Four days in Singapore: My Heart is Overwhelmed

It was nearly 30 years ago that a Singaporean man went to the US to study at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.  There, a friendship began with an American family with four kids: two boys and two girls.  His girlfriend came to visit, also staying with and spending time with the family.  After his studies he returned to Singapore where he married his girlfriend and they started a family: two boys and two girls.  To the family's children, he and his wife were always Aunt and Uncle, even though they saw very little of each over the years, and they all hoped for the day that they'd be able to visit the "magical tropical world of Singapore, an island city-state where it never gets cold".

When I made plans a few months ago to spend this past weekend in Singapore, I was a little nervous.  I had seen Uncle Pong once in the mid-90's, but that was at least 15 years ago and I have changed a lot since then.  My dad had visited them for a day or so a few years ago, but what would they think of me coming for a long weekend all these years later?  They were happy to have me stay with them, but still I was nervous- what would they be like now?  Would it be awkward?  I knew Singapore was a safe city with good public transport, so I was perfectly fine staying and visiting with them for a bit, but also going on my own if they needed to live their lives that weekend.  I didn't want to be a burden.  Would they think it strange that this little girl from their past would come and visit?  The worries melted away the moment I saw them at the airport and they welcomed me with open arms (literally).  

It just amazes me so much how God has woven our families together.  There was something so incredibly reaffirming this weekend about spending time with these people, all the way over here in Asia, who knew the little kid me and who love me for who I am.  It was such a blessing to talk to them about their kids and encourage them while also talking to them about life and faith and allowing them to encourage me. I truly felt like I was among family.  When we ate meals altogether the kids would bicker and banter and chat away completely comfortably, and I got to have little tidbits of conversation here and there with the girls especially- all of which made me fell quite at home. 

And it's that at home feeling that sticks with me as I re-enter life in Bangkok this week.  Knowing that I have a second home just a few hours away takes some of the edge off the transition to being here.  Their friendship and hospitality goes beyond what I can describe in words.  I mean, I'll write another post about all the fun activities we fit into my few days there, but the essence of the trip, that is beyond language.  What I also love was the sense that this weekend, this reconnecting, was the beginning of even greater things.  I look forward to being able to be a place they can visit in Thailand, and also to return trips to Singapore.  There is much left to be explored, especially if I am armed with a map and MRT card and a camera and a good book.  Being "at home" and feeling like family means that I'll be able to slip in without them having to rearrange their schedules and we can share times together as more a part of regular life. 

I have spent much of the past few days marveling at God's goodness, at the love and blessings he has poured out on me through Uncle Pong and Aunt Choon and their kids. There is a Hillsong song called My Heart is Overwhelmed, and that's about how I feel right now.  I just kept hearing those words over and over in my mind as I felt God's great gift of this weekend. For we know that "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."  James 1:17

Then: Uncle Pong and Aunt Choon with the four of us, circa 1989.

Now: Me with Uncle Pong and Aunt Choon and their four kids