Our First Seminar

Yes, faithful readers, we have not written for some time. Please forgive us and rejoice in that our time has been spent preparing for, running and recovering from our first seminar of the year. As Terry and Karen Nutter ad Ron and Chris Hill can attest, we had a good attendance of about 35 people each day. We were secretly thankful that about 15 people who registered didn’t turn up: our mission flat was packed to the hilt as it was.

There were four sessions a day divided between James and Michael, and Terry and Ron. Terry and Ron took the class of 10 – 15 who spoke better English on the first day up in our sitting room. They ha some interesting sessions due to the presence of a Nigerian who diverted the topic by insisting on the Trinity and the Holy Spirit. Meanwhile, James and Michael were doing their best without an interpreter down in the class of 20 – 25.

As always, there was a glitch. Our main toilet on the ground floor started regurgitating its contents before the sessions even began and we had to hastily block the door for the whole day till the landlady could get it fixed. Thus we had troops of people using our private bathrooms, which was fine except for the fact that Cambodians seem to think that after one has finished one’s ablutions one must thoroughly spray the toilet and surrounding area with water. Muddy tiles, wet bottoms and footprints down the hall!

Inconvenience aside, the sessions seemed to be well received and the catering was well-organised (thank you Miriam) and tasty. After the last session on Saturday Chris, Karen, Toby and I took a tuk tuk to Lucky Supermarket to buy soft drinks for the following boat cruise. We picked up Terry on the way (he’d gone to get cash out) and he manfully carried most of the drinks along the riverfront till we found the boat.

In the meantime, James and Michael were organizing all the contacts to be transported to the riverside and had completely forgotten about Terry till I rang to inform them that he had accompanied us. Once everyone had arrived, Michael and I rushed off in a mostly fruitless search for boiled corncob vendors. The dash down the boulevard and back yielded only eight cobs so we commissioned two young men on their moto to buy more while we boarded.To say the cruise was enjoyable would be an understatement. A light breeze off the Mekong cooled us as the remnants of the day slowly reddened and faded over the two hours into the dusty horizon of Phnom Penh. We past fishermen casting their nets like men of old and shanty agricultural communities along the riverbanks with children waving to us and cavorting in the dust. Surprisingly clean (though by no means “safe”), the Mekong next to Phnom Penh is a wide, calm expanse, deceptively narrowed by several islands.Spending our time socially with the contacts, which included a large group of LCDI kids, was immensely enjoyable and entertaining. We would sit and be encircled by several people interested in Australia, our personal life and what we think of Cambodia. I unfortunately set off one waggish LCDI Casanova by asking if he learnt any songs at school. Every ready to show off – the girls call him Ego Man – he puffed out his chest and began to croon “Don’t Want To Be Lonely” as he stood on the bow of the boat. I left him going strong several songs later.

Weary but happy, we ambled off the boat to gather on the esplanade and arrange transportation home. I bargained for a tuk tuk and Karen, Terry, Chris, Ron and I crammed into it. It was a small tuk tuk. I sat on the arm, hanging precariously off the side for the whole trip – most uncomfortable. Arriving back at the flat we realized we were locked out. Happily, the landlady had our key and in the prior hours had got the toilet fixed.

I was exhausted. The next morning I could not even get out of bed. I was suffering from a recurrence of my previous bout of the flu and exhausted from pushing myself to help prepare for the seminar. I ended up staying in bed, coughing and sniffing, with a mild temperature and massive congestion for the next few days. Sadly this meant I missed out on the rest of the weekend and spending more time with the Nutters and Hills. James looked after me very well and I was able to hear the lower room talks from the bedroom – when I wasn’t sleeping. Happily, I was able to participate in the breaking of bread we had on the Monday night.

Apart from my illness, the weekend went swimmingly and we now have some more private session with new contacts to factor into our time. It was encouraging and heartening to have visitors from Australia. I strongly encourage people to consider visiting Jono and Melinda Saxon from Wilston during the latter part of the year. They will be here by themselves (currently) and will much appreciate your support and cheering presence. There is much to do here in Cambodia, both theologically and secularly.