Tuao Mission Journal : 10 days summary
Poverty comes as a whole new meaning. Philippines; Tuao has brought forth lots of insight into life perspective and direction. I had always assume poverty to be something like beggars everywhere, run down house, no proper pathway and insect infestations. Only thing I got right was the proper pathway. This trip to Tuao had come as a question and than my view if I wanted to go or not. The entire mission trip purpose was to exposure us to area where people thirst for God’s word but haven’t had the chance to.
My initial thought was to just be down at Tuao to have fun with no aim. I took it as a breather to get away from home and the world’s busy schedule. I was pretty much of a adventure sort and am ready to take on challenges. I even contemplate the thought of personal fame when on this mission trip. Like people will take note of me more. However, I learned things the painful way in my trip later on. I must say that I’m really thankful to actually make this trip.
The first day of the trip was pretty much thrilling already. Experiencing flying above the clouds made me realized God’s grace and power in the universe. The coach ride from Manila to our first stop Ramon took about 12hours. We reached a resort at around 11pm. Had a short debrief and turn in for the night. That night I simply thought if I really had a motive for coming to this trip. Had I really know the meaning of a mission trip. I slept on that question. But I must say, I struggle with that thought for 4 days. Thankfully, I had my answer on the fifth day.
The first VBS we had was really successful. It went really smoothly. We were told that people in the village area were shy as they seldom get visitors visits. But we had a good response. The children there were very eager to participate in what we had installed for them. It was a great encouragement for me as it was the first time I did teaching with such a big group of students. Our first ‘Tuao Youth Team Choir’ singing made me really nervous. I hadn’t attended much of the practices and was pretty much unaware of how I should go about singing or if I actually blend in with the team. However, it turned out really fine. And I’m thankful for it. Praise the Lord!
We left early that morning to move on with out trip to Tuao. After about 6 hours of coach ride, we finally reach the place we all had been looking forward to. We receive a warm welcome by the people in Tuao Church of Christ. We had our lunch than moved to the place we’re going to stay on for the other days. That was in Cassily Resort. I was honestly surprise that in a village place would have such a nice place for us to sleep and bathe. I was expecting worst! We had out usual debrief and rested for the night. The next day and so forth, we had VBS done for high schools and elementary schools. All of the schools are really into what we had for them. The last school which was Culung High posts a little problem. And I was really discouraged to go to Culung High because of the various ‘illness’ I had. I had fever on the 4th day, and an insect bit my lips. Causing it to swell, covering half my mouth. I was really upset as that was our last VBS School. I wanted to put in my all.
I remember not being able to eat breakfast at all. Not even a small piece of bread. I was really really down. Uncle Jhuma saw me sitting alone at the worship hall. He asked me if anything was wrong. I only nodded because the swelling made it difficult to talk. I really wanted to do everything I could to do the last VBS well. Uncle Jhuma told me that perhaps God had something else planned for me. I still felt upset because I was still unable to do anything to help. I felt useless. Uncle Winston than walked up to me and told me to come along. I was still pondering over whether to go or not. Than I decided, I could still give moral support even if I’m not in the team. So I decided to help take pictures while the team did their VBS. That was when God’s grace manifested. The swelling went down really quick. By 11am, the swell wasn’t really much visible. I took that opportunity to do whatever I could. We had only 1hour before the whole VBS session ended. I was glad to do that little bit. Praise the Lord for his grace. All the glory goes to him. It also made me realize that the purpose of this trip is for His glory and not mine. That was the painful lesson I learned.
The padi rice planting also taught me to be appreciative of a plate of rice. Often we fail to understand that every grain of rice is sweat and blood. In Singapore, the luxuries that we have, the technologies we have. We simply take life for granted. Even to the simplest things like having enough water to drink and bathe. The rice planting was back breaking but the view was extremely scenic. The transportations we had were the coolest. Namely the 2 most used are the ‘Jeepnee’ and the ‘Kulilik’. The jeep acts as a mini bus and a kulilik is a tractor like thingy without the shelter above our head. Through rice planting, I learned something else that was important in our daily life and I can safely say most of us lag that quality. Patience. Rice planting is not easy for a start. We have to plant it in a straight line vertically and horizontally. And we were amazed at how fast the farmers moved. They even had a rhythm to it! Way cooler than seeing a random band jamming in Singapore.
The mountain hike was another creation of God’s splendor. The waterfalls, the steep climb up, the rocky path, and the cool water. It was really exotic. The ‘lalangs’ were really tall and well, pricky. We even went for a swim! At this little small pool near the waterfall. It was refreshing. Through the mountain hike, I learn that teamwork is important. Without it, the hike would have been a pretty jerky one. We had ‘barbecued’ corns too. It wasn’t really cooked, but 100% edible. Chewy in fact! Than it was time to leave. According to Basil, the mountain hike looked like Lord of the Rings. Haha.
Lastly, the more home stays. My partner was Jon Lai. Boy am I glad I had him. According to Uncle Jhuma, the family that we were moving in with was the poorest. The house was small, bed was just leveled ground and insects and rats all around. All I can say is that, I felt really blessed. The house was cozy, bed was ultra cooling and comfortable. The only thing that freaks me out was the insects. Well, at least for the first night only. I woke Jon 3 times in a row for his torchlight. Really sorry Jon! So anyway, the host was really kind. He actually gave us his bed to cramp with his wife on this bed smaller than a single size bed. 2 elderly people giving us the best, and yet we people in Singapore grumbles about everything even to how comfortable the pillow should be! The amount of things we take for granted. If these people were to come to Singapore, I can safely say, all the hospitality certs will go to them. I would take this chance to thank the Pasco’s family for such a delightful experience. What more can I ask for?! Thank You.
I’ve learned that contentment and God’s word should be what every individual in this world should be seeking. Often we get too caught up with the world pace that we hadn’t have the time to slow down and think what are we doing to our very own life. In such a fast pace world that where speed is everything, where do we find contentment from? The simplest thing such as owning a handphone or being able to watch TV served as just a mere entertainment. But for the poor, those are luxuries that they would want for just 15mins. I found that I was pretty much happy there in Tuao. I found everything I wanted. Happiness. Before I came for this trip, I was reluctant to give up my comfortable life in Singapore. Even when I was in Tuao, I asked myself how I was going to carry on. I was really worn out. I also learned that this was for God’s glory and not mine. I had depended on my own strength to do the Lord’s word without giving him the glory. As a result, I was drained. The trip has been a really fulfilling one and an enriching one as well. As an encouragement to others who think that mission trips are scary and you have to undergo worst conditions, rest assured. Conditions may not be ideal 5 star hotels, but mission trip is a fun one and it provides you with a closer walk with God. In all, this mission trip has been a real smooth trip and a successful one. Praise the Lord. Amen.