I've just had the news that another team will be coming to Cambodia in January 2019. I think it might be our 15th programme so, as they say, I should be right proud. In the early days I used to wake up in the middle of the night for months, worrying about logistics, meals, people etc., but last year I told Thornin he could do all the paper work with the various Ministries and he mustn't tell me anything until January 7th. In December he wanted to tell me some good news but I refused to listen and I told him to save it until January. It worked well too, because I ended up sleeping well most of the time. Last night I woke up around 2am muttering about something or other to do with the dentists so it's started all over again. I often think of retiring from it all but Thornin and Boroith say we have to continue as it helps the poor people, and it does too.
Wednesday, was a lovely day so I set off for Leduc where Dr. Hans Shih has his dental clinic. I arrived early so I got a few thousand steps in by walking around the block a few times. On my way to his clinic I passed a kiosk offering services such as nail treatment, pedicures, eyebrows and lashes. I was flabbergasted to see an elderly, grey haired man, laying back in the chair, having his eyebrows done. I think it's a lot easier with a comb and a pair of scissors.
I love arriving precisely on time so I walked into his clinic at exactly 2pm. With a name like Hans I was expecting a Teutonic type of chap but he turned out to be a slight Asian from Taiwan. I'm sure we're going to get on like a house on fire as he says he's laid back, easy going about food and not a bit finicky. If the rest of the team is like Hans it's going to be good. On the other hand, I've never had a 100 per cent perfect group so I'll have to be ready for anything.
We chatted for half an hour about the programme and what I expected from him and he from me. I'll send them blurbs about culture, the programme, budget etc and I hope the members read it. Most of the time I can tell people haven't read anything but this year one person was honest enough to say, "There was too much!"
After talking with Hans, I set off for Rimbey to spend the night with the Stemos. I decided to dawdle along the secondary roads rather than the main roads and naturally I got mixed up. I finally decided things weren't right and I turned around to try another way; if I'd gone further ahead I'd have ended up in Pigeon Lake. It covers almost 100 sq km so it took me ages to work my way around it. Luckily Florence and Ken are flexible about cup of tea time so I was able to have one when I arrived. They'd been on a holiday in the Netherlands, including a week of bike riding each day, and that's very good for people in their late 70s.
I always enjoy being with the Stemos because they are good stewards of the land, teachers, into healthy activities, interested in social justice, have visited Cambodia and know my friends. So that means the conversation goes all over the place. At 9pm it was decided we should watch the news and I noticed that most of the time I was the only watching it as the other two were fast asleep. I decided I shouldn't cough or shuffle to wake them up - I must have exhausted them.
