Friday, September 22, 2017

Realizing our limitations

Realizing our limitations
9-21-2017

Richard Li

Day 3 of the Eye Glass clinic was much like Days 1 and 2, just a little hotter today. 

Interesting how the local people are used to the heat. I remember when I was growing up that the mother of a friend loved the hot days. It was what she was used to when she was growing up.

Today my position had more direct interaction with the people. I was at the end of our process where the canvas bag and tracts were handed out right after they received their glasses. The people were so appreciative, and  hugs were not unusual. It surprised me because I thought Thailand was a non-touching type culture, as exemplified by people bowing at each other (wai) versus shaking hands like we do in the USA.

Kids (early teens?) at the church have been helping out for the past few days. Today, they took a more active role in helping people try on their new glasses. At one point, it was like Gregory was there to supervise the kids working the station.  The kids were fully engaged and was fun to see.

Unfortunately we had to turn people away which created some drama. Each District was given a set number of slots to distribute to their citizens. The clinic was by invitation only and not advertised as open to anyone. Word of mouth spread through the community, and people showed up seeking the free glasses. We only had enough supplies to distribute 1,000 eyeglasses, and we could not accommodate the walk-ins. We ended up filling cancellation slots with the walk-ins, and placing 30 people on a wait list for Friday morning’s final session. There were fewer slots on the final day to accommodate people who needed to reschedule. It was sad to turn away people in need but we did not have the supplies for the additional people. We knew that we were only going to be able to serve a small fraction of the need. It is one thing to see the limits on paper, it is harder when it happens in front of you.


 There is still a chance that Reed might be able to play the harmonica for the crowd. So, keep the prayers coming.

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