#BecauseThailand

Hey everyone! Sorry I've been MIA for a month. I've gotten into a routine here in Nan. I easily forget that the things, I now find normal, are still not normal to my family and friends. Things like...riding a motorbike in the pouring rain to school at 7:00 am wrapped in a makeshift poncho trying to navigate market traffic, or getting taught a traditional Thai dance by co-workers that we will be performing in front of a retirement party (because nothing is more entertaining than watching foreigners make a fool of themselves), or that one of the classrooms in my school caught on fire overnight last week due to electrical malfunction. All those things still blow my mind and make me laugh when I write them down, but they have all become a part of my daily life. They don't phase me. I've officially adopted the hash-tag "#becauseThailand" as my new reasoning for most things that happen in this country. There are numerous things that have happened while I've been there, and there's just no other way to explain why or how they happened other than saying, "because we're in Thailand that's why". I love it, most of the time at least.

For fun, here's a list of a few of the random things that have happened in my life in the last month...#becauseThailand:

1. I have been called "Godzilla" by one of the cutest and innocent little boys in the world, so who could get too mad at that right?... 
2. I have successfully learned how to use a "squat toilet", if you consider successful still getting a little on your feet every time. 
3. I have met some of the most genuinely kind people. The type of people who will drop everything they are doing to fix your flat tire, even though they don't speak a bit of English.
4. I have had every single Eagles song sang to me by random Thai people at every time of day. Along with the butchered Thai version of Hotel California usually comes the phrase, "America music! America song! You like?"... as if the Eagles embody the entire American music scene. I usually answer, "Yes, I love the Eagles." lol.
5. I have started to use '555' in the place of 'hahaha' when typing to my friends out here in Thailand. The word for 5/five in Thai is actually pronounced 'ha' so 555, when said in Thai sounds like ha ha ha. Clever eh?
6. I have learned how to guilt a student into feeling bad for inappropriate behavior without having to speak a single word. Which is helpful, because most of the time the badly behaved students don't understand English or my broken Thai all that well. 
7. I have overused the word 'Hello' in the best way possible. Almost every student at school will give me a "Hello Teachaa" when passing by. So on an average school day I probably say Hello to 50+ people. How great is that? Think about all the people we pass daily in America, and never take the .5 seconds it takes to give that person a simple greeting. "Hello". Try it, it's a wonderful thing.
8.  I tried some ahh-mazing food, and some not so great food (i.e. Durian). Fun fact: as it turns out, putting coconut in anything makes it much better. 
9. I have missed my family and friends every day, but I have adopted a wonderful group of friends out here that are becoming my second family. I am so thankful for them and their craziness, don't know what'd I'd do without them. 
10. The most important thing that has happened in my life #becauseThailand thus far, is the amount of growth I have had in my relationship with God, and my faith. Living out here has shown me how far God's love and impact reaches. This place, this culture, these people are all beyond beautiful, and I am just in awe daily of how blessed I am to be here. I'm only about halfway, but I can't imagine what else is in store for my time here. 

So, that is just a short list of all the funny stories and generous experiences I have had here, recently but it gives you a quick glimpse into my crazy awesome Thai life. Life is great. God is good. And until next post keep the good vibes rolling. :)