Days 17 & 18: Performances at Peace River and Valleyview

2 days ago

3 min read

After packing up and departing from High Level, we made the lengthy drive to Peace River. The team, as usual, spent most of the journey sleeping, although we did wake up to have lunch on the bus. We had the first two Despicable Me movies play back-to-back, but I think most of the kids slept through them. Once again, photos were taken of the sleeping beauties.

We then took the team bowling, an experience everyone enjoyed. There was a jukebox at the bowling alley, which I essentially put on lock-down as I flooded it with my favorite songs (a lot of Metallica and Iron Maiden) in case any of the kids tried to put on their music. None of the kids bowled particularly well, as many of them would throw the bowling ball from strange angles, but they all had a lot of fun. The best moments were watching the Cambodian adults get into it, with several vocal outbursts happening at big moments.

After bowling, we made our way to Peace River Alliance Church. We did not have a performance their until the next morning, so we used the time to set up in advance. The kids then got a chance to play outside a bit before the church fed us a stir-fry meal. We left with our billets earlier than usual, which meant that several members of the team got to do some fun activities instead of going straight to bed. I was sent several photos and videos from the team the next day.

The next morning saw us take over the Sunday service for Peace River Alliance Church. Because of the auditorium layout, the kids had to approach the stage from the back, which always cracked me up since they would struggle to stay quiet when standing behind everyone, waiting for their cue. Aside from that humorous display, the morning performance saw a powerful testimony from Chentra, who addressed the difficulties of forgiving his father, something which he has not done during previous testimonies. After a church-provided lunch for the congregation, we departed for Valley view, where we would have our second performance for the day.

Valleyview Alliance Church is certainly the smallest church we have been to so far, as our marketplace completely enveloped the front foyer. The small auditorium made for a more intimate performance, as the audience was very close to the dancers. Before our performance, we were treated to the church potluck, which the kids were initially alarmed by since there was no rice present. Judging by the amount of food they ate, I think they were able to manage.

After the potluck supper, we had our performance, which went very well. Despite the small audience size, the people of Valleyview Alliance Church gave generously and made connections with us, making the visit greatly worth it. We spent the night at the church, who provided sleeping mats for all of us. We gave the kids a fun treat, as we were allowed access to the auditorium projector, meaning we could play a movie for the kids as they laid in their sleeping bags. This meant that the kids got to stay up well past their usual bedtime, but we all felt it was a worthy reward for doing two performances in one day.