In mid-December, Amber and I organized a Christmas party at both of our ethnic minority students’ houses.  At Amber’s, we taught the young women how to make a Christmas chain out of red and green rings of construction paper. Young children from a local missionary’s church stopped by to sing carols and dance the hula. We ate fried chicken, played music, sang, danced, and hung out until nearly midnight! For Christmas gifts, we gave each of Amber’s students a new longyi (long Burmese skirt), and they gave Amber and I each a handmade scarf.

For my students, we sat around the classroom table eating fried fish and chicken, playing the guitar, and singing Christmas songs in Burmese and English. My students gave me a traditional Karen shoulder bag, which Amber has begged me to buy for myself for months now. I will wear it proudly!

** Note: As always, for the safety and security of the students we teach, there are no photos of our students below.