"Together We Can"

Today for church we had some visitors from the church headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. All of the congregations in Bangkok (I believe there are about 5 congregations) were invited to attend one meeting held at a convention center outside Bangkok. The meeting was inspiring as we mourned over the tragic events that have taken place recently. The speakers reminded us that no matter what our political opinions we are unified through our love for and belief in God. They reminded us of the importance to build strong families who love goodness and peace. I sang in the choir for the meeting and felt strongly a love for this country and its people.

On the way home I was driving with a friend who is new to driving in Thailand. She has a navigation system we call Lee who speaks to us in an Australian accent. We typed in the address of our final destination and Lee gave us step by step directions on how to get home. Unfortunately, there are places where the roads are a bit unclear and the highways resemble a spaghetti bowl and so we missed a turn and Lee had to recalculate and quickly think of a new route to get us home. The new path drove us into the heart of downtown Bangkok where we were able to see the damage the fires and fighting caused. We saw the huge mall that had burnt to ashes as well as the remains of several other buildings. We could see in the road where the tires had been lit on fire. It was quite sad to see the loss and damage.

There were also crowds of people on the street. Many of them standing and, like me, were also grieving the loss but many had trash bags in gloved hands and were assisting with clean up efforts. They were picking up trash, washing soot off of walls, scrubbing the streets and sidewalks. There were large trucks driving into the area which I can only assume would soon be filled with debris and other garbage. Thai citizens were purchasing cold drinks and snacks and taking them to the drivers of these large vehicles in a gesture of gratitude for their service. My heart was full of joy as I watched the people of Bangkok come together to clean up and rebuild. I was caught off guard by the whole thing quite honestly! And I was so pleased to see after the protests filled with so much anger and destruction and violence this demonstration of unity and peace and teamwork.

There was a sign hanging on the side of the road that read "Together We Can". Many of those who were helping in the community cleaning effort were wearing T-shirts that said the same...Together We Can.

This is the Thailand I know. These are the loving, kind Thai people I have encountered. This is how I will remember Thailand. A community of peace-loving people who come together to work hard after tragic events to rebuild.

There is so much we can accomplish when we work together.

Together We Can!