Greetings from Thailand!

I am becoming more convinced that of the importance of happiness and humor in our lives.

If I am happy, everything I see or experience is filtered through an optimistic point of view.

The opposite is also true, if I am unhappy, depressed, or irritable, 

then everything I see or experience is filtered through a pessimistic point of view.

Living in a new culture is hilarious (really).

The daily provision of comic relief is sometimes staggering.

And if I am happy, it provides a welcome laugh to my day.

But if I am not, it feels like the universe itself has conspired against me.

We need to laugh, and most of us need to laugh more (myself included).

I think God laughs a lot.

For many that may be a strange image, but the closer we look at life, the more I think we see the humor in God, and all around us.

And, if I may be so bold, the closer we come to Him, the more I think we will laugh too.

Laughter, like joy is contagious.

Let me see if we can share some with you.

Rainy Season has just started in Thailand.

We love rainy season, but there is a small tin awning just outside our bedroom that sounds like a snare drum every time it rains, which is not fun when you are trying to sleep.

A Thai friend told us of a simple solution, cover the awning with some material which deadens the sound.

Easy enough, Mr. Fix-it to the rescue!

It seemed like a good idea to stand on the fence and try to reach up to the awning.

But the Pound's are not blessed with height.

So I decided I would get on the roof and work down to the awning.

But it was raining.

Thankfully, I have a sensible wife who suggested rain and roof was probably not a good combination.

But unfortunately, I am a man, and therefore subject to fits of ignoring good advice.

I managed to shimmy up onto the roof, and quickly realized my wife's wisdom.  It was not only slick and steeply angled, but there were several suspicious creaking sounds and spots that felt not as strong as I would like.

I acknowledged defeat, and then tried to get back down.

And that was when I realized it is often easier to get up than down.

Thankfully, the fence around our house, just below the roof, has nice sharp, steel spikes sticking up.

I imagine it is usually a safety feature, but it felt like something very different at this moment.

Looking like something between a beached whale and a kid whose legs are too short to reach the ground, I awkwardly slide over the edge and searched desperately for something not spiky to put my bare feett on.

After this less than graceful decent, I gave my wife that smile husbands are so good at.

It says so much without even a word.

Something between, "Yeah, you were right, that was stupid" and "But you know that's just how I am and you love me anyway."

But then I caught someone else's eyes--the stunned, bewildered eyes of our gradma landlord next door.

She didn't say anything, but her look said a lot too.

I was embarrassed, but the humor of the whole thing eventually got to me.

This is how most cross cultural interactions go, whether we realize it or not.

Two sensible, intelligent people thoroughly convinced that the other person sees how sensible and intelligent they are, when in reality both are thinking:

"This guy's nuts!"

Humor is healing because it takes what is potentially frustrating, and turns into something at least endurable, and possibly even enjoyable. 

Humor sometimes seems like a shallow thing,  not really touching the deepest parts of us. 

Hard to think of the 3 stooges as profound, but perhaps, in a way, they were. 

Humor is chiefly about how we see and think about ourselves, and then others. 

This is where humor gets close to home.

I am terribly afraid of not being taken seriously. 

No one wants to be a joke, even if they love joking.

But if we don''t learn to laugh at ourselves, we are destined for a lonely, unhappy existence. 

We will either learn to laugh at ourselves or we will become more and more isolated. 

A good friend described two different ways of growing older.  

We either open up, or close up.  

He pointed out that when we open up, we can receive more.  

We actually cut off our ability to receive when we close up.  

Humor has a blessed way of opening us up, pushing back fear, and enabling us to enjoy the moment we have.  

Faithful Heart News:

Wow!  Has this been a full, fun season of life so far in 2018!

For 2 years Ben has had kidney dialysis 4-6 times per day, and been on a very restricted diet.

Just two weeks ago, he finally received a new kidney transplant.  

When I talked with him in the hospital, it was the happiest I have seen him in 2 years.  

He proudly showed me his scar saying, "Look how big it is!  Was your Dad's this big after his kidney problem?"

I assured him that he had my Dad beat for the biggest scar.  

But it is sheer joy to see this young man's life restored to him!  

We are also really excited about a couple who are preparing on coming to work at Faithful Heart this October.  He is a 3rd generation farmer, and the timing seems perfect to come help us develop the new land.  We are already dreaming of the possibilities.  

We are interviewing house parents for a new children's home and so far, just have not felt the right connection yet.  Please keep us in your prayers.  

And we are getting more excited to come visit all our friends and family in the US.  

Here is a rough travel schedule:

If you want to catch up in any of those places, please let Audrey or I know by email.  

We would love to see you.  

Thank you for your love and prayers.  

Lots of Love from Matt Audrey, Ezra, and Baby #2

Micah 6:8 The Message

 "But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, 

what God is looking for in men and women. 

It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, 

And don't take yourself too seriously - take God seriously."