Home Thoughts From Abroad

The week that I spent in Singapore meant much more to us than simply a visit to a wonderful city.  I left early Monday morning to spend a few days in the Singapore office of Trans World Radio, wondering if I could possibly have a role in supporting the team there, specifically in Project Hannah

 I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the team members, hearing reports of the work in various countries in Asia and trying to gain an understanding of the myriad of tasks that go into developing and airing radio programs.  It was great to finally meet Noelle and Andrew, with whom I have been conversing by email and Skype since April.

One of the major projects that has been identified is the need for women’s health programs in many of the target countries.  I have been given the opportunity to work with Andrew and Serene, who has a background in broadcasting, and focus on developing a Women’s Health program, initially for Cambodia.  This will involve doing the background research on health issues and resources so that we have a thorough understanding of the needs of Cambodian women, developing a framework for the programs, visiting the country to understand the relevancy of the information and to develop networks with those who are already active there, as well as providing background information and ongoing support for the script writers, translaters and broadcasters.

I also hope to work with Noelle in the Human Resource area to assist her with a review of their accountability framework, staff performance development and learning plans, and some training and team building activities.  There is clearly enough work to keep me busy for years to come and I am thrilled to finally have a clear plan in place.

Although I have some real doubts about whether I have the knowledge I need to do this work,  in terms of health care, I have much more than anyone  else currently available.  I also have a large network of friends back home, with much more expertise than I and I fully intend to access all the help I can get.  You know who you are so you might as well start sending me information now!

On Monday morning, Pam will be heading by bus to Singapore to spend a few days in the Trans World Radio office. She is very excited about the prospect of meeting the team members  and seeing first hand the work that goes on there to support Women of Hope in Asia. Steve will be going down at the end of the week to enjoy some R&R in Singapore and we will travel back on the overnight train together.

We would ask that you pray for Pam as she makes this important connection with her ministry partners. This is such a valuable work in many needy countries in the Far East.

We miss our friends at home and of course our kids. We also miss our colleagues (yes, you!) and the kids we have taught. We are grateful for those who remember us in their prayers and in their comments on our weblog. But we also rejoice in the new friends we have met in Malaysia, not only through Taylor’s College (more on them in a later post), but also through church.

We have much in common with Jack and Lalita, who have been very sweet to us since our arrival. They are about our age with two fine college age boys that are both involved in the worship team; one plays guitar and the other drums. (If you think that didn’t require some forebearance as parents keep in mind that there are no basements in Malaysia!)

We also share a love of Indian food and they have taken us to some really excellent places to eat where the ambience was charming and the food was outstanding. But Jack has this habit of grabbing the check – apparently this is some kind of national pastime – and not letting me pay. From what I have read you have to wait until the other guy is distracted or in the washroom, then you go up and pay before he can. Now I know this, I will be better prepared next time, Jack! Okay-lah?