Day 6: Abbotsford performance

Sorry about another late blog post. I seem to have caught a cold which has slowed me down considerably. I will hopefully be over it tomorrow.

------

Something I forgot to mention in yesterday's blog:

My parents (Blaine and Shelly) and I billeted with Doug & Diane Brodland. This was fun for my parents, as they have known the couple for 43 years! It is always fun to see old friends along the trip.

------

The day began with the team visiting the Great Commission Foundation office in Abbotsford. For those unaware, the GCF is Rescue's chief financial partner, as they are to several different charities and ministries. As a show of thanks, the kids performed the stick dance for them within their building. Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the short performance as I was feeling under the weather and needed some rest.

The work the GCF does is of huge importance to Rescue, and it makes me happy to know that the employees at the office got a sample of the performance. I do not they get to interact often, or at all, with the children associated with the charities they aid. A huge thanks to them and all that they do.

------

We then made our way to Heritage Alliance Church to set up for the performance. The kids had a bit of downtime, so they played games on some of the adults' phones, watched cartoons on a tablet, and helped me play Henry Stickmin. An issue that arose was that the kids were fascinated by the church's elevator and needed to be chased away from it frequently.

As I was still feeling a little sick, my parents insisted that I take some rest. This regrettably meant that I would miss out on some of the day's activity and would not have much to blog about. How unfortunate. Instead, here are some observations about each of the kids so far on the trip.

• Kapriel wants to be a policeman when he grows up, and it shows. He found a quarter on the bus and turned it over to me as it did not belong to him. I told him that he can keep it, which he thanked me for.

• Moses has to be the youngest 12-year-old on the planet. He also has the most mischievous smile of all the boys.

• Minea is the group rascal. He often tests what he can get away with and enjoys pushing my buttons. I would wrestle him if he wasn't so fast.

• Yusvae is probably going to be a male model, considering how much he likes posing and running his hands through his hair. He also like pushing my buttons, but thankfully I can catch him.

• Veasna often wants to tell me something, although it is sometimes unclear if it is a question or a statement. I still don't know if he was telling me that Shelly is my mom, or asking is she is.

• Samuel often makes me think that he is troubled, as he frequently has a rather pensive expression. It turns out that he just focuses intently on whatever he is doing.

• Leah is either rather shy or she enjoys giving me the cold shoulder. Or maybe a combination of both. She likes giving some attitude in her pictures.

• Lin is rowdy and often picks on Moses (although he seems to enjoy it). She enjoys staring daggers at me only to switch to a big smile when I move towards her.

• Neang bullies me. No, seriously, she won't stop pinching me. Don't laugh, it's not funny. She won't leave me alone.

• Sreyna is very quiet, but very friendly. She always goes out of her way to wish me a good morning. She seems more interested in arts & crafts than sports.

• Chantha and Chanthy (the twins) are scarily alike and I still struggle to tell who is who. They both have a sweet tooth, and they both enjoy playing sports when they can.

------

The performance at Heritage was quite humorous. For the audience, the show was fine. For the team, it was clear that the kids were a little distracted. It was a reminder that these are children after all. The Praying Mantis dance saw eight of the twelve kids start, with the other four dancing onto the stage to join them, which is not what is supposed to happen. While it was not an obvious mistake, Sany, the dance teacher, was clearly annoyed. I might have laughed a little.

The end of the performance also saw a nice new addition, as Sany and Trakuan were both brought onstage to be acknowledged for their help. Without Sany, the kids wouldn't know how to perform the dances. Without Trakuan, the kids would go hungry, as non-Cambodian food is still largely a required taste for them. The two women are not part of the performance, but are part of the driving force behind it.

While the audience turnout for the performance at Heritage was a little lower than the previous performances, those who showed up made up for it with what they gave. The new sponsorships and donations were higher than what the number of people would suggest, leading to a good night. The team went home to their billets while my parents and I went back to the Brodlands. I went to bed hoping that I would get over the cold. (Spoiler: I don't.)

God bless & Jesus saves.