By Senses

Today I have opted to offer a more creative flare to the blog instead of only recounting the day's events.

The smell of cooked food wafts into my nose. Nearby are skewers of spiced meat ready to be fried or grilled at a moment's notice. Searing hot woks dot the front of many street side restaurants where men sit idly without work. As I move down the block the scents change from sweet mangoes to pungent durian. I notice a fruit that reminds me of prickly pears, but is neither prickly nor pears. The inside is a soft, sweet, white fruit enclosing a hard pit. Bags of the skins lie strewn on the sidewalks.

People pass by me at a slow pace. No one is in a hurry to arrive or leave any place. Trucks packed full of people, arms and heads sticking out while others clutch tightly to the truck bed railing, go whizzing by. They make abrupt stops to let passengers off. No one flies around since they are packed like sardines. Busses ferry people through crowded streets for 200 Kyats (20 cents). As I walk along the street I am cautious not to trip on garbage or fall into the drainage ditch covered by large cement tiles. Taxi drivers honk their horns to get the attention of foreigners asking "Taxi?"

Turning down a side street I head for the hotel. There are fewer people along here, but just as many restaurants and small shops with living quarters above. The bike shop, owned by an Australian, is on the left near the baby supplies store. I pass by two internet cafes filled with people. On the right is a huge pile of sand that has washed out into the street. No one knows what it is for. As I turn into the tiled driveway of the hotel, I anticipate the cool, air conditioning in the lobby.

We also studied prayer/fasting using Matthew 4.1-11 and the Tower of Babel Story in Genesis 11.1-9. Some of the highlights of interpreting the bible through Kachin eyes included:
God wants people to be spread all over the world and prevents them from planting their own glory (the tower)
As people move around on earth, they will try to hold power and seek to create structures

This morning I led chapel with a focus on the text Matthew 15.22-29 (non-Jewish woman who asks for healing from Jesus, even a crumb’s worth). The main theme was that something small can make a big difference. It’s what the woman knew was true about how God operates and that was enough for her.