Ric and Sharon Bruce On a journey with you to Thailand We had a great time of fellowship, worship, prayer and encouragement with our Thai church this weekend. It made our first Easter in Thailand and away from family much easier. The best part was this weekend showed us that all our hard work is paying off as people around us began to notice our language ability growing. We’re slowly getting out of that awkward first stage of language learning where you’re no fun to be around because you don’t speak the language but you need to speak the language so you can get better. Below are some pictures but be sure to check out the YouTube video too. Enjoy.
Posts Tagged ‘Sharon’
Turning a Corner in Thai
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Saturday, December 11th, 2010This week we reached the 26th lesson in our Thai language program. We don’t go to a school to learn Thai. Our language helper comes to our house and we begin a complex lesson we’ve prepared for him to teach us. Each lesson takes about two hours and generally speaking involves us asking our language helper what is happening in a picture and him explaining it in Thai. After we can easily point to the appropriate pictures as he says their description in Thai we then record him saying the description and match those recordings with the pictures we printed for our session in the computer.
Although all this sounds complicated… it’s really not too bad. Anyways. Lesson 26 we added a new element: speaking. Imagine that. We’ve been here two months and we only know how to say a few simple survival phrases in Thai. That’s all changing. We’re beginning the long process of speaking after listening our language helper’s voice say these words and phrases many, many times. Check out the video embedded below on our website or at youtube.com of Sharon speaking and our helper correcting her pronunciation.
Pictures from Loy Krathong 2010
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010Knee Update
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Sunday, October 31st, 2010The biggest update on my knee is that tomorrow evening I will see the doctor for the first time since surgery. It feels fine although the regular post-surgical nuisances apply: atrophy of the muscles in my leg, bruising, soreness, numbness, etc. I am anticipating the doctor will remove my stitches tomorrow and get me on a therapy regimen at the hospital where the operation took place. We will update again with more details tomorrow night. In the meantime if you enjoy pictures of gross, atrophied knees or are curious about how it looks check out the pictures here: http://picasaweb.google.com/ricandsharon/ChangingTheBandages#
The Hospital in Pictures
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Wednesday, October 20th, 2010We’re out of the hospital! It was an amazing experience really… but we’re glad it’s over. Here are some pictures of our experiences. Enjoy.
Us
Waiting for surgery
View from our hospital room
Our language helper visiting.
What the Dr. did.
Up close and personal.
Breakfast.
Over the Atlantic Ocean
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Sunday, October 3rd, 2010If you’re reading this soon after we posted it we’re probably somewhere over the Atlantic on our way to Thailand. Since it’s half-way around the world you can really go either way. We picked the cheapest at the time. 
Basically, here’s the deal for at least a few days. Please pray for us. We have a lot of adjustments: friends to meet, new foods to try, and a foreign language to pick up. We appreciate your comments, concern and notes. Please forgive us if we’re a bit tardy in replying to them while we get on our feet. We love you all! -Ric and Sharon
Vonage
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Saturday, September 25th, 2010
What is this mess of wires? Well, that’s our new home phone from Vonage! Some of you may have heard of this service and some haven’t.
It’s great: Free calls. To Thailand. To us. From you. OR Free calls. From Thailand. From us. To you.
It will be a great way to keep in touch, share our lives and keep you involved. The best part: It will be Ric’s cell phone number. Just keep it in your cell phone or address book and call us when you get the urge to hear our voices. Keep in mind that Thailand is exactly 12 hours from Eastern Standard time most of the year and that we won’t be answering during the middle of the night. Leave us a voice mail anytime, however, and we’ll be happy to call you back.
If you need our number send us an email at ricandsharon@gmail.com
Saying Goodbye
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Sunday, August 22nd, 2010We spent a few days this past week saying goodbye to Sharon’s relatives in New York state and visiting my sister Sarah and her new husband Stephen in their apartment in Cleavland. Here are a few shots of Sharon enjoying our time with family:
Weekend at Torch Lake
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Tuesday, June 29th, 2010This past weekend Sharon enjoyed a girl’s getaway weekend with my sister Sarah and several of her friends. Sarah is getting married this weekend to a very cool guy from Ohio so it was great to send her off in style. The ladies camped minutes from the lake and enjoyed running down the steep sand dunes, canoeing on the glassy lake, and tasting local cuisine. I’ve been trying to convince Sharon to write an article about her experience and fill you in on the details. If you’d like her to say so in the comments.
Heart of a Spartan
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Sunday, May 2nd, 2010Sharon ran a race today. If you’d like to see pictures and her finish time head on over to our Picasa Web Albums.
Tricky Thai
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Wednesday, April 7th, 2010
John 3:16 in the Thai script
The national language of Thailand, Thai is spoken by about 60 million people in Thailand. Learning Thai is going to be Ric and my full time job for the first two years of our time in Thailand. There are many things in Thai that will make it very tricky for us English speakers to learn!
A facet of Thai that is very difficult is the fact that it is a tonal language. In tonal languages, the meaning of a word is determined by the pitch at which it is pronounced. An example is the word kao which means “news”, “rice”, and “white”. The distinction is in the tone. Kao means “news” when pronounced with a low tone, “white” with a rising tone and “rice” with a falling tone. Learning the right way to say the tone on words will take much time and practice!
Another major area that will be complicated is learning to read and write. Thai is written in its own unique alphabetic script which has developed from a script found in India. There are 44 consonants and 28 vowels. It is written across the page from left to right without spaces between the words. Certain vowels occur above the consonants and some occur below. Ric and I have been told that it would be most helpful to get familiar with the Thai writing system before starting official Thai study in Thailand. So we bought a book and have found some good websites. Everyday we are learning how to write some symbols and memorizing the sound that goes with them. At first, to me the Thai script looked like a bunch of squiggly lines and circles. Now, it is so encouraging because I can look at a paragraph and recognize the symbols that I have studied! The squigglys are slowly coming to life! Pray for us as we continue on this endeavor!
- Sharon
Some material from Teach Yourself Thai
Visiting Grandma
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Tuesday, April 6th, 2010
Me and My Grandma
This Easter we spent some time with my Grandma and family in New York! During this time of partnership development before we move to Thailand we are enjoying some quality time with family. Although we are so excited to start our ministry overseas the fact that we will be moving half-way around the globe away from family and friends is daunting. I always have to remind myself of why it is so important to reach those people who live so far away with the good news of Jesus Christ. God desires all to have a relationship with Him and there are many peoples who do not have that opportunity. The chance of the people groups that we are planning to work with of hearing about Christ and what He did for them is little to none unless someone goes to them. So with my mind fixed on that purpose, I can cherish the time spent with family and pray for the unreached peoples who may someday join the family of God!
-Sharon
Sharon’s Race in Ann Arbor
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Sunday, March 14th, 2010Sharon had a great 5 kilometer race today even though it rained a bit before and after the race. It was a great almost spring day in Michigan 35 degrees, wet and cloudy. She came in 22nd in her age group out of 97. A total of 1500 people ran in the event.
Florida and Ohio
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Saturday, February 27th, 2010This weekend Sharon decided to take a trip to Ohio with a close friend and leave me in Michigan. Here is what I could have been doing while she was gone:
Throwing snow
Deciding some urgent business in Florida couldn’t wait I opted instead to book a last-minute flight to stay with a friend and his family in central Florida. I have several objectives here in Florida. New Tribes Mission is headquartered in Sanford, Florida so I will be meeting with key leaders and friends there and networking with key individuals. I would like to get some good photos while I’m here and I’m meeting with members of our partnership team. Here is a sample of some of my photography so far:’
The Beach… Celebrating
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Tuesday, November 10th, 2009Last night we went to the beach to celebrate Sharon finishing her Cherokee analysis. It was great to walk along the boardwalk, splash in the waves, and feel free at last. Here are some pictures:
DONE, DONE, DONE
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Monday, November 9th, 2009
Sharon is done with her paper!
On the road finding internet is always a problem and when we do get it we snatch every precious second of it we can get. I’m in the process of adding pictures to our online albums, checking our email, updating our website, downloading important files and updates for my computer, and managing our contact lists from the churches we’ve visited. The most important thing I’m doing, though, is sending Sharons paper off to the grader’s. Here’s how it came in:
Pages: 115
Hours: 100+
Sharon is SOOO happy to be done. Now we party. We’re going to the beach and then shopping. Wednesday we will go to the aquarium here in town.
Norfolk, Virginia
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Sunday, November 8th, 2009We have been in Virginia with my brother Sam and his wife Kari since Thursday. This morning we presented our ministry at South Norfolk Congregational Community Church, the church they attend here. Tuesday is Sam’s 23rd birthday, so we’re very excited to be here for that as well. While here we’re doing what we do on the road: talking to people about our ministry, handing out our prayer cards, spending time with family, and Sharon is stealing as much time as possible to work on her Cherokee write-up which is due TOMORROW!!! She will likely be pulling an all-nighter tonight and then be exhausted in the morning.
This coming Friday we head to central Virginia to visit some very good friends and then will drive on to Tennessee on Friday. Please pray for Sharon as she finishes up her paper and for safety as we travel. Thank-you.
Settling In for the Long Haul
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Thursday, October 22nd, 2009
Sharon sitting down to sort through mounds of Cherokee data.
As Sharon sits behind me she alternately scratches her head, bounces her knees, and bangs some phonetic writing out on the keyboard. Today is her first full day of work after four full days of packing, cleaning, traveling, visiting, and unpacking. Outside the orange leaves on the trees are almost gone and rain is in the forecast for the next three days. In the kitchen is a pot of hot coffee and under Sharon’s feet a small space heater breathes warmly on her feet. Ideal conditions.
Now if only the computer would work right, the data would fit together perfectly, someone would spoon food into her mouth, and the kitchen would clean itself. Then it would be perfect, but that’s probably asking too much isn’t it?
Please pray that Sharon will be able to focus on her studies and finish her analysis of the Cherokee language before we hit the road in a few days!
Back in Michigan
Posted by Ric and Sharon on Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
Standing at the border of Michigan and Indiana
Have you seen the new sign at Michigan’s borders? We took this picture in front of it while we stopped for a much-needed break on our way back from Oklahoma. Maybe it’s a play on words with two meanings, one indicating that the state is very environmentally friendly and the other making it clear to all crossing the border that Michigan is not two states, but in fact is just one state (despite the fact that a lake separates its two main halves).
We are back in Michigan for a few days while Sharon works on her write-up of Cherokee. It will take a lot of concentration and effort on her part! While she is doing that I will be working on the house we’re living in with my dad and preparing for our next round of travels to Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas, and Arizona.
