For a time I tried to think of reasons why taking Khmer would prove useful in the future. I mean it helps me during my time here, to a certain extent, but I kept trying to figure out ways to make it worth while once I return to the States. Maybe I could minister to Cambodians in the U.S. Maybe I could teach English to Khmer speakers. These are possibilities I won't rule out, but I think they were mostly just the workings of my human brain trying to be practical.
One day, I was sitting in my Khmer lesson, and all of a sudden I heard God's quiet whisper in my heart.
"It doesn't have to make sense to you. It makes sense to ME. I have a plan. Isn't it worth it just to be able to get to know Roath during this time? That's all the answer you need right now."
And I had a resounding "YES." In my heart. It's been so worth it, just to make a beautiful friend that I will remember for the rest of my life.
The other day in our lesson we were having a conversation in Khmer about movies. We were talking about the 3D theater here in Battambang. It's a pretty cool place and a prime example of total Cambodian ingenuity! They show 3D DVDs on a laptop to a fairly decent sized projector screen in a dark air conditioned room. You use 3D glasses, no doubt recycled from the real 3D theater in Phnom Penh, and you can even order a hamburger and fries and they'll bring it to you during the movie. Roath said that the staff at LOHI had planned to take a group there, but the guys were choosing the movie and they chose a scary movie so she didn't go.
I told her that when I've been there we watched kid's movies because Hannah and Ethan were with us. She said she likes watching kid's movies sometimes, like Cinderella, or Snow White, because she never got to see them when she was a little girl. Growing up, her family didn't have a television. Only richer families had them. (Now even the smallest shack in Cambodia has one. Watching television is definitely one of the national pastimes!) She said her cousin had one but they wouldn't let her watch it. They would close the door and not let her see it, but she would find a hole and peek through to try to watch. She said her best friend at college told her that she had the same experience as a child, trying to find a hole to peek through into people's houses that had TVs.
As I listened to her talk about her childhood, I realized that she wasn't bitter that she didn't have a television. She was telling the story with fondness. My heart grew warm as I listened to her stories, and I told her some things about my home. This is what life is really all about, whether I'm in Cambodia, the U.S., or anywhere really. It's about sharing love with the people God has placed in my path for that season. It's moments like that I will remember for the rest of my life. It's moments like that I will tell people about when they ask,
"How was living in Cambodia for almost a year?!"
and they are really probably expecting me to tell shocking stories of eating spiders and rats.
My beautiful teacher :-)
