Bees! (Grandpa's Perspective)

Wasps at Nam Nao National Park - August 2017
Introduction:  I am Grandpa.  I was once Daddy, and before that I was Uncle William, then William, then Bill, and way before that I was Billy.  Identity can be confusing, because inside I am just the same old me.  When I am with my Daughter's Family I am Grandpa, Daddy, and William - depending on who is addressing me and my role at the time.  In this story, I will be addressed as Grandpa, which means everyone is who they are from the perspective of the Grandchildren.  So, here I am, Grandpa telling his story about "Wasps at Nam Nao National Park".

We had driven the five, or so, hours up North from Ayutthaya (sp?) to Nam Nao National Park.  Grandpa (65yrs), Grandma (60yrs), Daddy (37yrs), Mommy (34yrs), Eris (10yrs), Meriel (8yrs), Hollis (6yrs), Simeon (4yrs), and CallaOlivia (8 months) all looked forward to the 6 night stay in a jungle cabin.  We had stayed 3 nights in a jungle cabin before at Kao Yai, but this time we really wanted Mommy to get out of the city noises and replace them with the peace that comes with the sounds of the jungle.  

This day we were on one of Daddy's long walks.  Daddy usually chooses a goal and we go for it, and nothing can stop us, except wasps and leeches (another story).  Daddy had decided on two walks, and it Grandpa's duty to follow-up in the rear so tigers and elephants don't eat the Grandchildren.  I do not allow Grandchildren to walk behind me because that is how the wild animals pick off the young and weak - of which I am neither.  I am at my peak in my fierceness, evidenced by how few tigers and elephants show up on my walks.

So, Daddy says we are going to do two walks, the loooooong one first and the short one second.  Of course I had my compass and flashlight in my backpack, along with Pepsi and water, bug repellent, sunscreen, flipflops, extra shorts, longsleeved shirt, extra cellphone batteries, and plenty of double A batteries for my flashlight, just in case we got lost.  I never was a boy scout, but I am prepared.
And here we are on the long walk through the Jungles of Nam Nao where, as usual, the trail comes to a fork.  When we get to these forks, we have a system.  Daddy goes one way and Grandpa goes the other way and then we (hopefully) come back and tell the other what we have found - like if the trail keeps going, or it is an animal trail where tigers and elephants are waiting, or if we indeed have found the correct human trail.  I knew if we stayed on the ridge we could turn around and find our way home.  In this case Daddy goes left and Grandpa goes right, staying on the top of the ridge.  And this time, Daddy had taken (almost) 4 year old Simeon with him, and I/Grandpa had gone ahead with the ones who usually lag behind with me and Grandma, Meriel and Hollis (who I dropped off with Grandma).  10 year old Eris usually takes care of whoever needs her, so in this case she had been with Grandma and Hollis (6yrs), while Meriel (8yrs) was with me.  Mommy had CallaOlivia (Baby-in-Arms) and she always keeps up with Daddy, but in this case she and Grandma and Hollis were waiting at the Fork in the Trail.  Grandma, never wanting to waste time, decided to make an big arrow out of logs to point the way back home.  Now, if she had asked me (which she usually doesn't), I would have told her that this was not necessary because the trail is obvious since we are following the ridge.  But, Grandma made her Log Arrow as Grandpa, Meriel and Eris blazed the trail ahead.  I hear Daddy’s call to me that I am on the right trail as the other one was obviously an animal trail.

 "Whew", I was thinking, "this is indeed a long trail, I wonder when we will turn around?" 
 Now Meriel and Eris were walking behind Grandpa and we were way ahead of the "slowpokes" :)  and we were making really good time.  Of course I was looking out in the distance through the jungle, trying to see tigers and elephants, and I have to admit, while we didn't see any, we certainly smelled some big wild ox and even saw their fresh footprints.  And then we would also see occasional footprints of the deer as well - but no elephants.  I honestly did not expect to see any tigers, but the Visitor Center did have impressions of Tiger Footprints, and a clear plastic box of Tiger Poo, so one never knows.  So I was seriously looking for elephants, wild ox, and maybe even a silly monkey (we knew how to deal with monkey attacks by throwing one peanut-butter and jelly sandwich to the pack of them and letting the fight over it as we ran away).

So, here we are, just happily minding our own business, with me up front and Meriel right behind, and she and Eris just chattering away, when all of a sudden, there was screaming behind me!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I turned to see Eris running back on the trail and Meriel running towards me.  I turned from Billy the explorer to the fierce Grandpa in action.  Somehow I threw off my pack, ripping out the longsleeved shirt, throwing off my hat, and was beating the wasps off of Meriel with my shirt.  Yes, my Granddaughter was being attacked by wild beasts!!!  And I was attacking them ferociously. 
At this time we were about 30 feet from the hive and the wasps were just swarming all around us, but somehow we were making real headway as we moved even further from the nest and the wasps were not resisting being knocked away.  I felt a sting in my right shoulder and awaited more when all of a sudden they were gone and I had a crying little girl who I examined carefully and found free of wasps.  Daddy then came and swept her into his arms and took her back to the main group.  Hmmmm …  Well, I was wondering what would turn us around from that loooooong walk.

I carefully recovered my backpack which was close to the swarming nest, but they didn’t seem interested in chasing or stinging me, but they were still swarming all around me.  I couldn’t find my hat and I determined that I was not going to leave without it.  Meriel’s camera was right in the middle of the swarming nest and so I started looking for a long bamboo stalk to pick it up by its strap.  Daddy showed up then and told me that he had grabbed my hat when he picked up Meriel.  It was obvious that everyone was doing OK in Mommy and Grandma’s arms, so the two of us found a long bamboo stalk and recovered her camera.  We amazingly didn’t get stung and the wasps were not at all interested in the camera.  We took a good look at the swarming nest and saw that it was about a foot off the ground on a small cutoff stub of a tree on the edge of the trail.  A human trailmaker had obviously cut the small tree off and unfortunately for everyone, including the poor wasps, the wasps decided it was a great place for a nest.  I kinda wanted to get out my camera and get a good picture, but I kinda did not want to get stung anymore, so we just took a good look and left the wasps alone.
So now Daddy and Grandpa had returned to the Group for our hike back, but we found the Group in disarray because Eris and Hollis had ran off back down the trail.  Grandma had called after them to stop, but the wild animal instinct in them was so great that they had just run and run and run.  So Daddy ran after them, frantically calling their names, “Eris !!!  Hollis !!!!  Eris !!! Hollis !!!”  Grandpa was calculating how long it would take to get a search party out.  I remembered all of the Search and Rescue gear at the Ranger Station, and saw all of the soldiers there in their gear for the Celebration of the Queen of Thailand Birthday, so I knew that, if we didn’t find them soon, the soldiers would be swarming the jungle in no time.  Grandpa, Grandma, Mommy (with CallaOlivia), Meriel, and Simeon were walking back when we came to Grandma’s “Arrow in the Trail”.  Mommy remarked how bad Eris’ sense of direction was, but that she was glad that she was with Hollis because 6 year old Hollis has an excellent sense of directions.  Grandma remarked that hopefully they had remembered her arrow and followed it.  

Mommy couldn’t just abandon her children to the fates, so she and CallaOlivia took off, leaving Grandma, Grandpa, Meriel, and Simeon following behind, as we heard the distancing cries,  “Eris !!! Hollis !!! Eris !!! Hollis !!!”  We listened carefully for the girls answer back, but heard only forlorn silence.  We had hoped the girls’ wild instincts had not sent them running down some animal trail off into the jungle, but hoped and prayed that they had found and stayed on the main trail.  We also kept, in our hearts, that they would wait, about a kilometer away, at the top of the Falls for us.  Somewhere along the long trek we heard the girls voices joined with their parents and relief flooded Grandma and Grandpa.  

We found Daddy and Mommy (and CallaOlivia) sitting with Eris and Hollis on the top of the Waterfalls.  Eris’ swollen foot was soaking in the cool water.  She had been stung once.  Turns out that she had run away from the wasps and told Daddy, “BEES!!!!” and Daddy had told her to “RUN !!!”, so Eris ran, grabbing Hollis along the way, and ran down the jungle mountain.  Grandma had called out after her, but Eris held true to Daddy’s imperative, “RUN !!!”  When Eris came to Grandma’s Arrow, she followed it faithfully.  Grandpa just chuckled when he heard this as Grandma beamed proudly.  So we gathered ourselves and we prayed together thanking the Lord for safely bringing us back together and then we walked down to the place which indicated, “Short Walk and Loooooong Walk” and we took the short walk to the base of the falls and we all went a splashing in the beautiful tropical falls pouring itself into the refreshing pool.   We found some Thai young people there as well and they played in the water and gave us their beautiful smiles as well.

Did I mention that I had put my swimsuit into my backpack?  Well, Mommy gave me permission and I changed into it and jumped into the water and even splashed a Thai boy with my cupped hands.  Grandpa also decided to tell them, warn them, about the wasp nest and what had happened to Meriel.  So Grandpa skillfully re-enacted the whole scene to them as his family just laughed and shook their heads.  Grandpa was very sure that they understood his sign language, especially the part with the wasp wings buzzing around.  I mean, doesn’t everyone understand flapping hands held about shoulder height as the wings of insects?  Grandpa could hardly wait to tell them, at the Ranger Station, about the wasp nest.

Bees! (Eris's Perspective)

Nam Nao National Park is situated five hours away (by car) from the town of Pratunam Pra-in in Ayutthaya province, Thailand. Our family planned to visit the park while my mother’s parents were visiting. We all eagerly awaited the six nights in a ‘jungle cabin’, though we were not looking forward to the long drive there.

                Everything worked out as planned, and we arrived at Nam Nao safely.

We had many adventures during our week-long visit, but the third day brought an especially exciting one…

                We had chosen that particular day to go on a hike to Sai Thong and Hao Sai Waterfalls. We walked along happily. When the path forked, we went to the left towards Sai Thong Waterfall. After we came back from Sai Thong, we would take the right to Hao Sai.

                Not long after, the path split again. We paused to figure out which way to go. Mommy passed a bottle of water around, while Daddy explored the path to the left, and Grandpa tramped down the path to the right.

                It didn’t take them long to decide which was the correct path: the one on the right.

                We continued along the trail, Grandpa in the lead with me close behind and Meriel taking up the space between the two of us. They rest of the group lingered behind.

                We walked along leisurely, enjoying ourselves despite the heat of the day. We stopped occasionally to take pictures of a brightly colored flower, or large rock.

                I was relaxing, never suspecting that something exciting would happen, when, all of the sudden, Meriel screamed!

                I felt something sting my foot and saw bees swarming all around her. I didn’t get more than a glance; I just ran back to where the other adults were lingering.

                “BEES!” I screamed as soon as I came close to them.

                Daddy threw off his backpack. “Run!” he shouted.

                Hysteria gripped me, and I RAN!

                I paused momentarily to tell Mommy, and Grandma, “BEES!” point at my sting, and grab Hollis’s hand.

                “Daddy says run!” I cried. And she ran! I was close behind.

                After a few minutes, she dropped behind to let me take the lead.

                “Are you okay?” I asked, certain she must be tiring.

                “I’m fine,” Hollis assured me.

                I was dizzy with fear, though now I realize that the bees wouldn’t have followed me farther than a hundred meters. I had had a terror of bees since I was five years old. I had been walking along the sidewalk behind my mother, and accidentally disturbed a bees nest. I remembered my mother saying, “Come on; they won’t hurt you.” And I remember the next moment, three bees were attacking me.

                Perhaps some of my fear of bees also came from the memory of the night that my sister found a dead wasp in her bed. She had whimpered, “My arm hurts,” and I had gone out of our room to inform my parents. I don’t remember, now, but I’m sure I was shocked when we discovered it was a wasp in Meriel’s bed!

                Or maybe it’s just how I am: afraid of bees.

                Somewhere along the path, we stopped.

                “Which way now?” I asked Hollis, hoping she would have some idea.

                “I don’t know,” said Hollis with wide, frightened eyes.

                I went over to the wooden picnic table that decorated the clearing, and stood up on one of the logs surrounding it, to escape from bugs (though they might have been able to follow me up), and to catch my breath while I looked around in order to figure out which way to go.

                Not seeing a clear trail leading from the clearing, I got down from the stump and wandered down to the end of the expanse. That was when I saw the bamboo sticks in the shape of an arrow, pointing down a… clear trail! I had forgotten about the marker that Grandma had made on our way!

                “Hollis!” I called. “I found the trail!”

                The little girl had followed me slowly, and now she ran the last few feet to where I stood.

                “Hollis, see!” I cried, “Grandma’s arrow!” 

                Hollis didn’t say “Oh!” out loud, but the look in her eyes said it.

                Without another word, we continued running along the trail.

                We ran and ran and ran and ran and ran.                                                                        

                Normally I would have had a terrible stitch in my side before we had gone even a quarter of the way, but my fear of the bees had created an adrenaline rush, and so, after the whole kilometer that Hollis and I ran, I wasn’t even panting.

                We were on the lookout for a big tree that we had seen on the way up the mountain, but either we missed it, or it was farther down the trail. We stopped finally at the top of a waterfall (a noticeable landmark that we had crossed (it was mostly rock with only a small stream of water) on our way along the trail). I looked at the place we had crossed the stream before.  A small ledge jutted out over the foot-wide stream of water.

                I picked up Hollis and tried to swing her over. If I hadn’t been thinking of the precarious drop from the top of the falls, I could have done it easily, but I was thinking about that. My foot slipped. Just one inch, but it was enough to make me drag Hollis back to the other side.

                “No,” I said, my voice loud, and firm, “I can’t take you across. It’s too dangerous. I shouldn’t have even tried.”

                My heart was pounding violently. I thought of what could have happened if we had slipped all the way down the falls. I looked at Hollis.

                “Why don’t you stay here? I’m going to the other side of the stream to the place where we dipped our feet in before. Cold water is good for stings.”

                Hollis nodded. Her eyes were still wide with fright. She sat in a little, huddled heap as I stepped across the stream.

                I removed the sandal off my left foot and swung my foot in the cold water. It felt so nice… so comfortable, on my hot, stinging skin. I half-relaxed, giving myself time to calm down. I was still too worked-up, though, to think about how my parents, and grandparents, must be worried.

                I thought of what an exciting story I could write about this adventure. I could tell my friends, “Something happened to me while I was at Nam Nao that I would have thought would have been something you’d just read in a storybook…”

                After several minutes, I thought I heard someone calling.

                I cupped my hands around my mouth, and shouted as loud as I could, “AT THE WATERFALL!”

                I heard the sound again. Taking a deep breath I yelled. “WE’RE FINE, AND AT THE WATERFALL!” 

                Hollis looked up from where she sat. “Do you want me to go?”

                I shook my head. Of course I didn’t want her to go find them, alone!

                A few moments of silence.

                “AT THE WATERFALL!” I screamed again.

                The next moment I saw my father emerge from the forest.

                “DADDY!”

                He rushed towards me. After crossing the stream, and helping Hollis across, he came and sat by me.

                I leaned against him, blinking back tears.

                A few more minutes, and Mommy joined us, carrying my baby sister, Calla, in her baby-carrier. She smiled when she saw us.

                “I was so worried,” her voice cracked. She hugged me. And Hollis.

                It wasn’t long before the grandparents, Meriel, and Simeon joined us.

                Meriel was covered in stings. Nine bees had successfully stuck their stingers into her.

                We all sat there, talking, and resting.

                I told how we had come here and about trying to get Hollis over the stream.

                Then we all told about our experiences with bees.

                “Well, Meriel,” Daddy laughed, “The one good thing about this adventure is that you’ve a good bee story now!”

                When we had all calmed down, we went back and followed the trail down to Hao Sai Waterfall. No one really wanted to finish the walk to Sai Thong Waterfall.

                I looked up at the magnificent waterfall and shivered to think of what would have happened if Hollis and I had slipped down it. I shook those thoughts from my head, in order to enjoy my time at the waterfall.

                There were some Thai young adults playing in the pools at the bottom of the waterfall. (It was the same waterfall that Hollis and I had rested at the top of.) Grandpa went over to them and tried to act out the whole bee story to warn them. He says he’s certain they understood, but the rest of us were, and are, pretty doubtful!

Bees!

Day 3 at Nam Nao was waterfall hike day. Two waterfalls were supposed to be 500 meters from each other, so we figured we could make it to both. We easily found the start of the trail, though we almost missed the turn off because there were no warning signs. The first part of the trail was wide and easy to follow. We quickly made it the 300 meters or so to a sign post pointing right to Haew Sai Waterfall and left to Sai Thong Waterfall. We chose to do the longer hike first, so veered to the left. About 100 meters along, we came to a rushing stream. Apparently, we were at the top of a waterfall, probably Haew Sai. We carefully maneuvered our way on a ledge of stone across the top of the falls. We hiked through a bamboo forest, zig-zagging, crouching under, and stepping over fallen canes. Down a bit, then up a bit, going along the ridge.

By this time, we had hiked more than 500 meters, and I realized that the distance given between waterfalls on the map given at the ranger station was very wrong. I also recalled that the distance on the sign post to Sai Thong Waterfall had been 4 digits, but I hadn't really registered it, because I was so sure it was not a long  hike. I thought the number had started with a 3; Philip thought a 2. Either way, it would be somewhere between a 4-6 km hike to get there and back. For now it was an enjoyable hike on a clear trail, so we'd go for awhile until we were ready to turn around and retrace our steps.

Before long, we came to a point, as is common on trails in Thailand, where it wasn't clear which way the trail went. Philip went one way, Grandpa went another. Soon it was apparent that Grandpa was on the correct trail, so we all trooped that way. Grandma placed some bamboo sticks pointing toward the correct way back. We chuckled, because we didn't think it would be necessary. The trail went down toward a dry creek bed. Grandpa said that this would have been a nice waterfall if there was water in it, but we were certain this wasn't the waterfall we were hiking toward.

The hike went uphill again, and we became strung out. Grandpa was ahead with Eris and Meriel; then me with Calla and Grandma with Hollis. Philip brought up the rear with Simeon. The trail was in the sun and we were getting hot and thirsty, longing for a cool waterfall; but we weren't quite ready to turn around to go to the other falls yet. Suddenly, I heard frantic screaming from Meriel! She is given to panicking over little things, so at first I didn't think much of it. When the screaming continued, I thought she must have stepped in an ants' nest and was having trouble shaking them off. Then the screams were mixed with crying. Eris dashed toward me and shouted, "Bees!" She had a swollen ankle and a wild, frightened expression.

Philip heard Eris and dashed off to help Grandpa rescue Meriel. Eris grabbed Hollis's hand and ran back down the trail. Grandma and Simeon ran a little ways, too. Philip brought a sobbing Meriel to me. No bees were pursuing them, so I called to Grandma and Eris to stop. I saw Grandma and Simeon stop and assumed that Eris and Hollis were right in front of them and had stopped, too. I worked to calm Meriel, made sure that no bees were in her clothes. Her main concern was that she had dropped her camera. Philip went back to get her camera and make sure Grandpa was ok.

After a few moments, I was reassured that Meriel was ok. I glanced over to Grandma to make sure that everyone else was fine and together. I didn't see Eris or Hollis. Grandma said that they hadn't stopped running, even though she had relayed my command, and she couldn't see them. I was reluctant to leave Meriel by herself. Grandma and Simeon walked a little way ahead, until they could see the dry creek bed - no Eris. I told Meriel that Grandma and Simeon would be right there, but I needed to go look for Eris and Hollis. She assured me she was ok. I began to run as fast as I could on the rough ground with Calla strapped to my front in the baby carrier. I thought that any minute I would overtake them. I shouted, "Eris! Hollis!" I noticed many more off-shoots from the trail than I had before. I hoped that Eris had managed to stay on the trail. I didn't hear any response. A couple of times, I smelled a strong animal scent, like an animal had recently crossed the trail. I prayed that the girls would be safe and not get lost. I was thankful that they were at least together.

After awhile, I had to slow down, but I continued to walk quickly, shouting as I went. I had just heard a very faint response, when Philip caught up with me. I couldn't quite tell which direction it came from. After a few more calls, we confirmed that it was still from up ahead. Philip hurried past me, and I waited for the others to catch up. I was so relieved to have heard their voices. I knew that they were ok, and they were at least in the right direction.

It seemed a long time before we were finally all reunited at the top of the waterfall, though it was really only several minutes. Eris had stopped to soak her stung ankle in the water. I gave each girl a huge hug. Eris explained that when he heard about the bees, Daddy had told her to "run!" So she had taken her little sister and ran! She had stayed on the main trail and even used Grandma's arrow. I let myself calm down, release the adrenaline. Certainly exciting, but not in a fun way, to have one of my little girls step in a bee hive and stung 9 times, followed by two of my other little girls off in the jungle by themselves.

We made the short hike down the the base of Haew Sai Waterfall. It was beautiful and calming, the water refreshing. Grandpa swam, the kids splashed in the water and mud. We rejuvenated ourselves for the hike back to the van. When we got back to the sign post, we were unanimous in our desire to NOT go down the trail to Sai Thong Waterfall.

Leeches

Our family had a great time at Nam Nao National Park, but not all our experiences were wonderful. On our first morning there, we got ready to go on a hike nearby our cabin. We had been looking forward to hiking around where we stayed, and not always having to get the in car to drive places. I had read about leeches on the trails, but we had been on so called "leech trails" before at Khao Yai National Park. On that occasion, Meriel and I had each one small leech on us, so I wasn't concerned.

The beginning of all four trails was at the bottom of a concrete staircase through an electric fence. At night, the park official put electric fencing across the staircase to keep elephants out. As soon as we stepped off the staircase, I noticed leeches - little black worms, moving like inchworms, standing on end and waving around for something to latch on. There were a LOT of them! The kids don't own shoes; everyone except Grandpa and Philip were wearing sandals. It wasn't long before I felt squishing under my feet in my sandals. I pulled a leech from between my big toe and second toe. Blood oozed out. The leech tried to reattach to my finger before I could flick it away.

Leeches were climbing on to the kids' feet and legs. Meriel began to squeal. I thought if we could keep moving, maybe we would get fewer on us and could get to a drier area without as many of those tiny pests. Every so often, I couldn't stand it any more and had to take my sandals off and pull out the leeches. Then I would get them off the kids. Simeon began to scream whenever he had one on him. I remembered the "ant hike" at Namtok Samlan National Park (read about that trip here); I did not want him re-traumatized by the outdoors.

Philip looked at me in frustration; I needed to make the decision - push ahead, get over the leeches or admit defeat and turn around. Of the four trails, we had chosen the third longest - 4.5 km. At a normal pace, depending on the difficulty, this would take our family about 4 hours. We had been on the trail for about 10 minutes, I had picked off more than 20 leeches from myself alone. I imagined the hundreds of leeches we would have on us by the end of the trail, the number of times we'd stop to pick them off, how quickly they'd make it past the short legs of the little ones. I didn't feel I could make the kids face something that made me feel squeamish. If it was a matter of survival, then yes, but for what was supposed to be an enjoyable hike, no.

We turned around. Philip carried Simeon. Eris, Hollis, and I dashed ahead. Meriel and Grandma thought that taking big steps and shaking their feet led to fewer leech attachments. We made it to the concrete steps. We all removed our shoes. My sandals were full of leeches but only 3 had managed to attach. They were even in Philip and Grandpa's shoes and had bitten through their socks. Back at the cabin, we found two in Simeon's shorts, so searched all the kids clothes. Fortunately, the kids calmed down quickly once were away from the leech area and had a fun time playing outside around our cabin.

Adventures ready to conquer the leeches!

Later, we were able to purchase some leech socks, long canvas stockings that they cannot bite through. They are also white, so it easy to see them and pick them off. We decided we would not make any of the children hike on a leech trail but would offer it. Eris and Hollis tried the shortest trail - 1 kilometer - with Grandpa and Philip. They successfully conquered their fears. Eris calmly picked of the leeches and threw them into the jungle. Hollis counted 118 on their walk. Not one got through or over their leech socks.

Philip and I, with Calla in the baby-carrier, completed a 3 km hike. The first half was very leechy, and I was a bit squeamish even with my leech socks. The second half dried out a bit and was quite pleasant. I would say I wouldn't chose a location or hike with leeches again, but now we know how to manage with those special socks.

Doll Doctor

I gave my Kirsten doll to Meriel for her birthday this year. When I was about her age, I saved my money to buy the American Girl doll. I sent the money and order in the mail, and she arrived with beautiful braided hair and soft brown shoes. She is now a well-loved, much-played-with doll. When I outgrew her, I lent her to my younger cousins who took her to Japan. Eris took her on some play-dates while we were in the United States this winter. Eris has another of my dolls, Kathy, so I wanted Meriel to have Kirsten.

After we arrived in Thailand, Meriel talked about how she wanted a Kirsten doll. She did not know that mine was hiding in a suitcase waiting for her birthday. We looked online and found that no new ones are being made now, so Kirsten dolls are quite expensive. Meriel especially noted how new Kirsten dolls had their hair braided, and she wanted her doll to have braided hair. I thought that I would just braid my dolls hair before wrapping it.

The afternoon before we were to celebrate Meriel's birthday, I helped the kids wrap her presents for her. Then I got out Kirsten to wrap. Her hair was a tangled mess! There was no way I could braid it. I spent hours gently teasing the knots and making the dreadlocks into kinky hair. Much of her hair was missing or short, but I finally managed two braids which looked much better than the mat she had before. I dressed her in her original outfit, including shoes and socks. Overall, I was pleased to be able to give her to my little girl.

When Meriel opened the bag, a look of delight lit up her face. "It's Kirsten!" I told her that she was my doll. Meriel said she didn't recognize her with her braided hair and different dress. She was so happy to have her. She loved her. We decided to leave her behind when we went on our trip to the jungle, so she would be kept clean and safe. As soon as we got home, Meriel ready to carry her around and care for Kirsten some more.

Yesterday, Meriel and Hollis had tussle over the outcome of a card game. Hollis pulled Kirsten's leg; Meriel held on to her body. I was in the kitchen fixing supper when I heard a wailing, "Hollis pulled Kirsten's leg off!" Meriel and Hollis were both sobbing. I was so upset, I just grabbed Hollis and marched her upstairs to Philip's study. I needed some time to calm down, to comfort Meriel, to mourn my doll. But it would do no one any good to burn the potato cubes or bell peppers. I gave Meriel a quick, tight hug; then finished supper. By the time supper was finished, I was ready to calmly talk to Hollis.

It's hard to tell, but Kirsten's right leg was completely detached.

Last night and this afternoon, I researched how to reattach an American Girl doll leg. Since I'm not a doll expert, I was a bit concerned. I wasn't sure I wanted to take off her head and unstuff Kirsten. But I figured if I was going to do it, I'd better to it right. If I can perform surgery on a human, I should be able to do it on a doll. So this evening, I decided to go for it. With a pair of pliers, a hair band, and some tenacity, I reattached Kirsten's leg. Meriel and I were both pleased with the results; Kirsten was even strong enough to stand!

So now I am a doll doctor, too. Doctor's instructions: Do not pull on Kirsten. But I was able to give Hollis a big hug and tell her that she is more important than a doll. And she better not pull off Calla's leg!

I am Sarah

I've read the whole Bible many times and certain stories and passages many more times. I've also studied much of the Bible on my own, in Sunday school, or Bible studies. I've even taught large portions of the Bible to others, including my own children. Sometimes, I a surprised to discover new meaning in a well-known story. It's often while I'm preparing to teach that I learn the most.

Before Calla was born, Philip and I co-taught the "Heroes of Faith" in Hebrews chapter eleven. Abraham and Sarah are both mentioned in that passage. Now, I know the story of Abraham and Sarah extremely well. I can quote Bible verse, explain details. I've taught the basic outline to children in Oregon, Indiana, and Thailand. I've studied it in depth with my own children. But this time around, God showed me something new, about Sarah and about myself.

I've always thought that Sarah acted foolishly and without faith, tempting Abraham to do the same. Why would she give her maid to Abraham to produce a child? Why not just wait for God? Abraham seemed content to wait, so why couldn't Sarah? Then I thought about myself. I am currently in a period of waiting. I am waiting for God and for my husband. The next step in our life journey depends on Philip finishing his PhD. and on God providing a job for Philip and a place for us to minister. And what is my role at this time? To wait on the Lord, pray for my husband, pray for God's will and our future.

I often find myself wanting to do something to help us along into the next stage of our ministry. I am ready to be in rural Thailand ministering through medicine. I am ready for Philip to have his dream job where he can work away from Bangkok, somehow as a tenure-track professor for a U.S. university. I want to jump in and help Philip with his dissertation - but I'm a natural scientist not a social scientist! I want to start look for the perfect job posting, but it's too early. I want to try to guess the place in Thailand to which God will move us. This must have been what Sarah felt. She knew God had a plan for her and Abraham, but it was just taking too long; her husband wasn't in a hurry. She thought that things might go better if she took them into her own hands.

In the end, Sarah's faith developed and grew such that she conceived and had a son. But she paid a price for her initial impatience. How has God's plan been hindered by my lack of patiently biding? My rushing may result in an upset of God's perfect purpose. In the meantime, I have plenty to do: mothering, teaching, ministering, learning; so that I will be ready when the time comes to move on.

Sister Sarah, I understand your drive to push things along; thank you for the clear lesson that I need to wait in faith and expectation. Lord, thank you for helping me to pursue patience, yet again.