September 26, 2007

When it rains, it pours

We arrived in Chiang Mai in August during the monsoon season. Having left southern California, we were looking forward to a little rain. In northern Thailand, the rains can last up to five months and often leave areas flooded. Last year, 1,000 homes were damaged or washed away due to severe flooding and the Ping river overflowing.

Annapurna Faucett plays in the street in Chiang Mai during the monsoon season, August 2007.

When the first rains came and flooded the streets, the girls were thrilled! They donned their red ladybug raincoats and boots and had a glorious time playing in the knee-deep water. As we soon learned, sudden heavy downpours were common and often left as soon as they came, leaving the area drenched, but beautifully lush and green.

When we first arrived in Thailand, we sublet a house that came equipped with just about everything we needed, including a dog, but the location was not too convenient. Acacia started school the week after we arrived and was being picked up at 6:45 a.m. and spending an hour in the minibus.

Annapurna Faucett after being bit by a dog.

The same week, Acacia was playing with the house dog and got nipped in the hand. It drew a little blood and left Acacia very wary. Then, three days later, Annapurna decided to feed the dog some dry food. While feeding the dog treats out of her hand, the dog must have felt threatened. Next thing we knew we heard screaming from both girls. The dog had bit Annapurna on the face and was still attached to her cheek. Brett rushed over and pried the dog’s jaw open and released Anna. A few minutes later we were on the way to the hospital for our first of five visits. The bite left a C-shaped mark on her cheek, starting at her outer nose area and curving outward to her mouth. We feel fortunate that the bite missed her eye and the teeth did not go too deep. Poor Acacia was traumatized by seeing her sister bit and continues to be afraid of dogs; meanwhile, the resilient Annapurna seems somewhat unfazed and is healing quite well.

After this incident, we decided to move immediately. We are now in a great location within walking distance to a local open-air market. We are much closer to Acacia’s school, and have figured out how to get to school and back by flagging down a shared songtaew, an open-air pickup truck with two bench seats, covered by a canopy, which serves as public transportation.

We are all going to school, as our primary duty is learning Thai. Thai has 44 consonants and 48 vowel and diphthong possibilities. In addition, a single syllable may be altered by means of five different tones:  Low, mid, falling, high, and rising. If you don’t get the tone right, the meaning is not understood. A primary example of this is the phase:  mái mài mâi mâi mãi (New wood doesn’t burn, does it?) This makes it rather difficult for us. Even when we know what the correct tone in Thai should be, we tend to denote emotion, verbal stress, and the interrogative through the tones we know from English. So, the first thing we have been doing is trying to speak without any emotion or rising tone at the end of a question, which is harder than it sounds. Brett, always the comedian, describes learning Thai as “like drinking from a full blast fire hydrant of knowledge. And you wouldn’t believe it, but they have a different word for everything!”

The transition is proving to be much more challenging than we imagined. Acacia has taken the move hard. She has been having some difficulty in school with behavioral issues, such as crying and hiding under her desk, and I have had some concerns with the school’s lack of communication and responses. Thankfully, after weeks of numerous meetings, consulting, weighing our options, and a lot of prayer, we have reached an amicable resolution and Acacia now seems to progressing well.

Recently, Annapurna came down with a bad cold and a mild fever that lasted five days. We took her to a doctor at the local clinic and he prescribed antibiotics and sent her on her way. We gave Anna amoxicillin for two days, yet the fever continued to worsen. When it spiked to 104 degrees we immediately took her in to the local hospital. They did an X-ray and diagnosed her with right lower-lobe pneumonia. She was admitted to the pediatric ward and was started on IV antibiotics.

The hospital was functional, but definitely showed its age, with cracks in the walls, peeling paint, stark walls and corridors, and no running hot water. We were both a bit concerned about the hospital and staff, as it was not like we are used to and we didn’t know enough Thai to communicate properly. However, with lots of patience, a Thai/English dictionary, and gesturing and sign language, it all worked out. We were impressed with the quality of care by the nurses and doctors. The following day, after IV antibiotics and a restless night of sleep, Anna began to improve. Her fever broke and she was feeling better. During her stay, Anna got to ride a tricycle down the hospital corridor. It was a cute, sad, sweet scene with Anna in her little blue hospital gown riding a tricycle down the hallway, with Dad pushing her IV pole beside her.

We have also been busy with our family’s celebrations. In late August, Acacia celebrated her sixth birthday here, as did Brett. Then, amongst all the madness, we both managed to forget our sixteenth wedding anniversary, and now, today, it is Annapurna’s fourth birthday. Mom has been busy baking cakes!

As we begin our eighth week here, we are starting to settle down and things are going smoother. Both children are healthy, we are beginning to learn the language and communicate, and we can get where we need to go.

Although rains and floods sometimes leave a path of destruction, they also brings forth growth and new life. We have seen this in our short time here. We have been flooded with new tastes, sensations, sounds, sights, and frustrations. However, we can also appreciate the beauty here, both in the people and the environment (and, maybe soon, in the language!) We are excited and hopeful about the new possibilities that lie ahead and look forward to growing and flourishing through our challenges and new experiences.

We are thankful for your letters and prayers. Please continue to pray for our health and assimilation as we begin our service to God and his people.

Brett and Shelly Faucett