Roygatone Festival

The Roygatone Festival is a buddhist holiday celebrated November 24th. It's celebrated all over the country. I celebrated it in Mae Ramat. Me and Terra took the truck to drop off about 10 of the girls at their school and then we headed to Mae Ramat to see the happenings. We had to drop the girls off at their school in Mae Jaroung because they had to get ready to do a dance. They were all going to be part of the parade that was going through Mae Ramat for the celebration. Once we arrived at Mae Ramat we got to see everyone setting up for the parade. A couple of our Agape children were already there. It was so exciting seeing them all there. I was so proud of them. I found out I'm going to be that annoying mom that embarasses my children. As we saw the kids I was hooting and hollering for them and hugging them and kissing them and telling them how proud I am of them and how excited I am to see them in the parade and that they're going to do an awesome job. They kept laughing at me. I told them I was going to yell their names when they walked by me in the parade. My kids are all going to be embarrased by me, but at least they'll know how much I love them and how proud of them I always will be.

Anyways, as we waited for the parade to start (we got there at 4 and the parade didn't start until about 8) we learned what the festival is all about. The buddhists celebrate Roygatone as a way of letting go of all the bad things in their life. They make little flower boats and they put money into them and send them down the river.

As they send their flower boat they send all the bad things in their life right along with it. It's like a new beginning for them. If they only knew all the bad things could be forgiven and forgotten forever with Jesus. They wouldn't only be gone once a year when they're put into a flower boat, but they would be gone and erased "as far as the east is from the west" every day.

As we waited for the parade to start we walked all the way up and down the parade line. Everyone was standing there ready to start the parade. It was awesome because we got to stop and look at all the floats, talk with all the people, and get some great pictures. We wouldn't have been able to take such great pictures or anything while the parade was in motion. It was a blast! A couple of the teachers from the Huai Bong school met me and Terra in Mae Ramat and we all watched the parade together. It was so funny because as we watched the parade, the parade seemed to be watching me and Terra. So many people that were marching in the parade came up to me and Terra and asked to take a picture with us. Here we were admiring them and they were admiring us. It was really funny! As the parade continued on we began to see our Agape children and there went me screaming their names and cheering for them and taking tons of pictures and videotaping them just like any proud parent! They did such a good job!

After the parade finished, the teachers took me and Terra to a lovely dinner in a restaurant alongside the river. As we ate we began to see some of the flower boats floating down the river. They put candles inside the boats so they looked beautiful as they lit up the Moei River. We finished dinner and we went and got our own flower boats to send down the river. Kruhawm made me and Terra our very own flower boats. I really enjoyed sending my flower boat down the river. All I sent was my flower boat because I already have a savior who doesn't reside in a flower boat. A couple of the Agape girls also sent their boats down the river. It was fun watching the river fill up with more and more flower boats.

After our flower boats were out of sight, we walked to the big celebration. It was like a fair. They had rides, games, shows, and it all ended with the grand finale of fireworks. It's funny how different they do things in Thailand. The fireworks were lit practically 1/2 a mile from where I was standing and exploded right above my head. I think I could even feel the heat from them. I think in America we have laws for how far away the fireworks have to be lit, and I'm sure we were breaking that law here :) It was a really pretty firework show though.

After the show we all piled back into the truck and made our way home. We were all exhausted, the girls more than us as they walked for two hours and danced. They all looked beautiful though, even with being so tired. As we drove home the girls chatted and sang beautifully in the back of the truck. The perfect ending to a wonderful day!!

*****I uploaded some pics from the festival, check them out if you get time!!!