This past weekend was my first time to stick around Chok Amnuay and it came with new discoveries. I learned that every Saturday night my town has its own night market, although I didn’t go. I took Saturday to go to NKP for the day to run a few errands, one of them to pick up my first package from Mom, Dad and the Floyd’s. I didn’t return home in time to catch the market because it was closed once I had dinner with my family. My family also has an awesome little roofed porch, typical of Thai families, in their back garden. On Sunday afternoon they got me all set up with a mat, pillow and lounge chair so I could take a nap. I went home got my book and journal and had a popcorn (relaxing in Thai- my new favorite Thai word) afternoon.
Sunday I woke up and went to the Catholic Church in my town. I was told that it started at 9:00, 8:30, and 8:00. So I chose to go at the earlier time to make sure I didn’t miss the service. As it turns out, I was late! Not sure what time everyone got there but I stumbled in thinking, “ut oh, I wonder when this started, maybe 7:30.” I walked in and many women pointed to the open seats where I could sit. I found my seat and settled in only to wonder, “where is the priest?” I spotted his feet after a minute or so. He was sitting behind a wall big enough to hide his body, minus his feet, from the congregation. I only noticed him once I saw a person walk away from where he was only to be followed by another person going up to the wall and kneeling. From then on I quickly discovered that people were taking turns going up for confession, meanwhile the rest of us said the Rosary. I kept hearing Maria repeated over and over again and once I said a “Hail Mary” myself and the timing for when I would say “Mary” was right on with their “Maria”, I realized it was the Rosary. Confession is not done like this at home and even if it was no one would get up in front of the entire town to go whisper their confessions to the priest. But here in Chok Amnuay it is the typical process of mass. I saw many of my students there and they too went up to the priest to confess their sins. (Some of them are my little stinkers in class, maybe they were confession about not being the greatest student for me and that they will be better in class for me.) I feel like seeing about 8-10 students there was a really neat experience. It was a silent exchange between us through our eye contact that instantly brought us closer together. We are such different people yet we believe in and live our day to day lives with the same teachings and practices of how to live out each and every day of our life.
Back to the mass itself. . . At first, before finding the priest and hearing the people reciting prayers and not having a clue what was going on, I really thought the mass was going to be completely different from home and I really worried about what I had gotten myself into. I had also seen a table at the back of the chapel with a lot of food on it and kids kept going up to it adding a piece of fruit here and there or an adult shuffling the baskets of food around. Keep in mind each time I have gone to a Temple for a Buddhist ceremony we have always brought some kind of offering. I felt terrible I didn’t bring anything or hadn’t even though to bring anything to share, thinking that the food was going to feed the priest. So the start to my first Catholic mass experience was pretty stressful.
Once the Rosary was completed though the mass began, at least the mass I am familiar with. Although I didn’t understand a word of what was said or sung I still, for the first time in Thailand, was experiencing something so familiar to me and a piece of home. Going from stressed out because I didn’t bring an offering and not recognizing what was going on to finding myself back home in my comfort zone made me overwhelmed with emotions that I found myself blinking back tears through the first part of the service. There was even one song that I recognized the tune of and was excited to be able to hum along. Of course I was able to recite the prayers to myself in my head as I knew they came up throughout the mass. It was this service that made me feel more a part of the Chok Amnuay community. Just like my little mass going buddies at SMC became a community I could count on, I think that the families I see at mass here will become a support system too.
The priest is young and very animated. I just wish I understood Thai because I think his homily was full or interesting points. His hand gestures and animation had me focused on him the entire time and I could tell the rest of the congregation was as focused on him as I was. I met Paw Tok at the end of mass and he travels to the Chapel every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. He knows a little bit of English and was very welcoming to me. He also apologized for asking “are you Catholic” before he gave me the Body of Christ, it was really cute actually.
After mass a wonderful lady came up to me, Ma Young. She has a 17 year old daughter, Beam, who I met as well. Their English is pretty good and they really are educated people and aspire to learn English. The daughter really wants to do an exchange in New Zealand but doesn’t have the money. They do not live in Chok Amnuay they were visiting Ma’s parents who live across the street from me. We exchanged phone numbers and hopefully some weekends they will come to my house and I can teach them English. The reason I got to talking with them is because they asked me to stay and eat breakfast with everyone in the Chapel. Going back to the beginning of my story, this is why all the food was put on the table. They brought all the food and during the blessing of the Eucharist the food for breakfast after mass was also blessed. I had eaten breakfast before church so I was full but still enjoyed sitting with them and chit chatting. They are such a warm and welcoming family!!!
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