Christine Sian felt called to return to Thailand for a year, after our trip there in Jan. 2011, to teach English to the Karreni students. She returned to Thailand Sept 2011. She has decided to feature her students one at a time so that we can better know them. Her first featured student is then phaw, or as we knew her, Matthew. Please read and enjoy getting to know this beautiful girl.
New
post on My Thailand Mission Blog
then phawby ChristineSian
My
first featured student is Then Phaw (pronounced Tay Paw) . I'm starting with
this beautiful lady because she speaks English very well and she understood my
objective by telling their stories to everyone back home. I want to make sure
the students understand exactly what I'm doing before I put anything about them
on the internet and not only does she understand but she'll help me explain this
to all of the other students. Then Phaw also goes by Matthew (just like the
first book in the New Testament) which is the name her grandfather calls her by,
it's also the name that anyone who was with me in January will remember her by,
but her classmates and teachers call her Then Phaw. Her given name was Thaw Paw
(pronounced like it's spelled) and means "new flower" in Karenni. When she
started school she changed her� �name to Then Paw. She is a very outgoing,
ambitious student with a beautiful smile that lights up a room. She has a cute
dimple in her left cheek that shows itself when she's giggling, which like most
of my students is a lot of the time. When Then Phaw laughs she usually tears up
quickly, which is something her and I have in common, she told me that her
laughing and crying are opposites because she doesn't have tears when she is
sad. She loves to joke about my village in America when I ask her about her
village in Burma, this usually gets the tears flowing because she ends up really
amusing herself! Then Phaw is 22 years old and is in her third year at the
Bible School which means she will graduate in March 2013. She is a talented
musician (I will most likely say this about all of my students, but it is true);
she has a beautiful singing voice and she plays the violin, flute, and guitar
well. She also plays a little piano and the drums but doesn't consider herself
very good with those instruments. Music is very important to the school and the
students so they all have a little experience with several instruments, they
really put me to shame.
Then
Paw has a spunky personality, she's very witty and likes to tease her teachers
and her classmates with her clever use of new English words. She often has me
laughing and constantly impresses me with her remarks during class. Today she
told me that one of my thoughts that I was sharing with the students was very
deep. This made me smile. Not because my thought was profound but because she
knew the meaning of deep in the context of intellect, not just as an adjective
for say, a river. If you were here with me you would understand that this is a
small victory and is so encouraging for me to hear.
Then
Phaw has an older brother, a younger brother and younger sister, however her
younger sister passed away two years ago. Her mother also passed away two years
ago, two months before they lost her sister. Both died from illness, her mother
was 39 years old and her sister was only 2 years old. As you can imagine they
don't have access to exemplary health care and even illnesses that seem
non-threatening to us can be deadly to them. She is not sure what sort of
illness killed her sister but she knows that her mother's passing was
contributed to a problem with her heart. So that leaves her father and
brothers who are still living in her hometown in Burma. Her father is a farmer
and her brothers are both students.
Then
Phaw, like all of my students is Karenni, but unlike most of my students her
family still lives in Karenni State. Most of the students' families are living
in Shan State in Burma, which is north of Karenni State. Karenni State is very
dangerous with fighting so many people have relocated farther north where it is
safer. So her small village is a very dangerous place to reside. If the
Burmese soldiers suspect that you are in alliance with the Karenni Army they
will kill you and your family. Then Phaw was telling me that she stayed with
her uncle when she was attending 10th grade and it was common for the Burmese
soldiers to stop and stay in their house as they were traveling. If they did
not receive the soldiers it would be very dangerous as they would become angry
so it was not an option to turn the enemy away.
Then
Paw came to the school just after her mother and sister passed away in 2009. A
person from her church knew about the Bible school and asked her if she would
like to attend. At first it was against her father's wishes because he needed
her to stay and help her family after her mother's passing but eventually he
changed his mind and allowed her to come. The school helps the students pay
the costs to travel to Thailand which is the money they must pay to get past
several check points.
After
Then Phaw is finished at the Bible school she would like to continue studying
theology somewhere else, perhaps overseas. I have encouraged her with this
dream because I know that she is intelligent and ambitious and if given the
chance she will most certainly do well. However, she realizes that her family
cannot afford to send her to school so now she is trusting that God will provide
for her if it's His will. After studying theology she plans to return to her
village to serve her community as a missionary there. She told me that many
people in her village are Animist and do not know Christ.
Then
Phaw's favorite Bible verse is Philippians 4:13 "I can do everything through Him
who gives me strength".
I'd
say He's given her a lot of strength; she's overcome a lot of heartache and
she's a beautiful person inside and out. I wish you could meet her and I know
that this little piece doesn't suffice but hopefully it conveys how highly I
regard this young lady. If you want to help her with her plans after graduation
PLEASE send me a note and that can be arranged.
Thanks
for reading and of course, thanks for the support and prayers.
Love
Christine
