Dear brothers and sisters, Hello:

Allow me to greet you a little more intimately, so that we can get a little more support and encouragement from each other in these not so easy days. I know that some people want to know about my daily life and work, so this letter will have something a little like a work schedule. But, I know that this will help you pray for me, giving you a more specific understanding of my doings.

Monday is my day off. I will go to Phnom Penh to do some things together with Lee Miu-ling. Usually I will sleep in a little later before getting up, but not too late, usually 7 or 8 a.m., because if I don't get out of bed then, my back will start to hurt. On a day when I don't have to rush to get to work, I enjoy a relaxed time for devotions. But sometimes, right during devotions, I will feel the Spirit moving and can quickly think of how to prepare the Sunday School lesson, and without much effort, I will have it all done. Just the opposite, usually when I sit down to do my preparations for Sunday School, I try hard but don't get anywhere. After breakfast it is already 10 o'clock , because we chat and chat, sharing about all the joys and sorrows of the week. Sometimes we will arrange to meet someone else to go out for lunch, such as Yuko, that is Mrs. Wilkins, who is a Free Methodist missionary from Japan . This couple often invites me to their home for meals. But, there was one time when my truck had to be repaired, that Yuko, Miu Ling and I went window shopping and went to a boutique. Chris Wilkins (who was in Japan for 11 years as an American missionary) wrote an e-mail to thank me for taking Yuko to such an expensive shop!! You read between the lines :-)

Sometimes I have to hurry and finish up some work on hand before I can go relax, so only the afternoon is left, as at dusk I rush back to Takhmau. It is not easy to drive at night here because the lighting is inadequate. Some vehicles don't have any tail lights, and a lot of times you just see a bunch of dark shapes in front that are moving, but there is no way to distinguish between a bicycle, a motorcycle or a big car, nor tell how far away they are. Takhmau is where I live, about half an hour by car from Phnom Penh . It is along the shore of the Bassac River and is the provincial capital for Kandal Province . If on Tuesday I have to go to a meeting or do other business in Phnom Penh , I will stay at the Phnom Penh mission house, where I can have another evening of having someone to eat a meal with me. Sometimes I also go to visit other missionaries from Hong Kong , browse in book stores or go out shopping. But, I often end up doing other unplanned things because unlike Hong Kong, where 8 or 9 times out of ten you can do what you had thought of doing as planned, here I might see someone I rarely get to see and abandon my original plans.

Tuesday through Friday from 3 to 5 in the afternoon is my language class time. Going to class at 3 p.m. is not a wise choice, because that is when it is hottest and I am most tired. But, making allowance for my driving skills, I need to allow enough time for me to get back from House of Joy on Kaoh Ksachtunlea island or from Phnom Penh with an easy and safe drive.

Once every two weeks on Tuesday morning we have a mission field meeting, and I also take care of some matters at the Phnom Penh office.

Wednesdays I prepare for Sunday School and the message for the House of Joy staff devotions.

Thursday mornings I go to House of Joy to see about the students and the meals. Sometimes I take care of some problems with the students or staff. Starting this month I have handed over buying the foodstuffs for House of Joy to the staff to do on their own. So, I need to spend a lot of time checking over the accounts also, and it probably can't get done in one morning. The local workers also need a lot of support and encouragement. I need to spend a lot of time together with them before I can know what their needs are. When I get there, the sun is already high. I don't know if it is because of the heat or just tiredness, but quite often all I can do is lie in a hammock and take a nap

On Friday evenings, after language study, I go to Prek Thei for the prayer meeting. Friday and Saturday are an opportunity to meet and talk with the local pastors and lay leaders. It is also a time to take care of distributing some subsidies from outside, so I am always carrying a bunch of money with me.

Saturday there are all kinds of meetings: women's meeting, youth activities, engagements and marriages. In Prek Thei there is never a break, right up to 9 or 10 o'clock at night. But, when I can't keep going, I find a place to rest, especially in the midday heat.

Sunday there is the worship service and Sunday School, then in the afternoon I go to different outreaches for worship right up until dusk.

Each evening I continue to prepare messages and Sunday School lessons, review Khmer, read books, look at the news report in Khmer (most of which I don't understand), or catch up with the devotions that didn't get done in the morning because I was in a rush to get going. It is also a time to download and answer e-mail. That is only in Takhmau. In Prek Thei there is no telephone line and the electricity is irregular, so that is a place where you can't do anything at night.

If I get to the market twice a week, I am satisfied. Usually I only go when forced to go because there is no food left in the refrigerator.

April and May are the hottest season and when the mangos get ripe. Church people constantly give me different kinds of mangos. This month I have eaten mangos almost every day. Before, my mother would nag me that it wasn't good to eat too many mangos when it was hot and humid, but here I can eat one or two with no problems at all. However, when local people eat to excess, they get abdominal pain or diarrhea. The mangos here taste better than in Hong Kong . According to what the locals says, tree ripened mangos taste the best. Even when they are picked and then allowed to ripen, they taste good. Just don't use gypsum to force them to ripen and you won't have a stinging feeling in your mouth after you eat them.

Rebecca