Family and friends we have been pleasantly surprised to see Christmas represented in Cambodia. We expected very little since it is predominantly Buddhist. We have seen many decorations in the store windows and throughout the town. There are far more Christmas trees on display than I had imagined there would be here.
Let me give you a account of what has been happening this week for us.
Monday we went to Elder and Sister Tuck's home in Ta Khmau for Family Home Evening. They were wonderful hosts. We had a traditional Christmas dinner with turkey, potatoes and gravy, green beans, rolls, jello, gingerbread cookies and pumpkin pie with whipped cream. There was plenty to eat and it was all delicious.
Sister Tuck is a Master Gardener, sang in the Tabernacle Choir for many years, is an avid bird watcher and is knowledgeable in many areas. If she doesn't know how to do something she finds out how and then does it. Elder Tuck is equally talented, although he never sang in the Tabernacle Choir. I have stood by him when he sings. He has a beautiful voice. Elder and Sister Tuck are truly a great team. Sister Tuck thought ahead prior to coming to Cambodia. She packed red hot candy hearts from the USA knowing that she wanted to make gingerbread cookies at Christmas time. Elder Tuck purchased metal in Cambodia to make ginger bread cookie cutters for Sister Tuck.
Part of our Family Home evening entertainment at their home was playing chimes. Elder Tuck searched on line to find directions to make chimes made out of pipe. Cambodian pipe is a different diameter than pipe in the states. The chimes Elder Tuck made were a bit different than the online pattern. Nevertheless he made chimes. Sister Tuck gave us each a chime and on her cue we tapped our chime with a stick dowel. Our job was to "name that tune".We played several Christmas Carols. We actually recognized them.
Elder Tuck read several verses from the scriptures concerning the Savior's birth. We were each given a little yellow sack with Christmas symbols in it.
As you can see our bag contained an ointment, a flashlight, chocolate gold foiled money and the message in a scroll. We all appreciated the service the Tucks did for us.
Sister James and Sister Rhyne helping to put the rolls and cranberry sauce on the table and fill our glasses with ice and water.
Sister Tuck is at the left of this picture. Sister James and Elder James and Sister Rhyne are on the right.
Elder Meier and Elder Capener and Sister Capener and Sister Henderson (in Santa Hat) waiting to sit down. Elder and Sister Capener are the Senior couple I wrote about who served the first 12 months of their mission in India. They will finish their mission in Cambodia. We are really blessed to have them in our area. They have lots to offer. They are eager to get to work.
Tuesday we worked in our office all day. In the morning we had a Church Education Meeting where we discussed how the Institute and Seminary programs are doing in Cambodia. There needs to be more parental support to the Seminary program for the youth ages 14-17. In some areas the students are so spread out geographically that it makes it difficult for them to attend classes. Often students simply don't want to take the time to attend classes. Institute is another challenge. Institute are religious classes for Young Single Adults ages 18-30. For many it takes sacrifice to attend class. Most of these young people serve in three major church callings, have jobs that they work about 35- 40 hours a week at and also attend school. Some are able to balance their schedules and others have great difficulty attending institute. We offer an early morning class each Saturday. The majority of our students seem to be able to attend at that time. I admire these young people who get up early to attend a 6:30am morning class.
Tuesday afternoon we held our Perpetual Education Committee meeting. Dale reviewed the new policies with the committee and we discussed what might be the best way to orient the leadership of the church in Cambodia to the changes. We presented several new names of students applying for loans. Some were put on hold because at the present time they are not living up to their promises.
Wednesday morning Dale and I arrived at our office early. Our names were drawn from a pool of Senior Couples to be interviewed by Salt Lake for feedback on our experiences in preparation for our mission. We interviewed for about an hour. We were completely honest, hoping that what we had to say would make the missionary program for future Senior Couples better. Hopefully the other Senior Couples interviewed also offered honest feedback. This survey will only be as good as the honesty of its participants.
Thursday should have been a routine day at work, but it was my turn to teach institute on Saturday and we were also asked to give talks in Sacrament meeting on Sunday. Instead of spending time doing phone calling I spent the day preparing for my talk. We also had a few students visit us at the office.
Friday was a repeat of Thursday.
Saturday morning we taught our institute class at 6:30am. We worked in the office until 10:15 and then went to the mission home to speak with the district leaders from all of Cambodia and Vietnam about the changes in the PEF program. The district leader from Vietnam would like to have PEF offered to his members but unfortunately his country at the present time will not allow us to do business there. As Dale and Sameth introduced the changes, several questions were asked. We hope the leaders will be able to help us help the PEF applicants prepare better in selecting their fields of study. We had one student this week come to our office who has changed her major twice and also her school choice. This is after she has already received approval and the money is available for her. We attribute this to poor counseling with her prior to coming for a loan. She is one of several students with similar stories. When young people come to us unclear on what they want to pursue for employment they get discouraged and withdraw from school. The student then has debt and no work skills. Not a good situation and definitely not the purpose of the PEF program.
Saturday one of our PEF applicants came to see us. He has received a Bachelor Degree to be a teacher. He paid for his education himself. He has requested a PEF loan to pursue a Masters degree. He wants to attend school in Phnom Penh. He is studying to be a University teacher. His education in Battambang limits his job choice to Battambang. Receiving his Master degree from Phnom Penh opens the doors for him to be able to be hired at any University in Cambodia.
We had a conversation with him concerning the opportunity for scholarships in this country. He said that scholarships are only offered to graduating high school students. The scholarships are often given to a student who has connections with someone in higher authority. Grades and accomplishments are not necessarily a factor in receiving a scholarship. Scholarships are often offered as a way to fill desks at less desirable schools to create the appearance that the institute offers a good education by it having a large enrollment. A good education from these institutions is not necessarily the end result. Unsuspecting students that can pay tuition without loans and scholarships apply to these institutions believing they will get a good education. They see that the school has many students attending. Unfortunately the seats are filled with students that without connections would not be able to make it into a college. The scholarships are given for the soul purpose of making the school look popular. This leads to graduates that can not pass the tests necessary to get the good jobs. These institutions give the appearance of offering quality education but don't.
The above article is not related to the corruption in the schools here. Dale and I got a chuckle out of the wording to the title of this article. It reads as if corruption is something to be proud of..hmm
Sunday we spoke in Sacrament meeting. Being the Christmas season allowed us great topics to speak on. I was asked to speak about Christmas traditions that bring us closer to our Savior. Dale spoke on the importance of both giving and receiving. There was a good feeling as we attended church today. We spoke at the International Branch. It was enjoyable to be among people that speak English.
Sunday evening we helped with the practices in preparation for the Christmas Concert that will take place next week. All of the church branches in Phnom Penh will participate in this event. It is open to the community. We hope it will be well attended and have a good response from those that attend. Tonight we worked with the people that will represent the Nativity.
The concert will be performed in the cultural hall at the North District Center. It will be done on a stage. Hopefully next week we will have pictures to share and good things to report. The members have never done anything like this on such a large scale before. They have been working very hard to deliver a wonderful evening to honor our Savior and let their community know what we believe and who we represent.
Our Prophet President Monson counseled, "Christmas is what we make of it. We can ensure that Christ is the focus of our celebration. We can establish our own traditions to capture the spirit of Christmas.
May you have a wonderful week filled with happiness.
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