Another Holiday--Meak Bochea

Today is the first holiday we have had for a while. Today was "Meak Bochea Day" in Cambodia. This  holiday falls on the full moon day of the third lunar month. Here is some of what we learned  about this holiday:

"Meak Bochea commemorates the ordainment of Buddha’s first 1,250 disciples who spontaneously came to see him and to listen to his sermon that day 2,500 years ago. 

"A good Buddhist will adhere to the precepts laid upon by Buddha, much like how followers of Christianity obey the Ten Commandments. Some of these precepts include avoiding consumption of alcohol, killing, stealing, lying and cheating."

With having the day off today seemed more like a Saturday than Saturday did. We stayed home for the morning and did some packing and cleaning in preparation for our move next week. About 10:00 we ran to the office for Elder Oveson to send a scanned document to the Area Seventy, Elder Woo. We also needed to go to Central Market for a couple of items before the move. At the market we found a celebration happening which traditional music played on the Roneat (Cambodian xylophone) and drums, and tables spread for the Buddhist offerings, including incense and candles. 

Tonight we were back to work with a Self-Reliance assignment. For the next 12 weeks we will be holding a Self-Reliance group with a sister in Vietnam. These courses are not available there yet, but she needs to complete the Education for Better Work in order to participate in PEF. We are happy to be able to fill our Self-Reliance calling!