The Landons completed their first quarter of study, which they did in two months. As it turned out, Kenneth completed in one year a three year language program.
Margaret recalls her visit to the prison with Kenneth. She describes the inside of the prison, the people they saw and the conditions in which the prisonners lived.
After the vacation the Landons returned to Bangkok and began to prepare to move. Everybody started to entertain them, having in mind that they would soon be gone. There was quite a "confab" as to where they were going to go, but the Landons did not…
Kenneth and Margaret perform the Burmese Gospel chant they learned when they were young. They have no idea what it means. A group of young Siamese taught Kenneth one sentence in their language.
Kenneth and Margaret once had the whole church over to their home "for a frolic." They had a fun time playing American games with the Siamese. They intended to do that often, but were not able to do so the way the Dunlaps did: a frolic at every full…
A story from the Thailand years. The Landons had a leper who used to come and beg. He would come once a week to the Landons' house and stand under the veranda, begging. The man came weekly for several years, never any more than once a week. One day…
John Eakin asked the king to give a speech in English, and he replied that he could do so if Eakin would give a speech in the Siamese langugae. Eakin was just beginning his time in Siam, but he managed to have a speech written in perfect Siamese. At…
Kenneth tells about a life-insurance plan he bought in Bangkok. The plan was to have 11,000 worth policy by the time he was 52. They ate up that money during a year long unemployment (Margaret believes they kept part of it). Kenneth and Margaret talk…
Margaret and Kenneth witnessed a cremation ceremony. The actual cremation usually took place only after a couple of months or a year or several years. It was costly to afford the cremation, so many families could not get enough money for it until a…
The Thai loved festivals. The King's birthday, November 8, was a great celebration that lasted three days. They had built a 150 foot mountain that was believed to be the center of the world.
Margaret reads about E. P. Dunlap and his work in Siam. His first convert was a devout Buddhist who had turned away from his idols and entrusted his life to the "Great Spirit." He was one day trying to repair a Buddhist idol when all of a sudden it…
In May 1930, Kenneth wrote concerning his father and dresses. Margaret tells of the fine dresses Victorine Smith had picked up for Brad to send to Margaret. Brad deemed them too expensive and returned to the store to exchange them for cheaper dresses…
Margaret returned to Dr. Toy's story. He worked for the government and drew a lot of money. His first wife bore him four children and died. He remarried and had six more children. The last king died and Dr. Toy was laid off. He decided to become an…
Margaret tells about the missionaries she describes as giants with extraordinary abilities. Dr. McCain and Dr. McDaniel were pioneers in setting up asylums for the lepers who were just ignored by society. They had wonderful ministries and were…
Dr. Bulkley had a passion for animals. He really wanted to be a doctor for animals, not human beings. Kenneth tells the story of his first visit to the Bulkley's house. He noticed many tiger skulls sorted from smallest to biggest. He hunted them…
Mrs. Snyder had a tendency to make it clear that she thought things were better when she did them. Margaret tells about yard work with the coolies, and the young man who came for the book of Daniel.Â
Margaret wrote of picking a ripe jack fruit that was huge like a watermelon and entirely filled a pail. She briefly describes the fruit, larger than a durian fruit.
Brad was most alarmed when Kenneth retired from the mission field. He thought Kenneth and his family were going to come back and be a charge on him. He was planning to sell the house and prevent that from happening. This, of course, was the last…
Bill never had Peggy's social instinct; it was just born in her. Bill was always self-absorbed and he was so busy from the day he was able to get around. By the time he was two he was really maneuverable and showed a gift for language.
Margaret tells about Bill as a baby. He was slow but focused and determined. He would crawl around and follow the servant's motions while she was working. One day Bille became so fascinated by the motion of the mop that he wanted to catch it, but the…
Kenneth and Dr. Bulkley had an exotic dinner with tiger, crocodile, elephant, monkey, cobra, and rat meat. They decided that the cobra meat was the best; it tasted like chicken.
The whole year in Siam was filled with holidays, to the amazement of the Landons. The Thai enjoyed holidays and had incorporated foreign holidays into their calendar. They could stop working and have a wonderful time. They just loved Christmas, not…
The Landons inadvertently paid their servants more than necessary. By the time they left the town, one of their servants, Ah Sim, owned three shops on the marketplace. She hadn't owned any when she came to the Landons.
Margaret talks about her servant Ah Sim. She couldn't read but was very bright. She would keep the market list in her head. Kenneth was keeping track of the market. Once Kenneth was away for six weeks. Upon his return Ah Sim gave him a report of her…