TWENTY-NINE-c
Brit - Reborn
Nai Tawn (นายต้อน - Mr. Shepherd,) Anna's Daddy, is the Village Chief Elder. He and two other Elders coordinate all the activities in the community. All three were past seventy and worked as hard as men thirty years younger.
The village operated as an informal co-op. The three trucks, that are ten years old each, the tractors, implements, four water buffaloes, various pieces of equipment and all the houses belong to the Chief Elder. The land and three catfish ponds are communal property. A jeep and a three-wheel modified scooter belonged to Steven. Six two-wheel scooters were the property of individuals.
A rot song thouw (รถสองแถว – Which means two benches. It is a little truck converted to a cross between a taxi and a mini-bus) comes to the village three times a day. It takes riders to the center of old Chiang Mai. The vehicle has a modified camping top with opened sides. It can transport six travelers with comfort or eight passengers cramped. The cost is ten Baht ($0.50) for the trip whether you travel one block or twenty kilometers. Until recently the residents of the community trudged by foot to make the trip. Many days found the sun pouncing with slaps of heat and the dust blinded them. The rains and wind sent waves that flooded the roads until man, woman and child sunk to their waists in mud. With these trips they shuddered with a tremor throughout their bodies. As they held back their screams, their hearts were almost exploding, and nearly all felt like their stomachs were filled with stone.
Steven and Anna funded the reinforcement and paving of the road from Chiang Mai to their adopted village. To Stephen it was a practical solution to a problem that plagued the town since its inception. To Anna it was an act of love for the people in the village. Most of the labor came from volunteers that lived near the road and Steven provided revenue from his royalties.
The solid pavement permitted the song thouws, tuk tuks, trucks and other vehicles to travel without being hampered by the weather. Most of their involvement with Americans previously was ugly and nasty. They loved Anna and Steve and the feelings were returned.
आप पढ़ रहे हैं
Shadows of Shelly
रोमांसHave you ever accused someone of something they did not do? Shelly did it, and it cost her years of agony. Will she be able to overcome her mistake? Will her life be dictated by that one perception where she was wrong? She is a beautiful young woman...
