What is a Nomad?

I sometimes wonder if I am actually still any kind of a nomad. Now that I've been in Thailand for 1.5 years, am now living in a swanky apartment in Bangkok, and mostly travel in-country for work I think this can hardly be considered 'nomad'. I am starting to accumulate 'stuff', pay rent and even bought a Christmas tree...my life screams 'permanence'.

Since moving to Bangkok a lot has changed. I fly more often than I bus, I take the train (BTS) or taxi instead of biking everywhere and my house is devoid of ants. (Side note: when I first arrived in in BKK I was feeling 'ghost' anys crawling on my skin, after a month they were gone.) There are an overwhelming number of bars, clubs, grocery stores, restaurants, etc, etc, etc to choose from. I have benefits, and a vacation policy. Oh, and I am forced to know more Thai than in Mae Sot. Itis just enough to tell the taxi where to go or make a purchase but this is more than before. Moving to Bangkok has been a little like moving to a whole other country. It is the biggest city I may ever live in.

Things I've done in BKK that I didn't do in Mae Sot:
*28 day (turned into 56 day) Bangkok Body challenge. (For now, I have biceps)
*Bake!!! I never invested in the proper equipment in Mae Sot and was lucky enough to find an apartment with the working oven in Bangkok. Most homes do not have ovens because baking is not a common form of cooking
*Go out and not know ANYONE
*Take Thai holidays. SAW celebrated some Buddhist holidays, New Years and Songkran
*Go to IKEA. It is exactly the same as the one in Virginia

Life is good but I do miss Mae Sot and my community there. Slowly I am starting to build a community here and re-learn life in the big city.

I hope your holiday season is starting off well!

Special Request

I think that most people received this request over email or facebook, but I just want to make sure I have all my bases covered. If you can forward this on to anyone with an email you can help us to drum up more votes as well. Thanks in advance! 

Dear Friends and Family,

The organization where I work (Social Action for Women at www.sawburma.net) has recently been entered in a contest to win $5000 AUD to support education for children at our Safe House for Orphaned and Abandoned Children. The contest is held monthly and Australian residents can submit a dream in several categories. The dream that receives the most votes (from anyone with an email) will win $5000 AUD to help their dream come true.

SAW's friend in Australia has submitted a dream to send children from our Safe House for Orphaned and Abandoned Children to Thai school, where they can receive a Thai school system education and integrate into Thai society. Please help our dream to win by clicking on this link and submitting your vote. Once you hit 'vote' you will have to give your email and name. Then a confirmation email will arrive in your inbox. Make sure you confirm your vote when you get the email.

http://sunsuperdreams.com.au/dream/view/help-orphaned-children-from-burma-go-to-school

I know that your inbox is probably overflowing and that it is possible you might read this and save it for later. I ask that you take the minute to click on the link, vote, and confirm the vote when the email arrives. Then, please forward this to anyone you think will also take a minute to vote. Only one minute of your time will make quite a difference to Social Action for Women.

Thank you so much for your support of SAW's work!

Cheers,

Katie

They Want What They Want OR ‘It’s Not About You’

On a fairly frequent basis I am reminded of a response that one of the staff in PC Ecuador gave to a volunteer ‘group’ asking for additional monies to fund their stay in Quito. The volunteer group met on an either monthly or quarterly basis to plan a yearly camp for girls in the country and wanted PC to fund them for an additional day (with lodging and per diem). The volunteers were denied after being pretty persistent and the staff member felt compelled to write an explanation in the volunteer-run newsletter. He sent a strong message and reminder to all volunteers when he said “it’s not about you”. In other words, remember why you are here. You are a volunteer and you came to help others without asking for yourself. At least this is my interpretation. As ‘westerners’ I think we are pretty used to sticking up for ourselves, demanding the best, and being persistent. We can justify the need for anything. And sometimes, even though you are aware of the poverty and need around you, it is easy to slip into that mentality. Yes, you are doing a great thing by helping someone else and sacrificing your time and money. But you still feel entitled. Really, volunteerism is necessary. But sometimes we lose our awareness as to what is really important and worth fighting for and why we want to help in the first place. Is it ever truly selfless? Do we ever do anything without expecting something in return, as if it is a right and not a privilege?

The ‘it’s not about you’ speech was echoed recently in a conversation I had with a man who frequently works with volunteers and manages an CBO (Community-Based Organization managed by people from Burma, working on the grassroots level, and usually funded by an international NGO) here. “They want what they want.” He said. “We try to help but we can’t always accommodate the wants of others, which are not necessarily the highest priorities of the organization.” Once again I was brought back to the initial ‘Peace Corps’ lesson.

Now that I have been here for seven months I have a totally different view of volunteers. I still believe that volunteers can make an impact but they must be willing to work with an organization to meet the organization’s needs. After receiving many requests from various parties to volunteer on a short-term basis and knowing how this actually creates more of a burden than a help, I find myself feeling extremely protective of the organization. I don’t believe that short-term volunteers with no skills help the organization more than they burden it. Many don't understand the context (Big Picture) and even try and implement drastic changes that they think are great but in reality are detrimental to efforts for systematic change that has been in progress for years.

A friend recently shared an excellent example. An instance was cited where a short-term volunteer went to teach English at a migrant school.  Several larger and long-term organizations have been trying to standardize the curriculum of of the migrant schools for years to improve the education the students receive. The short-term volunteer found an English textbook he or she really liked and purchased many copies for the school. He or she convinced the school that this was the best option. ***Side note, western English speaking volunteers are all considered to be superior English teachers even if they have no teaching experience***The school abandoned all previous efforts for standardized curriculum (which had probably taken months or years even) and went with the books the short-term volunteer provided. I'm sure this is not the only example out there of a short-term volunteer gone 'innovative'. Good intentions without considering the Big Picture could have been more effective if directed in the right way.

CBOs here (in-line with culture in Burma) are very accommodating and if help is offered they will acquiesce even if the help may not be needed and is actually just a time-suck. Yes, it sounds very harsh! I still believe in short-term volunteering as a tool for education but think that the theory of ‘Do No Harm’ could be applied here. We all have good intentions (most of us anyway) they just need to be applied in the most effective manner. Volunteers and anyone working with a grassroots organization (myself included) need to be aware of how we impact the ‘Big Picture’ of these organizations (big and small) with our presence and actions.

What is really happening on the border...

Please take the time to read the following two articles. Both give some insight into the realities on the Thai-Burma border/ situation in Burma. Even though the recent changes in Burma seem to be quite progressive and the West appears to be plunging in to invest at break-neck speed, there is still a mighty long way to go before those who have fled can go home and real change is made to the way Burma is run.

Sadly the article on the exodus of donors from the border does not highlight the issues of migrants quite as much as refugees. While refugees have a legal  status (at least in the camps) because of a founded fear of persecution, migrants do not. This does not mean that migrants have come to Thailand just for economic reasons, but since the camps were closed to new registrants a few years ago, they just have fewer resources and chances for a new life. That being said, if Thailand decides to close the camps and send the inhabitants home they may all become 'migrants'.

Anyhow, please take the time to read these interesting perspectives that don't necessarily appear so often in the larger media outlets:

http://www.planetnext.net/2012/02/abandoned-on-the-thai-border/

http://www.dvb.no/news/burmese-army-sending-more-troops-to-karen-state/20327

Back in Thailand

Here goes my umpteenth attempt to write 'regularly' about life in Mae Sot. Fingers crossed it will become a habit (again):)

But first...a verbal montage of my time in the West:

*Christmas tree decorating & cookie baking with Mom*seeing Vegas, the Grand Canyon, and Hoover Dam with family*finding a kindred spirit in my Aunt Barb who dared to lie face-down over the skywalk and look into the Grand Canyon, then (even more scary) lie on the pavement with me under the light show in the old part of Vegas*wine tasting and Cookie party with my VA Ladies including 'fast walker' Anna Martin*salsa dancing at Lucky Bar in DC*latino food*DC Gay Men's Chorus Christmas pageant*mechanical bull riding at the National Harbor*Wynne Family Party including Beer Tree* Italian Christmas Eve*pie-tasting/creating*

Really, this is a shortened version. I had an amazing time and was so thankful to see almost everyone I wanted to on this trip. Thanks to everyone whose couch/extra bed I crashed in between Florida, Virginia, DC, Maryland, New York, and Bangkok (for the departure and return).

Since being back in Mae Sot I've been realizing that I need to take more advantage of living in Thailand! Thus, massage Tuesday was born. Sauna Saturday (at the Chinese temple) will be soon to follow. I've never really been a massage person but Mom got me one for my 30th and it as truly the best I've ever had! Other massages have left me feeling beaten (literally) and not at all relaxed. But now I understand why people swear by these things.

If you've been keeping up with the news you've probably heard about the release of many high-profile political prisoners in Burma. This is certainly a step in the right direction, and I've heard many Burmese express their desire to return home one day. However, change is slow and even a positive step like this can be politically motivated. Sadly, such a significant step in the country has also overshadowed the fact that ethnic groups are still being targeted by the Burmese military (the SPDC). While it is an exciting time in Burma, the majority here view the 'progress' with more skepticism than hope.

Finally, I will leave you with a story that has a very happy ending. There is a bar in Mae Sot run by ex-political prisoners. One of them was in prison for 17 years because he protested against the government. He's been out for about 4. Just take a second and imagine your life, minus 17 years. Think of what you missed in these 17 years...in your family, your social life, technology, education...Thiha lost 17 years of his life fighting for his country to be an inclusive democracy. I think I speak for most people when I say, there are very few of us that would be willing to risk a sentence like this for our country or a greater cause. A year or so ago Julia came to Mae Sot to work with Thiha's organization, which does work on behalf of former and current political prisoners. Yesterday they were married.

This was one of the more emotional wedding receptions I've been to (the ceremony was small and in a Buddhist temple so most of us weren't invited to that). Julia's family had flown in from Australia and the whole Mae Sot community was there to support them both. The energy was just indescribable! It is so good to see something so wonderful happen to someone who truly deserves it. Sigh....:)