Post-Songkran

After Songkran Festival, Bonpong returned to its more normal state of peacefulness. Many of the visiting relatives of the residents of Bonpong now returned to their homes in Bangkok, or other places throughout Thailand.

Lout’s time to head to Cambodia has come, and he bid his fare-well to us as well as thanked the Abbot for his kindness and generosity. Leang had planned on returning with Lout to Cambodia where they would travel together for a few days before parting ways for a week while visiting family in their own villages. After that week, they would meet again at the capital to fulfill their teaching duties of young monks newly ordained after Songkran for the remainder of their holiday break from university.

Things changed when I became ill, before Songkran. Now that Songkran had passed, and my visa was expiring, we needed to speak with the officials the hospital as to what I would be able to do. At my next appointment, my fever was around 99 and only with minimal flare ups over 100. I was still receiving shots for the Rabies, and since it was a confirmed case, the hospital was not so keen on letting me leave the country. Also…they did various blood tests on me to try and figure out what was going on with my fever. Still the same answers as before and it will take time to get better. A few weeks back they discovered it was H5N1, and since then the hospital had reported it to the government. Only now was the severity of my situation sinking in.

A letter was written to the government officials, as well as a ban on my passport prohibiting me from leaving the country for another 2 ½ weeks. The Thai embassay was contacted and I literally was placed on something similar to house arrest…but more like country arrest to ensure I recovered more fully as well as no longer a Rabies threat. I wasn’t in trouble or anything, but just not allowed to leave yet. The villagers were welcoming of this news, as they really had grown to care about me, and Leang would remain with in Bonpong for another week and a half, and then he would go to Cambodia to see family for a few days. At this point I would depart to Bangkok where I would rest for a few days attending a hospital there for more tests, shots and treatment. This is getting so expensive….sheehs.

During the week following Songkran, I preoccupied myself while recovering with a variety of different things. The monks were still very busy frantically cleaning the temple and removing decorations for storage once again, so I made sure to keep myself busy as well, since I was not really much help to them in my current state.
The temple was still very active since now that Songkran was over, an array of other ceremonies now took place. The ordination of new novice monks was first. There were about 30 visiting monks that came from surrounding temples to help the Abbot perform this ceremony.
After the novices had chanted with the monks, it was now time for the dressing of robes. The new novices are not allowed to help with this ceremony, but to stand still and follow instructions as a monk dresses them, while their families and friends are there to witness it all.

Although continuously going to the hospitals, I was now able to walk much better as I was healing, and be a little more active though out the days since my temperature was dropping day by day.
Ma was teaching me to cook some simple dishes (yum!) and one of the Abbots close friends, Ton, even took me out on his motor-bike a few times for some sight seeing of other temples, as well as a few famous ancient temple ruins in the province.

He doesn’t speak any English, yet with my mounting Thai proficiency, I was able to maintain a bare-bones conversation with him as well as learn a little about the history of these areas.

I visited the Abbot often, but only in the evenings during the time reserved for teaching the children; the Abbot was terribly busy with the post-Songkran madness of organization. If the children were busy working, or decided not to come (often the case after Songkran since everyone was pretty well worn out) then the monks, ma and I would visit late into the evenings out in the common area enjoying the cool evening temperatures.
These are some ancient heads of Buddha that the Abbot has collected from various places over time. The top left one is Thai style, while the one on the bottom is Khmer style (Cambodian). The one on the right is not a Buddha figure but another figure from Thai culture.
One evening after a heavy storm during the day, the common area was just teeming with wildlife. This is a photo of a turtle who is a temple grounds resident, and you can often see him wandering the common area in the evenings. You will also find tons of millipedes as well….some big and some huge.


A funeral also occurred at the temple that week. The woman had been diagnosed with cancer a couple of years before and although attending hospitals, there wasn’t much to be done for her. Her husband had been long caring for her, and it was quite a sad event for everyone in Bonpong.
Another major ceremony was the ordination of a monk. Unlike the novice’s ceremony, this was much more serious of an event.

It was one of the village boys who is 19 and wanted to become a monk.

A huge parade took place with music from the villagers as well as the circling of the temple 3 times while the about-to-be-monk was lifted high on the shoulders of his friends and family shrouded in white lace.

A tree with money attached on it donated from the villagers was given to the Abbot, as well as chanting by the monks and men of the village.

After the ordination ceremony inside the temple, the monks took the boy outside the temple where he would now be dressed by the monks with his family and friends as witness. This was quite a long procession; it took up one full day.




My last few days in Bonpong, Thailand were difficult to say the least. These people have come to mean so much to me it was not a wonderful feeling still being ill and having to leave their warmth and care to head to Bangkok before leaving the country. I couldn’t keep Leang any longer away from his duties as a monk. He has responsibilities to teach the novices in Cambodia as well as a promise to visit his family, and his mother was ever looking forward to it since it had been a couple years since she had seen him.

The Abbot had been so graceful and generous to me, I will dearly miss him as well as the other resident monk for their care and loving kindness to me in my time of need. As for Ma and Pa, well….lets just say it feels like I’m a baby bird about to leave the nest for the first time; unsure of my wings and worrying if I will be okay on my own as well as missing them as my own family. Nongkim and I for sure shared a special bond, it was hard to leave her as well. When people tried explaining to her that I was leaving and would be going to some place called America, seem became upset. She doesn’t know where this America place is, but when asked if she wanted to go with Dton Mai, she replied with yes, she does; America with Dton Mai is more better-so cute. Yeah…leaving is hard.

Songkran Festival

Songkran began and was in full force despite if I was feeling well or not. As time passed, I slowly was doing better….and I mean slowly. I was constantly going to the large hospital in Korat every couple days, in addition to the daily appointments at the local hospital also. The citizens in the community were so accommodating. I couldn’t take myself to the hospitals, and ma and the monks always wanted to come with me as to ensure I was cared for properly. Thus a whole entourage would go with me since we needed a car that could accommodate us women and the monks. Don’t forget the monks cannot sit next to, or touch women, so it was always interesting sorting out seating arrangements.

Songkran festival is the most celebrated and special time of year for the Buddhist people. The events begin around the 11th of April and last between 3-10 days depending on the community.
I had so much support from this community while being ill; people would pull themselves away from the activities and celebrations to care and look after me during the time when I really needed it. This has touched my heart in a way almost nothing else has, and I feel thankful everyday that someone was with me there.

The word Songkran is from the Sanskrit meaning of the new Solar Year, but nowadays Thailand celebrates the New Year on December 31st like we do. The festival is celebrated with water. In Buddhism, water is representative of life, and so throughout Thailand you will find people during this time getting completely soaked with water, which is convenient since it is also one of the hottest seasons of the year.

Water is the life-blood of these SE Asian counties because they are still highly agricultural and this festival is at the onset of the rainy season. As the rains come, the replanting of the rice fields is approaching. Songkran is a festival celebrating life through water.

At the onset of Songkran at the temple, the morning breakfast ceremony was not held in the normal building; it could not accommodate all the people that would be participating. It was held in the outdoor area where the monks had diligently been decorating in preparation for the festival.



The monks were at the front of the room up on a stage and were holding a single line of sting from the web-work across the entire room that was over-head and stemming from the Buddha statue near the front of the room. The small single lines of string that the monks had bundled up at each junction in the web above our heads were then pulled down by us and we held them through the chanting and prayers. At the conclusion of the ceremony, we tied them to each others wrists as the community members did for me when coming back from the hospital.

The following is a video and photos of the monks during the ceremony at breakfast.

The Abbot leading the chanting.

Phra Lout.


Phra Leang.

This is the Abbot anointing the people with holy water. Traditionally he will sprinkle them 3 times, however when he got to me, he gave me lots and lots of extra splashes and announced to the community in Thai, which Lout translated for me; that I needed extra since I had been so unlucky recently. I laughed a lot about this and thanked him over and over....I sure needed it!

This would be the monks favorite time...breakfast! This photo shows the string web over head as well as the procession of how breakfast happened during the festival...and what an event it was!

This is a parade to offer money attached to a money tree stand that the community is brining to the temple. There is music and singing and shouting as the people dance through the streets carrying the money tree.

On the first day of Songkran I had to go into Korat to the big hospital there, and driving though the streets it was quite a sight!

The most obvious celebration of Songkran is the throwing of water. People gather in the streets with containers of water or water guns, or post themselves at the side of roads with a garden hose and drench each other and passersby. Really commonly, people will pour buckets of water on passing cars. Entire families will ride in the back of trucks or even on tractors then spray, splash, and drench anyone, and everyone they see.
People of all ages get involved in this activity and no one is ever offended or worried about how they look during it all. This, however, was not always the main activity of this festival. Songkran was traditionally a time to visit and pay respects to elders, including family members, friends and neighbors.
And surely swimming suits and tank-tops are not traditional attire. I hear that in some of the more touristy areas of Thailand the tourists will dress this way, but it is highly disrespectful and this would not be acceptable in this rural community I was in as you can see from the photos. The rural villages of these counties are very modest, even when soaking wet.


One evening during the festival the Abbot sent for me at Ma and Pa’s house. When I arrived to the temple he was sitting on the stage in the outdoor area along with Leang and Lout. They were all smiling at me, and they told me that since I liked the bracelets that the people in the community had made for me upon returning from the hospital, the Abbot had decided to make me another bracelet as well.

This over time had become a joke to them all, as they loaded me up with more and more bracelets before leaving Thailand. I think when I finally left Bonpong I had 17 on my left wrist and 19 on the right.

During the afternoon of the 13th, the community gathers and a water ceremony begins at the temple. It starts with the offering and blessing of water.
People gather and bring wather bowls that are adorned and scented with flowers.

After the monks lead the people through chanting, the monks will line up and walk past the statue of Buddha and pour flower scented water upon it.

The community follows and then will pour water into the monks hands as well as they are seated in a line. This is really special for the women of the community because this is as close to touching a monk as you can get. A woman cannot even hand a piece of paper to a monk, she would have to hand it to a man who would then hand it to the monk, or she would have to set it down and the monk could then pick it up.
This may sound strange, but it is to prevent the direct sensation of touch caused by a woman which would then lead to impure thoughts which would then lead to more suffering. So pouring water from your hand directly into a monk's is a very special tradition for the Buddhist women. Leang told me it is his mother's favorite part of Songkran because it is as close as she can get to giving her son a hug.

Next the elders will line up after the monks sitting in chairs as well and the young people in the community will walk past them pouring water over their left shoulders and in their hands. Since water is a considered 'life' in Buddhism, pouring water on the elderly is essentially giving them life. It is a mark of respect while seeking the blessing of the older people.

After I passed through the line, the old women kept grabbing my hands telling me to sit also. I didn't understand why until the Abbot and Lout approached me and requested that I sit with the elderly people since I needed the water of the community to cool my fever and give me life. And so I did. As the community members walked past me, almost every person would ask me 'Now may?' which translates into English as 'Are you cold?' Since my fever was still relentlessly high, I responded 'Mai chai, lawn mak mak!' which means 'No, I'm very very hot!' and so more water ensued. By the end of the line the community thought it was pretty funny that I was sitting with the elderly receiving life, that one of my students came with a bucket of water and shouted 'Dton Mai lawn mak mak!' as he poured it all over me. It sure cooled me off! Too bad it was so temporary.

In ancient days, old people were actually given a bath and clothed in new apparel presented by the young folks as a token of respect for the New Year. To follow this tradition in a more modern way, children will return home with their children and visit the elderly and offer gifts to them. Because of this, even though the village of Bonpong is quite small, Songkran at the temple was quite a large event due to the relatives of many of the community members returning home from Bangkok where they live and work. I can now understand why it was so important for Leang, Lout and other monks to come and help out during this time.

This was the official end of Songkran, although there are many events still to come that are traditional during this time of year, but many of the visiting family members returned home after the water ceremony.

I really wish during all these events that I had been feeling better, it was difficult for me to talk to so many people and try to explain what was wrong with me and why I wasn’t feeling well…especially since I didn’t know why my fever was lasting so long still, and the medicines weren’t helping. Not to mention getting attacked by a rabid dog too. I attended the highlights, but truthfully, I spent most of the time in bed in my quiet room at Ma’s house.

Well, with a New Year, all I can hope for is good health….but lets see what the doctors say as I continue to pass the time as I recover in Bonpong…..