What Happens When: your mission is actually a game of Fear Factor

Hello everyone! How are you? Enjoying the cold I hope!

So to explain this weeks episode in "what happens when you're in cambodia", lets start with a short review from the weeks leading up to my report date. When I opened my mission call, my family started saying that I was leaving on a mission to live in a hut with big spiders and eat rats. And then it became kinda funny to think that may be a possiblity, so we started just joking about it more and more and I would always say, "ÿeah, I'm ready to go eat the rats" ...... and when I got to the country, I could'nt help but think how wrong I was. We as missionaries, are well taken care of. We (for the most of us) live in way nice air conditioned houses with running water and we eat good, safe food. So I thought there is no way that joke about living in a hut and eating rats would ever come true. Until I got sent on an exchange that made that whole joke come true..... ! This week I went on 2 exchanges. 4 if you count the temporary ones where Sister Fields was in a meeting for a few hours or the day me and Sister Seoun took over both areas for a bit so Sister Fields could help sister Seouns companion get some medicine. And on one of these exchanges, I was companions with 2 super awesome khmer sisters. Sister Suen and Sister Kosal. They are awesome. and super into eating whatever... little did I know this would be the most interesting 24 hours of my life in regards to food. I had this passionfruit "my boy"drink at an investigators house. "my Boy" is a brand of sweetened condensed milk. and Cambodia is literally OBSESSED with it.. I once saw a man eating a my boy sandwich. 2 pieces of bread with a whole gob of condensed milk in the middle. ohh yum. I thought the drink was actually way good and I was super excited when Sister Kosal told me we would be eating really yummy food that night. And then we pulled over to a cart with ducks, chickens, and all the inner organs of a pig frying on a grill. The guy at the cart pulls down the duck, chops off the head, puts the head in a plastic bag, and sold it to the guy in line in front of us... I was questioning what we were going to buy. Then I got distracted with my camera and didn't actually see what Sister Kosal had purchased, so I guess I was in for a surprise when I got home. During the rest of the exchange, we met some really cool people. Investigators and members, and we even ended up being invited into a non-members house and we taught them the first lesson. That does not happen in this country very often. So yipee! It went really well! I have learned a lot from exchanges and I'm super glad I get to go on them so often because Sister Fields is a Sister Training leader. ok.. back to the food story. I know you all want to hear it.

I am usually all in for eating the weird things, dog, eel, squid, you name it, I probably ate it before. BUT after staying the night in Sister Kosal's house, I can say I have eaten Pig ear, tongue, intestines, blood (NASTY), and last but not least..... RAT. I ATE RAT. I actually probably have been eating it this whole time and no one told me. Either they didn't know it was rat meat or they just don't care to tell me because it is totally part of the norm here. BUT I ATE IT! We got called to clean the church saturday morning before exchanging back, so I went along and helped and as a prize for our service, the bishop handed us these hotdog looking things. Actually they were wrapped in printer paper with a rubber band holding them together. so natually they had to be kinda sketch. The bishop looked right at me and asked it I like these, and of course I will eat anything, so I said yes. We sat down to eat and I thought it was actually decent for a hot dog with veggies in it. and then Sister Kosal pulls out this piece of the hot dog. It is cut like a cheese slice and she is trying to tell me something about it but I can't understand. And she keeps asking "do you like it? are you sure you like it/"" and I really did think it was good. so I just kept eating. And then she explains that her neighbor makes the meat that goes inside these and that the meat is actually squished rat....

and then I didn't feel so good. but all I could do was laugh it off and say, "well add that to the list"

so there you have it. I ate rat. And I lived in Sister Kosal's house where I walked in and stepped on 2 lizards before I made it to my bed. not just one, TWO! can this be compared to to a hut? maybe. My dreams are coming true in this country. haha. Too much fun. The work is still going strong. We are hoping for a baptism at the end of this month for KimSia. not too much else to tell because I went on so many exchanges. Transfers are this week so we will see what will happen there. Have a great week,

I love you all!

Love,

Sister Haddock

THE Cart of Pig parts

Swensons is an Icecream place and it is crazy famous and yummy. Everyone's gotta go sometime, and on an exchange with Sister Young she made sure to take me there.

Sister Nguyen and Sister Pace from the original district and Me eating american food on our 5 hour exchange. Missed them lots.