Vietnamese Territory

On Friday (12.12.14), I had the entire day off which is rare for me so I decided I would have a productive day out in service with my sweet soul Kim. She invited me out earlier that week but we decided Friday would be the best day.
We were to go out in service in the afternoon to Kim’s Vietnamese territory. I don’t speak Vietnamese, but I was very excited to see how things would go and also to be with Kim since we never really have any girl time.

When I first arrived at her house, she had a surprise waiting for me. She made me Vietnamese Iced Coffee which I really enjoyed.

After small talk, we loaded up in her car and looked over her territory so we could plan our route.

Once in the territory, we made our way through the homes that were, Vietnamese Speaking Only. 

I have to be honest, compared to English territory, Vietnamese territory is more welcoming. Even if the householder had a different belief or wasn’t too much interested, they let Kim speak to them, ask questions, share a scripture, would respond, they would even offer her to come in.

Kim was killing it at the door. She literally placed something with everyone she spoke to.

I couldn’t learn much of the language, but I did learn how to say, “Chao,” which is how you would begin and end a conversation like hello and goodbye.

We were out for about two hours when we decided it was time for lunch.

Needless to say, it was my first time trying Vietnamese food. I was a little nervous because I didn’t want to offend Kim but I was praying I would like whatever she would recommend.

We had, Hu Tieu at Kim’s recommendation and it was amazing!

The colors, the smell, the ingredients, it was all so wonderful.

It was an amazing sight, it also didn’t hurt that I had a pretty girl to accompany me.

After our meal, we stayed at the restaurant to talk about our lives, family, friends, hectic schedules, past, etc. We had a deep and heavy conversation and it left both of us in an emotional state but with my wits, and her mild spirit, I was able to make her laugh until she couldn’t breathe.
We didn’t realize how much time had passed by so we called it a day in service and I thought the night was going to end but Kim insisted we go get some Boba which is like a smoothie/bubble tea drink. Again a first for me, but I was willing to try anything.

Kim took me to Vietnamese Mall which I was ecstatic about.

Inside the mall we found our Boba spot.

So many different choices, I didn’t even know where to start so I let Kim choose.

She chose Taro, and it was so good!

After our Boba, we went into the Vietnamese Supermarket.

I think I questioned Kim every two minutes about what everything was.

I fell in love with all the dishes and I told her someday I’m going to own a whole set!

Once our supermarket adventure was over, Kim surprised me again and took me to Firewheel Mall where we went into, “World Market,”  which is a huge store with trinkets and goodies from all over the world.

Once we explored around in the store, Kim decided it was time for a snack.

We had my favorite pretzels and headed over to Barnes and Noble where we discussed our favorite books and why we enjoyed them so much. (Hers is, “The Longest Ride,” by Nicholas Sparks by the way.)

Our night ended in Kim’s home with me meeting her extended family.

There’s a lot of things I could say about Kim but I think my favorite thing about her is that she is so warm and loving. She shows true sincerity and she’s so gentle and kind. I really admire those qualities about her because not everyone can be kind. I myself struggle with those qualities and seeing her set such a great example, she is a wonderful encouragement to me. She has been a wonderful sister to me and she puts up with my strict ways and continues to love me, flaws and all. She has the sweetest soul.

“Look! You are beautiful, my beloved.
Look! You are beautiful. Your eyes are those of doves.”
-Song of Solomon 1:10

Xoxo

-R. Vargas