One basil writes...

Certain memories are too hard to put into words,
To do that, I gotta b a linguist, a pro, or a nerd.
But if I’d put some effort and time,
I’ll just gather the experience with words that rhyme.

After months of planning and saving,
Expecting the unexpected and praying,
The 4 and a half Basils flew from Aussie land,
With unlocked luggage checked in and pizza in hand.

Tiny greeted us with a gigantic smile in Singapore,
That night for dinner it was makan galore.
We met humble legends from UniSA’s OCF,
After being super blessed, next day we left.

Cheap and comfy accommodation plus superb food,
Everything in sawasdee ka land is good.
Training us with their experiences and wisdom,
The Alaskan and American have a huge heart for His Kingdom.

With heavy hearts we said farewell to original Pad Thai,
One more time we boarded the plane and flew high.
As we landed in the Eternal Spring City,
The 4 of us were exploding with curiosity.

Only one night we bunked in dodgy hotel,
Oh it was dodgy, anyone could tell.
We were cared for by wonder woman behind scooter,
And by Suzanna who made bus travelling much smoother.

In the phlegmable bus we travelled for 7 hours,
Into a little town that we cant call ours.
Shrinking in traffic at the corner of this suburb,
The tooting of the horn could still be heard at every curb.

Housed, fed, and nurtured by a wonderful family,
We stayed in the clean and cosy guesthouse happily.
Their kids have pets, including a dog that ate my shirt,
James kept reminding us everything is relative, including dirt.

We got to know the staff there really well,
They even took us to the place where they initially dwell.
We walked through paddy fields and ventured into caves,
And the pond where they played was near cornfields and graves.

First week of camp was exhausting as we burnt midnight oil,
Yet the smiles of the kids were worth the toil.
We were not only tested with their bratty behaviour,
We were also frustrated cuz it was hard to share about our Saviour.

However His mercies are new every morning,
We gave thanks daily through singing, praying and yawning.
Camp 1 was all about vocabulary, story telling and craft,
When ‘boat’ became ‘boombs’, we cant help but laugh.

Faithful as usual, God later gave us Camp 2,
We couldn’t believe that our prayers came true.
We spent time with older kids from 2pm till 9,
We communicated through play, outings, songs and dine.

With them we hiked up 999 steps for the 2nd time,
Oh my goodness, it was nothing but a miraculous climb.
He held the rain and brought back electricity,
It was obvious His hands were upon us, it wasn’t a mystery.

On the last night we chatted with kids about life and its reason,
That there is a God who loves us the same in every season.
They cried before they went back to their villages,
To me, those were touching moments and valuable images.

Now that I’m back in safe environment and clean streets,
And finally getting to eat non-spicy food and chunky meat,
I miss those days when I could wake up near my fellow basil,
Getting ready for change of plans and last minute hassle.

Through this hands-on experience that I’ve always heard about,
“The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few!!!” I’d wanna shout.
The brave souls out there changed my perspective on working for Him,
Just hand over your life to Him and everything else will follow, including your dream.

I wish I could stay longer to watch the kids grow to know Him,
And witness how they realize that they are loved to the brim.
I pray that this memory will not just look good in rhyme,
But that I will grow to love the lost more and more with time.

-Basil Jez

It's not about saving the world, but to watch Him save His children.