To Get To Town...

I heaved my backpack on my back, grabbed the umbrella and threw a last kiss to my little girls while heading out into the rain. I made my way very carefully across the slippery pieces of bamboo that make a bridge across the creek, then threaded my way through the fallen logs to the path down to the river. The rain came down in torrents, making my way more exciting by the need to grab for vines, twigs or trees to keep myself upright on the slippery trail. At last I came in sight of the muddy brown river, and the waiting boat. Jason had the rope and was holding it close to shore so that I could get in. I surveyed the boat, looking for a likely spot to sit, but wet boards were the only alternatives, since the rains had done their job there too. I threw my purse and backpack under a tarp, and folded the umbrella so that Travis could see to drive. Then, Jason pushed us out into the roaring torrent of murky water, Travis gunned the motor and off we went...rain pelting us in the faces while spray from the boat added to its volume.The river has turned from a gentle play place to a roaring, raging torrent of dirty water with logs, trash and coconuts floating by. We fish for coconuts all the way up the river. When Travis or Jason happen to be alone, they still try for the coconuts, but since you have to hold the propeller down in the water to make the boat go, they usually just go in circles and miss the coconuts altogether. When they actually nab one, it is a huge victory. When two of us are in the boat, coconut hunting is much easier. Today, no coconuts came by except in the bad parts of the river where we are concentrating on survival rather than hunting.It is really rather interesting to watch the river. It has boils all over the place, and it is fun to see it come boiling up and then roll away, just to be replaced by another boil erupting. Then there are the whirlpools...I can't help but wonder what it would be like if the boat got caught in one of them? We could go round and round and round...Another fun past time while in the boat is to wring water out of your saturated coat. The key is to wait until your wrists get heavy, then wring them out real good, and wait about two minutes before performing the same maneuver again. The interesting thing about fleece is that you can be soaked all over, but still feel dry...until your wrists get heavy.After an hour of this exciting bathing experience, we pull up to the landing in Mae Ngao. We grab our things out of the boat, and Travis reminds me to take off my shoes since it will give me better traction in the mud. So, we start walking up the slippy, muddy trail, being careful to walk in the dirty water pouring down the middle of the trail, since that is the least slippery place to walk. When I start to slide and get off balance, I try stepping onto a place that looks a little bit flat, only to find myself sliding sideways, so I step right back into the water, where I can slide downhill with each step, or to either side...whichever way the mud happens to take me. Near the top of the ascent, we come to houses on each side of the path, and so there is the inevitable piles of garbage, peelings, and other nondescript items floating about in the pools of dirty water. At about that point, I don't care how slippery the road is, I put my shoes back on! Flipflops are such great protection in such circumstances.When we get to the songtow stop, Travis leaves me under it's sheltering roof to wait while he goes to get our next mode of transportation, the motorbike. While sitting there waiting, I waste my time by trying to wring the water out of my skirt and coat, wipe the mud from my feet and straighten my wet bangs to try to look presentable. The store owner looks over at me incredulously. She must wonder about our sanity sometimes. The rain picks up a bit.Travis pulls up to my dry bench with the motorbike and trailer in tow. I notice that he has put a plastic box in the back for our backpacks. That was good thinking, since we go too fast to be able to keep our precious computers dry using a tarp. I can't help but notice that my helmet is in the trailer, upside down, collecting rain water quickly. I then clamber onto the back of the bike, strap on my wet helmet, and off we go.As we zoom down the highway, I think of that old question that I have heard discussed at length on several occasions...do you get wetter if you go slow or if you go fast? I have to assume that Travis believes that you get wetter if you go slow. He does slow down when the road is dangerous though, which I am really thankful for. The rain is absolutely pouring down by the bucketfuls by then, but we are going too fast for me to feel comfortable wringing the water out of my coat. Have you ever noticed that when you go really fast in heavy rain, it feels like needles hitting you? Most of the time, I try hiding behind Travis, but once in a while I just have to peek around him to see if there is any mortal danger, which is when I especially notice the needles sensation. I spend most of my time on the back of the motor bike dreaming of heated cars, with comfortable seats...After another hour of this shower on wheels, we finally arrive at the hotel where we will spend the night. But, we do not dare to go in...not yet. First, we wring out our clothing, until we stop dripping quite so much, straighten ourselves up, try to look dignified, then we march in to get our room. The man at the desk sees us coming, and gives us a strange smirk, as if he didn't even believe that we were dignified at all, then takes our money and hands us the key. We struggle up the stairs, with our wet clothing hindering our legs from moving as they ought to, stumble into the room where we both grab our backpacks to get some dry clothing as fast as possible. My dry clothing didn't exactly stay dry this time, but at least it is not dripping!All of this...so that I can write a post for you, talk to my husband who is far away in America, buy a few vegetables, look for people we can help or encourage, and then do the same trip, in the reverse, the next day.When we get to heaven, and others ask us what kinds of trials we had while here on earth, we won't even be able to recall them. Nothing we have to go through here, will be worth even mentioning if we can see the smile of Jesus, and hear his "Well done, good and faithful servant".