The
Lord continues to bless me and I am thankful to Him for his blessing
and to all the people who are supporting my ministry in many ways.
Cambodia recently celebrated it's “Khmer New Year” holiday. Officially it is 3 days, Saturday-Monday, but many take a whole week off. Like everything in Cambodia there was a religious aspect and most had their offering to the spirits out for all to see. Some, like the hotel, had their's in a more secure place (the roof top lounge). This photo is from in front of one of the big “western” style supermarkets and is a small version of what I saw everywhere. It's interesting that everyone offered the spirits soda, usually in cans but here in bottles. Orange Mirinda is a favorite soda here in Cambodia. It made me wonder if the bottles went back on the shelf and I might be drinking soda offered to idols? The fact that a lighter and extra incense is left out implies that someone, a monk or employee perhaps, will come by and light more of it.
I
found it amazing that most businesses, except the restaurants for
foreigners, were closed. In a city that is a zoo seven days a week
it is eerie to see everything quiet and locked up. It can even be
confusing as the city doesn't look the same and the usual landmarks
can be hard to find. The street in this photo is lined with shops.
On any other day their goods are piled on the sidewalk almost to the
road and the road is full of cars and motos. I decided not to join
the chaos down on the riverfront. I don't enjoy the mob scene or the
press of bodies.
I have finally adjusted to Cambodia again. The digestive complaints seem to be behind me and the heat is not bothering me as much. I'm even feeling a bit cold at night when it gets down to around 80 with my AC. This is actually a good thing given it can be around 100 during the day this time of year. Thankfully the rainy season is starting early this year and bringing cooler (90's), if more humid, weather. The rainy season has come early this year it it seems to be bringing more rain than usual.
I've started preaching through a translator at the 3pm service once a month at a Korean-Cambodian church. It's a great opportunity to minister to others while I am studying the Khmer language. This is the same church I was teaching English at when I lived here back in 2005. My goal is to teach Bible and preach in Khmer, not English (or Chinese) and have it translated. This is a lofty but doable goal that requires me to lean Khmer.
After
considering my options I hired a Cambodian young man to tutor me in
Khmer. He was teaching at one of the schools that caters to
foreigners wanting to learn Khmer but now teaches private classes.
The book we are using takes around 300 classroom hours (20 credit
hours) to complete. (about 1 year when combined with learning
reading and writing from a second book.) I'll need to work on
religious vocabulary and learn to speak better than the book will
teach me before I can really Preach in Khmer. I hope to be able to
teach a mixed language Bible study long before I'm fluent in Khmer.
I would do it as a “improve your English and help me improve my
Khmer while studying God's Word” kind of class.
I've been trying to learn to look words up in a Khmer-English dictionary. It's been tough and I look forward to getting some help from a Khmer instructor. My language learning book only lists words in a bizarre, 1970's phonetic system. The dictionaries only list words in the Khmer script. So far it has defied my attempts to unravel. The alphabet has consonants, sub-consonants (written under other consonants in a form that may have some similarity to the main form), dependent-vowels (which go before, after and or over a consonant) and independent-vowels (which stand on the line like a consonant). Over 100 symbols in all. Most consonants have a "a" class form and an "o" class form along with a sub-script form, plus there are consonants in between our consonants (ie: there is a d, t and a td) which are rendered as one of the others in my book. The result is anywhere from 2-6 possible symbols for each consonant sound. I'm also having difficulty figuring out which vowel goes with which sound as the sound of a vowel is different depending on whether it is mated to an "a" or "o" class consonant and there are many that sound very similar! On top of that I couldn't figure out the order at first. Each group (consonant, sub-consonant, vowel, independent-vowel) seems to be in order but I couldn't figure out on my own what their relationship is. Which is to say, even if I have a Khmer-script spelling of the word I have trouble looking it up. And I thought looking English words of unknown spelling was hard. This is brutal. But I am looking up all my vocabulary words so I can work on memorizing them while looking at the Khmer. I'm hoping this will help me learn the 100+ symbols.
I learned how to ask "What do you call that?" this week, or at least I am trying to learn it. In Khmer it is said "that thing they call that what?" and there are two different words being translated as "that" in the sentence and they are not interchangeable. Ouch! Not to mention the modifier comes after the thing it modifies, not before. (ie: the big white house is: house big white and “That thing” is actually “Thing that”) The grammar may be simple but it's quite alien. I guess Greek, Hebrew and a smidgen of German have not prepared me for the adventure of learning an Asian language. Still, I'm having fun amazing the waiters and waitresses I speak to in restaurants and I can give directions to moto drivers when I'm forced to use one. People seem delighted to hear a foreigner trying to speak their language. I have hope I'll be able to communicate in the future. It will take at least a year though, before I can teach in Khmer. My Khmer teacher knows an American who teaches Bible in Khmer but he studied Khmer for a year and a half. He seemed excited that I want to do that.
I have hope but please, do keep my language studies in prayer. It is going to be a long road to being able to teach people about the glory of God in their language but will, with the Lords blessing, be well worthwhile.
