Work and Fun ("Sanuk") at Mahidol University

"People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing"

Dale Carnegie

"Sanuk" (สนุก) or "Fun," is a universal value in Thai culture. Beyond a sense of fun, a feeling of pleasure and satisfaction in life's activities is encompassed in the word สนุก. I am having so much fun here in Thailand - at the university, home, and after-work adventures.

It's been so fun to work at Mahidol University this past week. The administrators, faculty, and staff have welcomed me ceremoniously and genuinely. I am so excited about collaboratively working with this amazingly dedicated team.

Here's a little bit of information about Mahidol University:

• It is one of the top global universities in the world (top 1/4 of those ranked).
• It is the #1 global university in Thailand.
• It is known for its excellence in the hard sciences, especially infectious diseases and immunology, but it is also highly ranked for social sciences.
• They have a reputable international school. When I was talking with students from Germany and Norway, they said it felt like high school. I asked "Why?" and one of them responded, "They don't lecture at us. They make us engage with other students, so we can't sit on our phones." Isn't that AWESOME? Engaged learning at the university! I LOVE IT! 
• The students wear uniforms: white shirts, navy blue skirts/pants. 
• The campus is HUGE - 520 acres with a shuttle that runs throughout the day so you can get from one side of the university to the next. Note to self: Don't try to take a shortcut to the other side of campus when it's dusk; some gates are closed at that time. 

Mahidol University at Dusk
(I wasn't really that lost.)

• Every Friday they have a large outdoor market with endless Thai food stands, American-style breads, treats, drinks, household goods, and clothing. 
• They are building tennis courts right behind our institute's building. Unfortunately, they have only a few workers on the job, and I don't anticipate the courts being ready until after I return home. 

A highlight of my week was getting to teach the preschoolers during reading and playtime (3 different groups of students). Many of them are children of faculty and staff, but some come from the community. It's important in the Thai educational system that all children learn English. Having a native English speaker as the teacher is even more valuable. It filled my heart with joy to see these children excited about learning English, talking with me in Thai and in English, and having them spontaneously give me hugs after class ended.

Teaching Preschool Students

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Getting Hugs from Mahidol Preschoolers

I was invited to observe the Nature-Based Education program established by the institute for a few children who live in a homeless shelter due to their parents being in prison. Monica, the master's degree student who took me to the on-campus school, told me that most kids in the shelter do not get to attend school -- and they can be in the shelter from 3 months to one year -- so having this small program is a huge blessing to those who attend. Hopefully, the program can expand so the kiddos in the shelter don't fall so far behind academically, socially, emotionally, and in many other ways. My heart goes out to these kids, and to the kids who have families, yet still live in poverty, like the sweet family I see who lives across the street. From my birdseye vantage point in my 4th-floor air-conditioned apartment, I see tin shacks and an outdoor toilet that serves the family (perhaps this is their home?), the kids playing with the dogs, playing in the dirt, and being cared for by mom, a street food vendor who lovingly does the girls' hair before school. How can these kids get out of the cycle of poverty except through having a high-quality education? Is education enough? What policies and practices need to change to lift these families? Questions like these -- especially with specific families in my mind -- are unsettling to my soul. 

  

With Monica, Nature-Based Education Graduate Student

   

Thai Mom Getting Kids Ready for School
                                       

Other fun stuff I did this week was providing feedback on a colleague's paper on the validation of a Thai version of a parent-child attachment instrument, giving a graduate student my attention so she could express some of the difficulties she is having with a particular relationship, and working collaboratively on our ethics review panel proposal. We need this approved to begin our research in a couple of weeks. I also had an adventure getting to and from church on Sunday (taxis, subway, ATM difficulties), but felt spiritually uplifted after engaging in so many deep conversations with others about trusting God to help us meet any challenge that comes our way. 

Being here in Thailand is sanuk!