A Cool November Day

The rain pours down. The air is cool.

It's November 1 and I'm delighted to experience a cool November day. I drink hot tea for breakfast and don't break into a sweat. I then spend the morning informing Lao young adults about IVEP - International Volunteer Exchange Program. (This program provides Christian young adults from around the world the opportunity to live with a host family in Canada or the United States for one year and volunteer at a work placement.)

Talk of Canada, shopping at a Lao handicraft sale later in the day and the cool temperatures of a November day, make me nostalgic for the familiar. I decide to attempt making popcorn. When my host sister indicates they've never made it before and they don't have a heavy pot, I almost reconsider, but hungry for the comforts of popcorn I persevere. A very light weight pot with a lid is found and I begin to heat the oil and 4 kernels.

With no hot pads, I struggle to use a large towel to protect my hands from the heat of the handles while I shake the pot. Very quickly the first few kernels pop and I add about 1/4 cup more. When the kernels start popping against the side of the pot, my host sisters are startled. This is the first time this sound has been heard in their kitchen. In no time at all I have my first small bowl of delightful smelling popcorn to share with everyone.

To complete my nostalgic evening, I introduce my host sisters to the high paced game of Dutch Blitz. After a few rounds, they have caught the Dutch Blitz fever and I struggle to keep up to the fastest one. We spend the evening playing together and laughing.

As I prepare for bed at the end of the day, the rain begins to fall again and the coolness of the evening fills my room. This is the third night I have not used a fan, since my arrival 10 weeks ago.

November 1, 2008 - 25.5 C at 10:30 p.m.