Saturday, 31 August 2002
 Today was the first day of the Maryknoll Mekong Mission meetings and focused on the identity and values of the MMM which we had not reflected on for a couple years. In small groups and in the large group, we identified the values that are most important to us and which lead to the principles by which we operate as a group.
We had a liturgy at the end of the morning, with Charlie Dittmeier as the presider, and then in the afternoon we had reports from each of the sending groups. This year for the first time we added reports from our new partners, members from other sending groups in the Philippines and Canada who are working with us in close collaboration. It was a new and significant step in the development of the identity and ministry of the MMM.
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Sunday, 1 September 2002
 On this second day of MMM meetings, we looked again at various aspects of our MMM structures and procedures, and then in the afternoon we had reports from the Burma committee, the continuing education committee, and the advocacy committee. The Vietnam region was responsible for the liturgy today.
At supper tonight we celebrated the seven birthdays of members that will occur in the next week or so. The spotlight was on Sr. Meg Gallagher, working with women's issues in Thailand, who celebrated her 80th birthday. Her comment: "Contrary to what some of my colleagues are saying, I am NOT older than God!" Good on ya, Meg! (Rachel Smith is in the photo with Meg.)
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Sunday, 1 September 2002
 We moved through our agenda faster than expected the last two days and so a decision was made to end our meetings a day early. Now all of us will be returning to Bangkok and then on to Phnom Penh tomorrow night instead of the following day.There was still enough to occupy us at our full day of meetings today, however. One item of discussion, in addition to the necessary setting of a schedule for the next meeting, was the concept of a new grouping of Maryknoll countries in Asia, an entity that some are starting to call Asia South. We established a group to look at this before our next meeting to see how we might best proceed. Now it's time to pack up and get ready to go!
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While the MMM members from Cambodia and Vietnam were making their way south to Hua Hin, the Thailand members had an all-day meeting to discuss Thailand issues. Here Cece Aguilar Ortiz explains the new MMAF Strategic Plan. A good number of the Thailand Maryknollers had come as a group on a bus yesterday after completing a five-day workshop on Buddhism at an ashram near Bangkok. The venue for these September meetings was the Salesian Retreat Center, the usual place for MMM meetings because of its low cost, good accommodations--and nearness to the ocean!