Yellow Flower

This past weekend we went camping at a place called Yellow Flower. There are three of us American girls as of Friday, when Saidee from Michigan (also a ginger!) arrived. We packed up tents, pillows, blankets, bug spray, food...the three of us were expecting some hard core camping. We drove the 2 hours in the big boss's truck, most of us in the pickup. Staff member Lay announced early in the drive that his "geek" (friends with benefits) just left for Chiang Mai and we should all be "single and ready to mingle" for the weekend. The two new girls might have been a little taken aback; it takes a while to get used to Lay. I've diagnosed him as a pathological bullshitter, always spewing crap that isn't well thought out enough to be lies but nonetheless lacking any basis in reality. He mostly just likes to hear himself talk.

Anyway, Yellow Flower consists of lots of yellow flowers. I know, you're shocked. Beautiful yellow flowers and tourists and shopping. No jungle or hiking to speak of. We set up camp on a grassy field right off the road, lit a campfire, ate Thai kabobs. The three of us bonded by the campfire, missing only some s'mores for the perfect comping night. One thing that's changed since they got here...I speak much less to Thai people. We usually talk normal speed to each other, which makes us hard to understand for the ESL crowd. So they have Thai conversations, not having to worry about isolating me. I don't know if this is good or bad, just different.

I have this theory that the ultimate sign of trust is falling asleep on someone, letting your unconscious self become completely vulnerable to another human. The night had been freezing, the ground hard and cold and wet. Needless to say, no one slept very well. On the ride home, we all sprawled out on top of each other and found comfort enough to sleep. And I really felt the little community we've formed here at the Children's Home. Each of us has a shoulder to sleep on. And it feels so great to have a home when you're away from home.