receiving, he also didn't exactly have a lot of friends we would want to consider inviting over. So, for parties, we'd stick to the three of us and a nice solid trip to Disney. This of course made birthdays awesome for everyone. I even went on a few rides - and you've seen my bio. I'm not an adventurous person by nature. :)

Still, Aidan has never had what you might consider a traditional party, with banners, and decorated cake, and tons of screaming friends. This year that all changed!




When asked how he wanted to celebrate his birthday, he rattled off a very long list of activities. Some of these weren't feasible (Hong Kong Disney is a little far to walk, and a 9 course meal of all his favorites in one sitting wasn't very healthy), but aside from the small celebrations I mentioned, one stood out. He wanted to go to the water park.





With his friends.

All of them.

Small sample

All 70+ of them.

More. :)

To recap, that's Aaron, Sokun, Father's House (all), Sak Saum Phnom Penh, Sak Saum Sa'ang, and two visiting team members, Kendall and Shannon... Oh, and the fam of course. :)

Moses leading the captives out of.. no, wait, that's just Aidan.

To say that Aidan was making up for lost time is an understatement. Let it be noted that the idea for a gigantic party is credited to my wife. She is an awesome mother, and she wanted Aidan to have everything that time and mean children had taken from him. She organized this with her mom and a few other key people.

What did Aidan think about all this?

Father's House all made cards for him by hand. :)

I'm pretty sure at some point he cried because he was so happy. We got to bless a lot of people with his birthday, but nobody moreso than Aidan.

A bus full of peeps! No, not those marshmallow things...

Aidan kidnapped Kendall and Rhiannon at alternating times.

Presents from Sak Saum. He uses that thing as a massive pillow.

After the water park, we headed home to some cupcakes and blowing out of candles. Aidan only wanted a couple of people there, so it was just the family and Kendall and Shannon.

Whoosh!

At the end of the day (and the end of the 8th or 9th party), Aidan was happy, full, and content. What's more, another piece of his heart was healed, and the damage caused by the difficulties of making friends, bullying, and issues with schools that just didn't understand him were wiped away. All because someone loved him so much that they couldn't stand to see anything taken from their son.

In Aidan's words (he was with me for writing this part), "Thank you for being kind and generous to me on my birthday! ...and thanks for the good presents! You are always an awesome mommy!"

"When am I gonna get more cupcakes?!?"