Hurry up and wait. It’s difficult to sit backstage, fully costumed and ready to go. Expecting small children to do the same is asking for patience worthy of a saint.

I spied these two little girls sitting quietly outside ”in the wings”, as it were. They both turned simultaneously, casting a glance over their shoulders at several classmates who were expending their nervous energy in  a very different way, by playing a rather rough and tumble game of chase and tag.

We had come to Khun Chang Kien, a Hmong village with a prearranged purpose.  The owners of a local Chiang Mai tour company, Window of Thailand, had worked with a local charity to set up our visit. The company is a family business run by three sisters and a brother-in-law. Two of the sisters, Mayuree (left) and Chintana (right) Suwawan, who spent the entire day with us are pictured here. They went out of their way to accommodate several requests and certainly exemplified the best of Thai hospitality.

We had brought reading books and school supplies to donate to the local elementary school. The school administration had several things planned for us before the donation would be officially made and formally received.