Part of my job is to live well here in Thailand (seriously, it's in my job description). I am so thankful that this is part of my job because it doesn't make me feel guilty for taking an afternoon off in order to get groceries or a morning off to get my driver's license or the whole day off to get a visa extension. Working for an organization that allows you this kind of flexibility is pretty great.
The Family Connection Foundation (FCF) is also really fantastic because they strongly believe in keeping things legal. In a country where many laws aren't followed, especially by foreigners, I'm happy to work for an organization that tries there best to adhere to guidelines and work with the government to model transparency and stay legal. While this means spending extra money to make sure I have the proper visa, work permit and government documents and also means I have to spend a couple hours in the heat every couple months queuing to get said documents; I really appreciate FCF's dedication to following the vague visa and work permit laws.
A couple weeks back I spent about 3.5 hours at Immigration to get an extension on my visa (after spending the morning waiting at my house to here when I should arrive at Immigration). Thankfully this was an incredibly easy process for me because of FCF. There is a wonderful group of Thai staff who's jobs are to help foreigners navigate the visa and work permit system. They are so incredibly sweet and helpful! As I was waiting for my number to be called with one of these talented people, I reflected on what a blessing it was to have someone fill all the paperwork out for me and help me through the process. Yes, it is their job, but it is so nice to be taken care of in this way. I wasn't nervous for the encounter at all because I had someone walking me through it who had done this countless times before without any issues.
As I thought about how stressful and confusing it would be to try and fill the paperwork by myself, it hit me. I was kind going through the Thai equivalent of the US "green card" process. It's funny how the tables have turned ... I used to help Nepalese refugees go through the green card process in the states and now I was getting help to go through a similar process. The paperwork, while time-consuming, was not overly difficult to fill out for the green card process ... I imagine it's the same here. It is such an incredible blessing to be taken care of in this way, and it was a joy for me to care for refugees in Grand Rapids in that way.
I'd like to challenge you to see if there's a way you could get involved in "welcoming the stranger" and be a blessing in your area. As most of you reading this are from the GR or Harrisburg area, I can guarantee there are organizations working with refugees in your area (I could even give you the names of a few places) that would welcome assistance in helping refugees settle into life in America. I'd love to hear from you if you accept this challenge, or have a story to share from having a similar experience.
Grace and Peace!
Hannah
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