That probably sounds negative, but it’s my honest assessment of the situation. Particularly at conference time it becomes glaringly apparent. I think things need to be fixed starting at the source–the MTC needs a pedagogical reassessment, and a stricter screening process for teachers, finding a balance between native speakers who understand the pedagogy and second-language speakers whose Thai is good enough (and understand the pedagogy). And then an actual study program for missionaries in the field. I have a few thoughts on this.

Hey, but you brought it up… ;)

sixline: Hmm, I think my mission experience was different — but maybe I was just oblivious to the pecking order and cliques. Interesting.

rikker: I’d love to go back. :) Yes, missionaries certainly have a different perspective on their mission country — because of the things you mentioned — but a lot of things are the same regardless of whether you’re a missionary or not. The food tastes the same. The rice paddies and tuk tuks look the same. The language mostly stays the same (albeit with an expanded vocabulary). So I agree, but I wouldn’t be so quick to discount the mission experience. :) And I do keep in touch with a lot of the members via Facebook, actually, but I am far too uninvolved with Thailand on a daily basis. I need to change that.

Most of all, though, recognize that the mission is an anomaly. You’ll never have the same relationship with Thailand or the people here again, and that’s kind of inescapable. Coming back is both good and bad.

For one thing, until you come back you don’t really know what Thailand is like. I honestly think that. When we’re missionaries there’s this false sense of heroism, this us-against-the-world attitude created by the monastic lifestyle of missionaries. That is, you’re not allowed to do perfectly normal things, so you associated value judgments to things that are, in reality, either neutral or not as we used to assess them on the mission. Things as simple as walking down the street at 10pm, or chatting with friends on the phone, or reading the newspaper, or going to a movie, or not being miserly, or having a conversation without the compulsion to bring up Christianity. It varies from person to person, obviously, but, you know, acting like you would in your hometown, except here.

I guess what I’m saying is that returned missionaries like to think they know what Thailand is like–and this applies by extension to all missionaries–but anyone whose only time spent here is as a missionary really has no idea. It’s an interesting phenomenon, really. The mission creates this person who knows all about certain aspects, but has no clue about others.

So by all means, come back. Remove that patina of romanticized memory. You’ll be glad you did, and you’ll come to know Thailand better in some ways in a short time than you ever did in two years.

I have only been to one mission reunion, and I just didn’t know how to handle it. I found it infinitely amusing that the pecking order still existed, as did many of the cliques that established themselves out there. I often wonder that since I didn’t attend BYU, or hail from Utah originally, that there was some big party going on between friends who went to my mission and that I was on the outside.

I don’t think I was liked very well, but that doesn’t matter. When I went back to visit in May a lot of the people I served remembered me. That was very important.