Anything in cardboard boxes -- including the box itself -- is fair game, says missionary Chris Strange.
When he returned to his home in a village in the Philippines he realized there were a few things he'd forgotten about village life and a few things he'd forgotten to do when he left several months before.
"The roaches made five-star hotels out of papers, glue, cards, envelopes and anything else chewable," wrote Chris, "Notice I said chewable, not eatable."
However, some items left in "roach-proof containers" made a delicious repast for his roach friends as they ate through aluminum packets and the tomato paste and dried soup packets inside. Now the roaches are well fed and very big as they laze around in their five-star hotels. Chris realized he should have been a little more pro-active in making things roach-proof.
There are a few other things about living in a tropical village that Chris had forgotten. "I feel like I'm wet all the time," wrote Chris, "because I am wet all the time. If it is not raining it is 90 degrees with 100 percent humidity. Therefore I'm either wet with sweat or rain -- but at least when it's not raining; the clean clothes are dry -- until I put them on."
Everyday sounds in the village are quite different from the city. There are no loud car horns or radios or TV blaring, but there are dogfights, roosters crowing, loud insects chirping and even unhappy pigs squealing in the front yard. Different noises, but noisy just the same. A chicken walking across the tin roof makes a unique sound, definitely not a "city sound."
And changing from a fairly mild climate in the USA to the hot, sticky Philippines can do strange things to your body. "What are these itchy red bumps on my arms and legs?" Chris asked. "Why would your body do that to deal with sweat and heat?"
In spite of the various surprises awaiting Chris, the transition back to village life was fairly smooth. His Banwaon friends were delighted to see him and the believers had some exciting stories to tell about God's faithfulness while he was gone. Suddenly the roaches and the climate and the sounds didn't seem like problems.
_img.jpg','Chris is thanking the Banwaon for the warm welcome into their village.', 324, 243))
