Daam Naa

Me with PA Gai's dad, Boo, in the background

6:23 am Sunday morning. Ring Ring Ring. . . “Who could be calling me this early in the morning? Leave me alone don’t you know I’m sleeping?” I roll over and look at the phone. Phe Toy, “Do I answer it or not? Answer it, NO, answer it, I don’t know. Ok” I answer the phone.

“Sa wat di ka Phe Toy. Sa bai di mai?”

Phe Toy, “Sa bai di. Lita (that’s me), today we will plant rice. You come to my house” (Of course all said in Thai).

“Today Rita go to Nakhon Phanom today to see Heather. I call Heather and ask, ‘I go house Phe Toy?’”

“Ok. Bye bye.”

I text Heather not expecting a response but of course I get one immediately and she was understanding of the opportunity I had.

I call Phe Toy again, “Phe Toy I come to your house.”

“Ok Lita, you take bus.” Every other time I have gone to her house, other than my parents visit, she has picked me up. So, taking the bus to her house was going to be an adventure.

“Shirt what?” I ask not knowing what I should wear for a day in the field.

“Shirt not beautiful” responds Phe Toy.

“Not have”

“OK, I have. . . Bye Bye”

 I skipped the entire plan of going to see Heather but first to church, knowing God wouldn’t mind if I was going out to embrace my Thai identity a little bit more. I raced around the house packing an overnight bag while shoveling the usual morning breakfast of Corn Flakes and banana into my mouth. Less than an hour later I was out the door and walking to the bus. It must have been what I was supposed to do because I waited for the bus for no longer than a minute before it came, the minimum I have ever waited has been 15 minutes. 

8:11 I am dropped off at their street and walk to Phe Toy’s house, greeted by Owen. WOW, not even 2 hours after I wake up I am already at their house ready for the day. Phe Toy immediately shuffles me into the house. Big hugs from Donah and Phe Toy gives me some not beautiful clothes. 8:25 ready to go to work. Phe Toy says, “Phe Toy not plant rice.” Pointing to her throat where she only had major thyroid surgery about 2 months ago. “Gaeo, Owen, Donah go study English in Sakhon Nakhon” So, Phe Toy walks me across to the other family house and points to PA Gai’s father, the only person I know way out in the field. I think to myself  “You mean I walk out there alone?” “Ok” I tell Phe Toy as I hand her my camera to take pictures of me walking out. “See you soon Lita, Phe Toy go take shower and come out to take more pictures. “Ok” I respond and start on my walk out into the hot and open field.

 

Me with Phe Toy

I start getting in my sweaty, bent over, head rush rhythm figuring out a quick way of mushing the rice deep into the mucky muck and my thoughts drifted away. “I can’t believe Phe Toy called me and all along when we have been talking about doing this for months I thought we would go out with the family. Really maybe all they want me for is cheap labor? They have given me a lot so I guess it’s the least I can do.” My thoughts drift in another direction “am I doing this the right way? I feel like I am breaking  the wick of the roots each time I shove them with my thump into the ground. I can only imagine Boo coming by later on asking me to unplant all the rice because I did it wrong. I feel like I am dad as a little altar boy smashing the wicks of the candles after mass just to get to the donuts before my friends.” Back focusing on my job “Eew, is that a little silver dead fish.  Oh gosh, don’t look at it just keep going. I never have to do this again and I am really getting the experience. Man I can’t move, the mud has eaten my foot.”  

my pants falling down

I try to pull out my foot and with it my pants are pulled down a little almost causing the elastic waist to reveal my undie covered bottom to the rice fields of Thailand. “What’s gonna come eat me?” Now I’m seeing little dead floating worms too. “Zach had a cobra at his house the other week, is a cobra going to come bite me? Do those little grey crabs that they love mashing into their food live in here? RITA, seriously, just concentrate on what you are doing. NO more thinking about what is going to come eat you. Remember you asked to do this.” I keep on working one bushel down, a quick water break and part way through another bunch. “Ok, when you finish with this bushel take a break and maybe head in. . . but Phe Toy must come soon to take pictures!” Within minutes Phe Toy has come to document the 2 hours of work and how much mud I am covered in. Relieved by her presence, she plants a couple of sprigs of rice and when the bushel is complete we go inside.

Look how beautiful my row is and how much I planted



 I am exhausted after the morning of work in the sun and am thankful I get to escape to the air-conditioned house for water, lunch and an afternoon nap. I hope I never have to plant rice again in my life, two hours is more exhausting than a day of skiing. I am grateful for the experience and proud of myself for wanting to give it a try and being brave to jump on into the mud. I will however be eternally grateful for every little grain of rice that I shall ever eat and know that lots of sweat and hard work was put into growing that one little speck of what seems like nothing but the food that nourishes so many people around the world. 

 

Me with Phe Toy's Dad



one, two, tee, plant. one, two thee, plant!

So I march out into the field and meet up with Boo, PA Gai’s dad. He waves me to come into the mucky water/mud and leave my flip flops on the edge. “Ok Rita you can do this, just step in and don’t think about what can eat you. Try not to concentrate on the awful smell that’s worse than the smell of spring mud on the playground.”  He picks up a bushel of rice and points for me to do the same. Then shows me “one, two, tee” and shoves the three green onion looking roots into the mucky water. I pick three and do the same. “Verrry goot, Verry goot” encourages Boo and leaves me to my own little section of the field.