Christmas Eve at the Mission

Located a couple kilometers outside our town is a Catholic mission center run by a group of Italian priests and nuns. They serve hill tribes living in the surrounding mountains, conducting Sunday masses on a rotating schedule and helping giving kids a chance to have a regular education. We've enjoyed attending Sunday services from time to time. The Italians speak Thai better than English, so that's how we communicate!

Twice a year, for Christmas and Easter, the hill tribe people come into the Center for mass. On Sunday evening, after returning from Bryn's Christmas Eve party for volunteers, we rode our bikes out to take part.

It was freezing cold -- I was wearing a turtleneck, a sweatshirt, a hat, and a hooded fleece jacket by the end of the service, and still shivering! -- but nonetheless we enjoyed seeing the many different people. Some were similarly bundled up, but some were wearing their local clothing. During the offering, pairs of girls and women in matching outfits carried up baskets of flour, grapes, and flowers, which was quite lovely. I was proud that I understood the majority of the Thai sermon, but when the petitions were read in Hmong I couldn't follow.

After mass, we rode back home in the dark cold, lit up our tree, and made spaghetti. A very pleasant Christmas Eve.