Friends from Mongolia

This week we have had the privilege of making new friends; some wonderful visitors who stayed in our home. They traveled from Mongolia half way around the world to visit the Preston Schools. In this photo; from left Odge; a student who lives in Seattle, Dashzevge; the Director of their School, Byamseren, the 9 year old daughter of the Interpreter, Bolormaa; the Interpreter(a friend who we've stayed in touch with for about 6 years, Nyamseren; the 4 year old daughter of Bolormaa, Shinetsetseg; an English Teacher in her school, and J.; a 2002 SLC Olympian speed skater from Mongolia. J. obviously is only the name we learned not his Mongolian name.We learned so much from our guests and will continue to gain an understanding and appreciation of their culture and customs. This is a first time visit to USA for two of our friends. They live in a land where life is challenging. We take so much for granted; warm showers every day, running water, insulated homes that are warm in winter and cool in summer, a wide variety of food to choose from for each meal, and transportation that is reliable. They are wonderful people who are proud of their culture, but want to have more opportunities in the future.

As a gift, we were given traditional Mongolian clothing. These are worn for special occasions. When I told them I would have to find a special place to wear mine - they suggested I should wear it the next time I went horseback riding. These pieces of clothing are made from silk, fully lined, and custom fit for us. The children and teachers from the school worked some dedicated long hours to design and sew beautiful gifts for us. Our school superintendent and her husband also received a set of clothing like these as gifts. We will cherish the many gifts that were given to us. We recognize what a sacrifice it was for these to be given to us.

Layne entertained the group while I did some cooking. They loved riding the 4-wheelers. The adults eventually got so they were pretty smooth drivers. When they first took off on their own I sure was glad we have a big back yard. They were pretty rough at first. The girls especially loved being outside and enjoyed our beautiful fall days. The temperature in Preston is very similar to the climate of Mongolia, but the days they were here were unusually warm, a welcome relief from the very very cold of Mongolia.

One of the new things we learned from our friends is that the games of Mongolian families are played with bones. Below you can see that we were playing a game of "Horse Racing." Horse racing is a very poplular sport in Mongolia. The school children ages 5-16 compete in a real horse race. The race is 22 miles long. I can't imagine letting my children speeding off across the countryside on a running horse. The game we are playing is a simulated horse race. Other games played with bones are: jacks, guessing game, a type of bowling, and fortune telling. We had a great time playing and of course Layne, Mr. Competetive, was the winner and was awarded a leather keychain for the prize. They insisted that prizes must be given. When the friends visited my classroom they taught my students to play bone games too. Delightful! Who needs Wii?

This final picture is our last day with our friends. We had kept them very busy during their stay with us. We visited Preston School Superintendent; Barbara Taylor, visited each of the 4 Perston schools, rode on a school bus, ate lunch in the school cafeteria, attended a school assembly honoring them and receiving the 8 boxes of winter wear donated by Preston's Elementary School children, we met a former missionary to Mongolia, watched Mongolian DVDs telling about their school, had a cello concert at our house, we attended a school board meeting, we visited USU's Education Department Chairman over teacher education, we went for fast food at Wendy's, we shopped at Sam's Club, Wal-Mart, Ross, Best Buy, Cal Ranch Stores, Family Dollar, DI, and Kings. We shopped and shopped. We took them to Provo to spend time with some of their family and friends. We hope to see these wonderful people again and look forward to that day when we can visit them in their home. We are blessed to live in America. We will never forget the things we have learned. We will cherish the many memories we have made with our friends from Mongolia.

May each of us count our blessings every day. We have so much to be thankful for.