Finding a new path
Arrived at school this morning, slightly earlier than usual, and watched the students line up on a carpeted area near the indoor basketball courts to give a monk food. The interesting part was that the students removed their shoes and waited in line on their knees at which point they would shuffle forward until they reached the monk. From what I understand, the food is given to the monk in return for a blessing and merit. Merit is the concept that one should seek to build enough merit in their life through good deeds as though filling a large container so that it overflows and positively effects those around you.
Definitely feeling more and more confident teaching the kids. I like the mentality in our English department that every student will pass through the English courses and that we are to support them in any we can throughout the process.
I finally broke down and had breakfast (fried chicken and rice). One of the teachers that sits across from me in the foreign language office invited me out to dinner. We have been talking for the past couple of days and I feel like we are going to get along really well. He is an academic with a PHD from a university in South Korea.
School ended with not much to report. The students were great and are responding in a positive manner to my lesson plans. At 6:00pm I met with the teacher in front of my apartment complex (A5) and we walked together to the open-air restaurant located just around the corner from Lumpini Township. We sat down and I learned he lives approximately three hours away on a traditional Thai farm with his Thai wife and two children. I loved the way he was able to articulate the way one has to function within Thai society and how that correlates to an overall understanding of life. Thai’s are able to embody the Buddha’s teachings by pursuing freedom from suffering as opposed to Christians who seem to pursue the same suffering that Jesus endured on the cross. Family, community, and individuality are interconnected units that function to create harmony which conflicts with Western notions of societal norms. Everything is different and yet it all makes sense. I am beginning to realize nothing is what I thought and all my judgements are based on a narrow-minded path built upon years of religious, political, and socioeconomical bullshit.
Funny story: I was sitting on a blue plastic chair in the restaurant and all of a sudden it collapsed sending plastic bits all over the ground. Needless to say, the patrons stopped what they were doing (talking and eating) and tried not to stare at the Farang (foreigner) lying flat on his back. While lying on the ground slightly dazed, I looked around and not one person was laughing, pointing or making any type of facial expressions that would suggest I had just broken a chair. One Thai male asked, “Are you all right?” and I responded, “Yes, thank you.” The waitress then brought me a metal stool and said in broken English, “You sit here.” I asked the owner of the restaurant if I could pay for the broken chair and she graciously said “No” but joked with me that I had to sit on a metal stool from now on.