DTS Update

Well, I've been in Chiang Rai for a couple weeks now. Because so much has happened, I'll bullet everything again.

- We're about done with our first real week of Discipleship Training School. Last week was an orientation week. It's been really nice to get into the grove of everything!

- There is one month of lectures, 2 weeks of local outreach (staying in the northern region of the country), another month of lectures, another 2 week outreach (again staying in the area), a 3rd month of lectures, ending with a month long outreach.

- For the long outreach, I'm going to be going to Pattaya (somewhat-near Bangkok) to work with prostitutes. I felt like I should be praying about it and then a couple days ago a Thai girl that I didn't know very well told me that she believed God wanted me to go there.

- We have to do work duties here. I had been cleaning the squatty potties (and doing a mighty fine job at it, mind you) but now I've been moved to help teach English. There were so many people interested in learning that I was asked to change duties. We start that for real next Monday.

- There are 35 students, 9 staff, and 2 student/staff. We come from 11 different countries. Half the students are Thai, half are international. 6 of us are Americans -- 3 students, 3 staff. The 'international-ness' of the group has come out at weird times -- like playing basic card games -- everyone has their own version!

- I'm slowly getting to know my roomates -- one is Aussie, the other 4 are Thai. Those girls only speak Thai to me (so, it's taking a little while to get to know each other).

- Pray that I won't get too exhausted -- we start aerobics or running (every-other-day) at 6:15 a.m. and we get done with our last things at 8:30 p.m.. Now that I am not doing 2 work duties, I do have a little bit of a break in the middle of the day again. As those of you who have experienced Jeri in the morning know, I am not a morning person! Pray, too, that I can still love people at that hour!

- The time in Australia was awesome! I have only made it through 1/2 my pictures but have already found 12 framable/sellable ones! It was great spending time with the family and being able to see the country that I've wanted to visit since I was 3!

- I went back to Chiang Mai on Saturday with a couple girls here so that I could meet up with some family friends who were in town. That really boosted my language confidence again because I was the only one able to speak at all. I bought the bus tickets, talked to the songthaew (taxi) drivers, did little translations throughout the day, and then talked to the songthaew driver all the way back to the base. I had to leave my car at the bus station at about midnight because it had a flat! So, I sat in the front with the driver to give directions. We talked the whole way back!

Well, I think this is enough for one day! Sorry it's been so long since I was last on here!