Christmas Letter 2009

Warm and humid greetings from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. As you read this letter we are nearing the midpoint of our stay here. Our observations are a bit more seasoned with each passing month. Each of us has unique experiences from our time here. A Christmas overseas is in itself unique and special.

The Christmas story is itself the beginning of God's out of country experience. Jesus left his home in heaven to live among us. Ours is much shorter and hopefully less wrought with trials and temptations. As we celebrated Christmas this winter we needed to summon the inner Christmas reality because the outer trimmings are far too sparse to kindle our hearts. Hopefully the lessons of this year abroad will make Christmas be about “Joy to the World” and not snow, lights, and fancy wrapping paper.

A lot of wonderful things came together to make this trip a reality. Since this is our second sabbatical trip we are much more seasoned and our expectations lower. Packing up a house of belongings went very smoothly, although it is an awful lot of work, and Roseann welcomed the chance to rid us of much accumulated junk. Having a barn on the property made storage economical and simple. Except for our cars, everything stored in the barn was mouse proof. All the furnishings and clothes not mouse proof ended up in our finished attic playroom. I found a design for a mouse proof fence to put up around the cars. In six months I’ll find out if it truly worked.

Acacia had some serious knee issues in the spring. After many trips to many doctors we got the help and answers needed to feel safe about coming here for a year. We feared it was arthritis for quite a while, or maybe Lyme, but it seems it was a serious growing pain issue, not so uncommon in girls.

Our church helped with our going by setting up an account to fund our kid’s school cost, and throwing a fund raising dinner at church on our last Sunday in the US. MCC could not afford the cost and neither could we on a sabbatical salary. Thanks to the many friends and family who contributed to that. The children are attending Logos International School, started by Asian Hope. It is a Christian K-12 school that educates some Cambodian orphans along with other Cambodian and international students.

Renting out your house is a lot like selling except you have to fix it up twice. I did all the repairs to make it rentable and will repair it again when we move back. A good friend from church is managing our rental agreement all year. Thanks to Craigslist, the advertising was free. Having a renter was the final step to being able to go. Sadly we were still putting the final details of our move together as MCC orientation began. Meeting all the people who were going out for service work was impressive. With the global economic downturn we knew fewer people would be able to go. It was like we made the cut to be on the team. As we learned where others were going, we considered our assignment one of the safer ones.

Being overseas is everything they tell you it will be. Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. We have found this to be very true as our hearts keeps remembering the treasures we have in the US, both material and relational. Everything eastern is quite cheap here. Western imports, if available, are expensive. Breakfast at the neighborhood café for $0.75 and coffee for $0.50 are probably some of the better bargains. The highlight of my (Ron) year is getting to drive motorcycle. For a brief while I contemplated getting one when we returned, but as carpel tunnel started affecting my one good hand, I’ve had second thoughts. Traffic is impossible to describe. To survive I keep telling myself I am in no hurry, take no risks, brakes are safer than the accelerator. The majority of people drive motorcycle so I go with the swarm and shield myself from uncivil auto drivers. I have seen my neighbors laugh as I wait at a red light with no opposing traffic. For some reason, my neighbors think such behavior is funny. I teach English five days a week at a Christian drop in center two blocks from our apartment. The young adults I teach are eager to learn as it improves the possibility of employment. Class proceeds very slowly and the teacher talks way to fast. I had a great volunteer last week, Janaya. She needs service hours for school. I speak very slow compared to her. We are having a party on Christmas day…something no teacher would try in the U.S. Since it is a normal workday, I thought why not. One more day to try to explain the significance of the holiday.

Janaya turned fifteen this year and is a freshman at Logos. She enjoys being in a small Christian school. It would be easy to learn everyone’s name, if the names weren’t so unfamiliar! The majority of the students at Logos are Asian: Cambodia, Phillipino and Korean. Her most challenging class is Khmer. She enjoys the markets, the warm weather, and the food in Cambodia. Her favorite Cambodian dish is ginger chicken. She misses her friends very much. And as many of you know, she ended up in a Bangkok hospital for surgery and two weeks of recovery for a bacterial infection in her knee in mid September. That was a challenging time. It took a lot of mom and daughter physical therapy, but her range of motion has all returned. Still a little weak in that leg, however.

Austin is in the 7^th grade. Logos has given him some great opportunities as well: a chance to play basketball on a middle school team, and to learn trumpet for the band. Instruments were borrowed from here and there, and there wasn’t a French horn available. But Austin had already been asking to learn trumpet in the US! There school moved this last week to a larger facility and Austin was asked to help move and set up the new computer labs. Another great opportunity – of course there was pizza for lunch, and sodas during the day – things we don’t have too often here! His favorite snack after school is fresh watermelon – and it seems we will have those all year long! He also likes the sugar cane chunks sold on the street and fried bananas.

Acacia’s school year (4^th grade) has been the most challenging, as she ended up with a very strict teacher. However, things are much better now than they were for the first couple months. She has two good American friends at school. She will tell you that not having a big yard, and pets to play with is the hardest thing for her in Cambodia. We have tried the pet thing twice for her – a guinea pig, and a small rabbit – but they both died within a month. We don’t know what is going on there. She likes to ride on Dad’s motorcycle and in a tuk-tuk. She also loves the cold, fresh coconut drinks. She likes the markets as well, and can find her way out of the maze in the Russian Market much better than the rest of us. We were able to put her in a Saturday morning soccer program, and while it is weak compared to US standards, that chance to run around on a grass field has made a big difference in her life. She is, I think, also the star at her age level.

I (now Roseann) am working in chemistry at the Royal University of Phnom Penh. I am working to build up the capacity of the faculty by helping them develop new laboratory experiments, new curriculum, and new research projects, especially in the area of green chemistry. I have enjoyed teaching the department (faculty and students) how to use one of their brand new state-of-the art instruments, but on other days, I can’t find a simple piece of filter paper, or a beaker! I had been so happy to find in the lab the chemical that I needed to start my research project, only to eventually determine (and have the chair confirm) that it was actually something else in the bottle! Now everything is coming from Vietnam. Really, every day is fascinating. There are many foreigners that work at the university for short, and long periods of time – all in different areas. We have coffee every morning, and then eat lunch together as well. I’ve learned much about Cambodia and the world from them. It has been so encouraging to be part of that diverse team. I do bike to work – not entirely enjoyable in this traffic, but between the ride and the 125 steps up to my office – I stay in shape. I’ve also had the opportunity to accompany a community choir this year, and lead worship singing at our church as well. Other than the challenges of keeping my family healthy with all the new bugs here, I have really enjoyed Phnom Penh. (But of course, we haven’t gotten to hot season yet!)

Well, you know – since we aren’t printing this letter this year, we can afford to write more. Hope you are not getting bored.

We are not on vacation this year, so with work, church and school obligations, we have not traveled a whole lot yet. We try to find something fun to do every weekend, whether it be swimming, a local attraction, or a walk along the riverside. We don’t have a car, so any family outing requires a ride in a tuk-tuk. We all enjoy getting together with other MCC team members, whether it be for lunch on the roof at MCC on Fridays, a staff meeting, or a holiday gathering. Another great group of people we have gotten a chance to know this year! Most evenings we are all in the house by 6:00 – when it gets dark. So when there isn’t too much homework, we play games. In late August, we went to the beach for a short weekend. In late October, my parents visited, and we took a trip to Siem Reap – a smaller town in the northern part of the country that is the gateway to the famous ancient temple ruins – Angkor Wat. It was SO good to have my parents here. We had a chance to show them our lives here and the visit was just what we needed, coming just a few weeks after Janaya returned home from the hospital. We’ve taken a couple trips into the country – which is refreshing. The city is always busy. Today, Sunday the 20^th – we had a joint English service that included Anglican, Catholic, Assemblies of God and an interdenominational congregation. It was encouraging to look around and see so many Christian people working in Phnom Penh, gathered in one place. After that, we tried Korean food for the first time with friends from Logos, and then had a walk along the riverside. While many of you were getting snow again, we were grateful for the clouds that made the day bearable for a walk!

We will spend one week in Thailand over Christmas break, seeing Janaya’s surgeons for a follow up appointment, and staying at Christian guesthouses in both Bangkok and on the beach. We leave on the 27^th and are all looking forward to it! We have been blessed to experience many new things this year. While the work that Ron and I do is important, I am always so glad that my children will have had such an eye-opening experience, and hope that they will always see the world differently than before.

Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers on our behalf this year. We appreciate your continued prayers for safety and good health, and rewarding work and school. We will be home (in PA) again next July, but the date is not yet set. As we celebrate Christmas in a very different way this year, we also wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Ron, Roseann, Janaya, Austin and Acacia

Recent Birthdays

Three girls in this house have recently celebrated birthdays so I thought I’d tell you a little about them. Traditionally, Cambodians have not celebrated birthdays, as many of them do not even know when their birthdays are. However, that is changing, especially in the city. Wealthy families are known to celebrate with quite elaborate parties. A few weeks ago we knew there was a party in our neighborhood when we heard the western birthday song being played.

Acacia had a big birthday in October. She moved into double digits. There weren’t many things here that she really wanted, so we got a number of small things, and hid them around the house, made clues, and had a scavenger hunt. She always liked that, even in Pennsylvania. Good for us too – we don’t know yet where to buy wrapping paper! She followed clues to find several plastic animals, a hackey-sack like toy that Cambodians play with, a pack of six chocolate milk boxes, her own carton of chocolate ice cream in the freezer, a certificate for an elephant ride at Wat Phnom, and a certificate for her own Facebook account (much to Janaya and Austin’s frustration.) She chose egg rolls for her birthday meal here at home. Later she chose a German restaurant we have found within walking distance of our house. Now, she didn’t choose the place for the food, but for the cats that the owner has walking about. But as it turned out - one of the cats had just had kittens, and it wouldn’t even come out and see us. But the cucumber salad there is just like both of her Grandmas make, and it is wonderful. And she had a brat and fried potatoes (no rice!).

Next came my birthday. I turned 29 (again). It was on a work day. I had planned to go to MCC for lunch on the roof, but alas, it was cancelled. So, I decided to work through lunch to use equipment that later had to be used in a teaching lab. I ended up eating alone, deciding to try a “new” dish at the canteen for my birthday – sweet and sour pork. The meat looked great, but once you got past the breading, it was mostly fat, AND bone. Cambodians eat all of this, but not me. You know, I think sweet and sour pork as we know it is an American dish. Ron got me a beautiful bouquet of flowers – like the ones that would be used at a wedding or funeral here. I also got an orchid, and a certificate for a massage, which I cashed in on today (International Human Rights Day – a national holiday). I’ve never had a massage before, but they are cheap here. I didn’t go for the traditional Thai or Khmer version. I’ve heard they can be pretty rough. We haven’t found a chance to go out yet for my birthday, but I’m going to choose some ethnic food that we haven’t yet tried, maybe Lebanese, or Japanese.

Janaya turned 15 at the end of November, another big birthday. Her gifts were wrapped in the prescription gift bag that we got from the hospital in Bangkok! She asked for art supplies: colored pencils, colored paper and pastels, something to do when there is no TV and someone else is on the computer! Actually, she picked everything out herself. She also got two body sprays from the Khmer store near us, and again, her own tub of chocolate fudge ice cream. Her birthday was on a Sunday and I think the best part of it for her was the two hours she spent Skyping with all her girlfriends from Slate Hill. They had recently sent a package and Janaya opened it in front of them! Later that day, we took a trip out to see the new Logos campus, and then we went to church. She chose Indian food for her birthday, and we tried out a new restaurant downtown. Indian food is so good. We are beginning to wonder what restaurants we will find interesting after we move back to central Pennsylvania! Later that week, Janaya chose ginger pork for her special meal at home. That is one of her favorites. Her birthday will conclude with a Mom and daughter shopping trip for clothes, once end of the semester finals are over. There are 3 indoor shopping malls in town now, but we think we are going to try the new Golden Soriya. It is an outdoor mall, but new and spacious – as compared to the traditional markets – and it has a lot of little clothes shops!

-Roseann

Getting Chemicals in Phnom Penh

As I have written before, the research project I am working on this year involves the use of whole plant parts as reagents in organic synthesis. It is a great project for a place like Cambodia as one can explore the use of a variety of vegetables, bought at the local market, as reagents. Last time I looked, there hadn't been any research of this sort published out of Asia. It is also ideal in that as a green chemistry project, the reaction solvent is water, and there really are no other expensive reagents. The solvent used at the end of the reaction can be recycled and used again. All I needed to start this project was some interesting reagents from a chemical storeroom that could either by oxidized, reduced or hydrolyzed, a couple solvents and the vegetables. (Those will be the only chemistry words in this post.) The project was designed for a place like Phnom Penh!

I had been told there were a lot of old chemicals (Russian era) around the department at RUPP. Well, turns out, most of these are inorganic chemicals, and not useful in my work. Actually, for most of these, there are probably 50 bottles of exactly the same thing - something that was at one time donated or very cheap! In reality, there are very few organic chemicals here. But I did find the one I wanted to use most - the one reagent that would get me started and keep me going for quite some time.

However, I have spent the last several weeks trying to figure out if the reagent really is what the bottle says it is. I've got one new, very useful instrument here that has helped me conclude that this is not the case. I've tried several methods of purification, but none have worked as they should have. With additional interpretation from Anne, back at Messiah College, I have now decided to order new.

Meanwhile, I had ordered a few unique chemicals for my work that would take me further. Here in chemistry, the faculty take a couple trips a year by bus to HoChiMinh City to purchase supplies and chemicals. They went this fall, but alas, I never knew about the trip until the day they brought their "treasures" home. A Dutch colleague of mine ordered his research chemicals through a Vietnamese man in town, and I decided to go that route.

Placing the order was easy. Getting the chemicals picked up has been another. I was given a house and street number for a trucking company here in town. Last week I took a moto ride to this street twice, and looked for the house. (I do not yet find moto rides pleasurable.) The house numbers stopped one below the number I had been given! And best I could tell from the map, this wasn't a very long street. So, even if the numbers were not in order, I should have found it. I walked the whole thing twice!

I even gave my phone to my motodup driver, and he called the place. He wasn't able to communicate with them.

So I asked my Dutch friend again. Sure enough I had been given the wrong street number. And yes, I have no language skills with which to communicate with them. They only speak Vietnamese - no English or Khmer.

Today I got a call on my phone. I recognized the number. The Trucking Company. The only word that was spoken to me was "Vietnam." I'm hoping my chemicals are in. I'll soon be off with one of the national MCC staff, this time in the truck, to pick them up - hopefully to the correct street this time.

Nothing is simple here. Thank goodness for the arrival of my second care package from Messiah College chemistry yesterday! Better than candy and food. They are supplying me with many other things that have turned out to be hard to find in chemistry at RUPP, but not chemicals. Opening the box will be like an early Christmas for me!

- Roseann