When I decided to go on this trip, I had no idea what was in store for me; all I knew was that my sole purpose in life was to help people, and this was the first step in doing so. Before leaving for our journey, we had to sort and divide the gifts to be distributed to different regions that we would visit. Getting into the back of the car that next morning, there were mixed feelings in the air. I felt excited, scared, and puzzled all at the same time, because I had never met a Montagnard before. Who would I meet? What are they like? What would happen to me? How would I communicate with them? How can I survive? Can I adapt to their life style? Would they like me? Would I like them? These were the questions that were running through my head.

The car ride was long and bumpy; when I saw red dirt around us I thought we were getting close, but we were not even close. The only thing that kept my mind from getting bored was sight seeing and story telling from Father Vang and Uncle Thien. We left Saigon around 7 in the morning and arrived at Pleikly around 9 at night; Father Chien and Sister Hang greeted us with hospitality, and we ate the dinner that they had prepared for us because they knew we were coming.

The next morning we attended two different masses; the first one, for children, started at 7:00 am and the following mass was for adults which started at 10:00 am. Their mass is very different from the mass that we have here. The children all followed and read along with their Bibles as Father Chien read the Gospel. These children love and want to go to church, unlike some of us over here who are forced to go to church every Sunday. For the adults, women would perform a dance at their seat and the men would clap along as they sang; the musical instruments that they used sounded very pleasant to the ears. Everyone in the church was actively involved during the mass; this was the first mass that I did not get sleepy. An interesting thing that I saw during the mass was that the people pray out loud to Jesus; but instead of asking him for something, they thank him for what he has given them. When the mass ended, we got ready and headed for the road again; our next stop was Ayunpa.

The next morning we visited a leper disease village; on our way there I saw a lot of the wood houses that the Montagnard live in. As we turned the road into the village, I could see that the houses had cracks in between the two wood wedges and you could see into the houses. Immediately I thought to myself, what a life they must have and for sure that I can’t live a life like that. This was the first time that I had close contact with people that have leprosy; those children didn’t choose to have this condition but it was passed down to them by their parents. Looking into their innocent eyes made me feel helpless; there was nothing that I could do to stop the tragic future that was in store for them. All we could do was to bring as much laughter into their lives as possible. The children were happy as we passed out candy, stuffed animals, and balloons; with these worthless items we were able to receive their laughter, a priceless treasure. I will never forget the memories of that day. The children were crowded around me waiting for me to give them their presents; oh the commotion in the air was mixed with the smell of dirt and sweat on the children. The image of the children running toward me to shake my hand is engraved in my head, because this was a sign that they were not afraid of me and that they were opening their hands for me so I could lend them my helping hand.

That afternoon was my first time spending the night at a village in Krong Pa. I stayed at Tram’s house for 4 days and 4 nights; Tram’s family lives in a traditional wood house that they built by hand. Tram and her family were very kind and welcoming toward me; we were strangers and yet they still took me into their loving arms. I had a blast while I was there. I experienced field work; I helped cut wheat in the field, and watched them graze cows on the open plain. Harvesting wheat is tough work because it involves back bending, over heating under the sun, and getting your feet stuck in the mud.

I witnessed a funeral in the village. Funerals are very simple, the night before the corpse is buried, everyone in the village gathers at the family’s house to pray. There is music and dancing all night long; people stay awake all night to comfort the family with their loss.

I had the chance to walk down the rocky cliff where the villagers get their drinking water. It was very hard for me to walk up and down that cliff, but it was so easy for the little girl that was gathering water there. She was wearing heavy bottles of water on her back while she walked up that hill, and the sight of her riding off on her bike is a sight I can never forget. At such a young age she was already burdened with chores while other fortunate children play and live a carefree life.

The people in this village live a very simple life; they help each other harvest their fields in return for their help when they need to harvest theirs. Children that can’t go to school graze cows or find other work to help out the family financially. The people care for the environment, they do not use chemical fertilizer on their crops; they only use cow dung. They have their own field for human feces, and that field does not smell. The night before I left the village, the prayer group in the village had a special gathering to say farewell to me. At the meeting, we sang and shared stories about our lives, and exchanged addresses so we could keep in contact. I had a very great time that night, and I will cherish the friendships that I built there.

My last stop was back to Pleikly where the 40^th Years Anniversary mass was held. The festival was very lively, with many activities and good food; there were about six thousand people that attended this event. There were people singing, dancing, and chatting all around me. I had made some friends at the event who I kept in contact with during my time in Vietnam. From this trip I’ve learned the importance of educating the Montagnard so they can protect themselves against the greedy government that wants to take away their land and freedoms. I have to say that this is the best journey to Vietnam that I could ever have; the experience and the knowledge that I gained will last me for life.

September 27, 2012

Kieu Ngan Nguyen