From all of us

The past few days the internet has been out for us at Eden House as their wireless network was being fixed and we couldn't access this blog at the home. Today we wrote these thoughts so that I could upload them when we got back to the hotel.

Hey it’s Tylar. This trip has been so great. I challenged myself this trip to learn all the girls and staffs names. I have managed to successfully complete that challenge. The girls have grown so much and are learning more and more English. It’s amazing seeing the changes in them and in me. As they grow it seems like I also grow. They are Gods children just like us. I will miss them all so much when we go. They love us for who we are and don’t care about what we look like. That’s one thing I am very grateful for. Life can be hard and knowing that they will love you and hang out with you no matter what is awesome. God is amazing and I learn and experience this more every time I come to Thailand.

Hello from Dodge. Thailand has been fun for me so far. On April third, we went to the monkey caves. These monkeys were wild and were not very friendly. We saw one of the monkeys come up to a child and steal his Popsicle. I think that it is kind of weird that the place is called the monkey caves since there was only one cave (that I saw). I don’t really have much else to say. I’m usually not good at remembering things that just happened. I am sorry that I don’t have much to write about. Thank you for reading though.
Hey it’s Matt. This trip has been so amazing. I’ve had so much fun. April 1st we went to a waterfall. When we first got there it was raining really hard so we didn’t think we’d go. But It cleared up so we went. The walk to the waterfall was really long and tiring. When we got there it was all worth it though. On April 2nd Vern took Dodge, my dad, and me on a village/boat tour. It was really cool seeing Laos, Burma, and Thailand from the river. April 3rd was a different day. Some people stayed at Eden House but some went out and went to some shops. After lunch we went to Monkey Caves. That was so fun seeing all the monkeys just hanging around not in cages. The only thing I didn’t like bout the caves was the fact that we had to climb 304 stairs to get to the top. It was so tiring walking all the way up almost climbing a ladder at points. But it was fun and I got a lot of pictures. Well the trip is coming to an end and that really sucks but oh well. I like the fact that the girls aren’t judgmental about us and like us for who we are.

Hello Washingtonians…it’s Megan. I have been dreading writing this blog because it is just one more reminder that today is our last day in the happiest place on earth (and yes I am including Disneyland). This trip has been so much fun, and even though it’s my third time back I feel like I have truly learned something different every time. This year I learned probably 100 times the amount of Thai I have in the last two trips and I have been able to communicate more with the girls, which has been so nice. Each and every girl has learned even more English and so the amount of sharing between us has improved. It is such an amazing experience getting to know these girls and the personalities even more. It’s amazing to me how every single girl is so vastly different from the others. When God planned for Eden House he was probably just showing off to the rest of the world the amazing things he can do. It has been hotter today than it has been most of the trip. The girls have been running around playing games, the Bop It Extreme I brought here has been quite the hit. It has been fun interpreting the score for them. I am proud of myself I have learned to count up to 1000 in Thai. I have also learned my colors…so now I am about at the intelligence of a three-year-old Thai girl. Yay! I am starting to miss home a little bit, but not much. Today is going to be such a hard day. There have been so many wonderful memories this year. I had never been to the monkey caves before and I was able to visit a Galean, pronounced Karen (hill tribe) store to look at handicrafts, and visit a paper store, a market, and a pottery store. Everything this year has been so memorable. I am definitely going to miss Thailand, all of the girls, and Miss Audrey and Papa Vern. I am glad we are all safe; please pray for health and travel.
Hello Northlake, it is now Alan’s turn to write. This is a day that I really wasn’t looking forward to. I was told it would be sad I just didn’t know to what magnitude it would be. The girls are just so loving and non-judgmental. As Matt and Dodge have said we went on a boat ride for newbies, the views were spectacular but there was a definite dark aura over the Paradise Hotel in Burma. The Monkey Cave is actually called the Fish Cave, it has some of the largest Koi and Catfish in it I have ever seen. The monks climb all those steps (810 round trip with food twice a day to feed the monkeys. It is hard to say goodbye to these girls and staff but the experiences are priceless. I have much further to go than Megan, so I guess I am still in Kindergarten. There is only room to grow. Well I’ll see some of you in small group on Monday, take care.
Hey it’s Jordan. Today is going to be the worst day of the trip for all of us. I’m not looking forward to tonight and am dreading the tears. These girls are so amazing and I learn so much from them every day we spend together. I have gotten to know and come to love many of the beautiful young women in this house and come to realize how much alike we are. We share many of the same struggles and enjoy most of the same things. One of the younger girls, Somo, calls me mom. I don’t know whether it’s a complement but I think it is. It makes me feel old but I love to know that I mean so much to her. Before we leave every night I have hugged the girls and told each of them that I love them and that I’ll see them tomorrow. Tonight is going to be different. I won’t be able to tell them I’ll be back in the morning and I’ll have to say goodbye without knowing if I’ll see them again or not. Seeing how people live here has opened my eyes and made me hate the person I was before landing in amazing Chang Rai. They have so little but yet are so happy and love on you no matter if they know you or not. From the first step into this house I have been loved unconditionally and I know I will be able to feel that love long after we’re gone. This is an experience I have been lucky to have twice and I know I will never forget. Please pray for these girls and continue to pray for our team because our journey isn’t completely over yet. God bless.
P.S. I miss you and love you daddy. See you soon and I can’t wait to be home with you again.

Sawahdeekah from P’Patti, I want to start by saying “thank you to the people who donated money for me to be able to come on this trip!” Each day has been more wonderful then the day before. Yesterday I woke up not feeling so well and spent the entire day in the bed! I was so bummed about that. Today I feel much better. I have enjoyed getting to know the little girls on this trip. I already knew most of the older girls so to get to know the little girls has been amazing. When I wrote last I told you of a little girl named Nim. She has the most beautiful smile I have ever seen. She grabs hold of my hand, calls me mom and leads me to where she wants to go. I have taught her how to wink and it makes me smile every time she does it. She does not speak any English but I feel I have been able to communicate with her anyways. I do not look forward to tonight at all! It is going to be very hard to say goodbye to these wonderful children. I wish I could pack them all in my suitcase. I’m reminded each day of this trip that I am very selfish and I wonder why I can’t be content and live simply. The people here have nothing and yet they are so happy. In America most of us have whatever we want and we are still not happy. Why is that, it is because we are all so selfish! My prayer for myself and my family is that we learn to live simply and be happy with what we have. Please pray for us as we say our goodbyes and pray for our trip home.
Darren, I love you and miss you more than you know! I can’t wait to be home with you! Kiss, Kiss!