Today we met at Baan Kanoon at six in the morning and went to a temple at the bottom of the mountain. Every morning around 6 or 7, monks pace the streets with bowls to receive offerings. It's an opportunity for people to gain merit, which means to do good things as mentioned in religious doctrine. Thais' way of life from birth to death is so familiar with making merit. Once they give the monks food, flowers, joss sticks, or candles, the monks will bless them. It was so sad to see how many people came to be blessed by these monks. I even watched one farang (white tourist) being taught how to pray to the Buddha by their Thai friend. What stood out the most was the fact that none of these monks looked happy. No one did. I blinked away the tears and started to prayer walk.
After a quick nap, we met our next door neighbor for lunch, Nikki. She is a 74 year old Thai woman we met in the bakery beneath our apartment. When we all got together she smiled and said, "I'm so happy! All of my daughters are with me now!"She paid for our lunch and tea afterwards as she told us about her life. She told us that it didn't matter if you were a Christian or a Buddhist as long as you are a good person. As much as it hurt to hear, we knew that we needed to listen to her and pour out the love that He has poured into us. We trust that God will guide us in our friendship with Nikki so that we can share our faith with her. She took us to her apartment and showed us many pictures of her friends and family. We are excited about this friendship and happy to keep her company.
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