One of my writings.

I wrote this to my dad on his birthday. I just read it and had to chuckle. I hope you all like it too!  

Today is a day.

By: Danielle Opel

Today is a day that is a day that I will do something.

That something is nothing and nothing is something and that is what Gerald did say.

He pulled up the Heap that sputtered and spat,

Quivered and tweeped, fluttered and flexed.

“Come one, Come all,” Gerald did say,

“Come on out and lets go play.

Just push the Heap up that hill,

and all the way down with what fun we shall squeal!”

So we huffed and we puffed, with Gerald at till,

 we pushed and we pulled that heap up that hill.

At the top we did stop,

and fell down with a flop.

And that is when we heard that ornery Gerald hollar.

As we looked up that heap was nowhere in sight

 For down the hill the heap went spiraling without a fight.

Gerald let out a “Yippy ii o!

Hop on board for there is no way to slow!”

So we hopped and popped to our feet

and down the hill we ran after the heap.

There stumbles and tumbles, scrapes and bruises

for he who slowed down was the one who looses.

We all jumped with great spunk into the trunk

and away the heap flew.

Faster and faster we went

 until the path was all spent.

And there in front of us arose

a big tree with considerable pose.

Those in the back we all did flee,

all except Gerald, he ran into the tree!

There was a zoom and a boom and a sputter Dee spat,

 A clash and a bang and a tire that was flat.

As we looked on quite amazed with fright,

Out flew Gerald, it was quite a sight!

He flew through the bushes, and great big weeds,

through brushes, and brambles, and right past trees.

Onward and outward, and downward he rolled,

out of sight which left us quite dreaming of old. 

So onward and outward and downward we ran

Until we found Gerald stuck like a clam.

So hurriedly we offered him a chain made of man.

Fool hardily we offered him a helping hand.

Suddenly we found ourselves all pulled in.

The water was all the way up to our chins!

As we all grumbled, sputtered and spat,

With a great big splash Gerald let out a heartfelt laugh.

“It’s hot and it’s fun,

 we all worked hard in the sun.

Come on let’s play!

Let’s not waste this day!”

So we splished and we splashed

and had many a laugh!

We sank and we swam

until it became lame.

All tired and sore

we climbed up to the shore.

We all laid asleep about to drift,

when suddenly we realized something was amiss!

Gerald was missing, not in sight.

Off with the chips, without a fight!

So we scrounged and looked, we pillaged with funk

until we saw Gerald lying by a tree trunk!

He was napping quite nicely I would like to say,

quite tuckered out by all that hard play.

So we nudged him, and budged him, and begged him to say

what had become of those delicious chips that day?

He denied he had ever seen them

Or that he had ever eaten them.

But all I can say is that he is the last one

 that had the bag that day.

We all went home tired and wet,

And without supper, went straight to bed.

And when the parents asked what we did that day, Gerald piped up, “Today was the day that was a day that I did something. That something was nothing and nothing is something. Man, I had fun today.” 

 

Study Abroad.

Hello All!
I am officially a student at KBU (kasem Bundit University). I have studied for 2 weeks now, so I have a pretty good idea what class are like. I study 6 days a week, morning and afternoon. I am taking 7 subjects. Most classes are 4 hours long. I usually study 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon. All my classes but one class are begginer classes. That means we study all the basic stuff like the alphabet, writing correctly, basic speaking and reading, and the phonology of speaking thai. For me it is kinda boring because I am past basic level, however i have to take these classes. I figure it will be a easy A and a good review. My other class is a higher level class. Normally 3 or 4 year students study it. But my advisors thought I should try it since I know so much. I enjoy this class alot. It is challenging, but good for me. The reading is the hardest part. Thai uses a different word system for writing then speaking, so understanding the meaning is hard some times. I do understand when the teacher speaks. I am gonna give it my best and hope I do well! I am lucky enough to have a thai friend that likes to help me do my homework. :)

It is hard studying 6 days a week. By the end of the week I am worn out, but I have been trying to protect Sundays as my day of rest. I also do not get alot of homework. So the evenings are restful.

One thing that is different about studying here in Thailand is that students must wear a uniform. It consists on a white button up shirt, and black pants, or skirts for girls. There are 2 kinds of skirts, straight or pleated. They come in different lengths. I like the ones that come to the knees. We are also required to where a belt and pin that come from KBU. You are allowed to wear any kind of shoes as long as they are nice. NO FLIP FLOPS! haha Everyone thinks it is great that in America you can wear whatever you want.
All of my class mates are Chinese. Most can not speak thai and only a little English. So I think maybe I will try to learn some Chinese. haha I know a little already! They are going to teach me how to cook chinese food! I love Chinese food! It is so good, much better then in the states.  

There are 4 sexes here at KBU. Boys, Girls, Ladyboys, and Toms. Ladyboys sleep in the boys dorm but wear the girls uniform. Toms are girls that want to be boys. They sleep in the girls dorms and dress as a boy. The other day I  saw a girl that I am sure was a boy the day before. haha It has become an everyday thing here.

I have offically began to hand wash my clothes. For any of you who have done this, you know how hard it is. The man who invinted the washing machine knew what he was doing. I wish I had enough sence to use it. haha Actually, the clothes get cleaner if I hand wash them, so I do. The first time I did it, it took me 3 hours to finish the clothes. It was awful. But now I am quicker. I only take 2 hours. haha ;)

My room mate it great! I can trust her completely. She is really sweet. She is very patient. I feel kinda bad for her cause she has to deal with my mess. If you came into out room you know where the thai is and where the American is. haha

In the evenings I spend time with my friends, mostly with a girl named rabbit. We go eat, to the market, and shopping together. I also do homework and Iron my clothes. Let me just talk about ironing clothes. It is the hardest thing ever. It took me 30 minutes just to do one shirt. You have to get all the creases just so. I think I will make a lousy house wife. haha I don't like cleaning, it takes me hours to wash clothes, and I can not iron worth a dime. haha I am ok at cooking, great at making messes, and excellent at keeping the couch warm. ;) haha

Spiritually things are going ok. It is hard not to have another believer to encourage you daily. I try to be intentional about my times with God. It is hard, and full of distractions. I am finding that God finds other ways to help me. Like being with a good friend, or providing a bible study just when I need it. I do ask that you keep praying that I can stay strong and focused on why I am here. I am struggling with home sickness alittle. If you see my family give them a hug for me. I am ready to see them all. They have been a good support to me. Gee I miss them.

Thank you all for your prayers and Thoughts. I love hearing from you!
Love from Danielle!




Here is what the uniform looks like. This is on Campus.