Marist Asia Foundation

  • Home
  • News
  • The Marist Mission in Ranong
    • Education
    • Health
    • Migrant Support
    • Pastoral care
    • Newsletter
  • Marist Community
  • Friends
    • Partner School
    • Partner Parish
  • Volunteers
  • Donate
    • Small Change Big Difference
    • Major giving
  • Contact Us

Behind the ‘TANAKA’

posted on November 7, 2012 by admin
Leave a Comment

One of the first things that caught my attention when I arrived in Ranong, Thailand in June 2010 was the white painted faces of children, men and women. Later, I knew that those white painted faces were distinctive to Myanmar people. The cream they use to paint their faces is called “tanaka”.

Tanaka is a yellow brownish paste made of a fragrant ground bark from Tanaka tree. The paste is applied on face, neck, arms and legs to moisture the skin and protect from the sun. It has been used for over 2000 years in Myanmar.
Wearing tanaka symbolizes beauty, culture and tradition among Myanmar people. Young and old, men and women are wearing tanaka on their faces.                                                                                                                                               

Living in Ranong for more than two years, I see the real faces behind the tanaka; faces of suffering HIV-Aids patients, neglected youth and children and exploited workers. They are the underprivileged people from Myanmar who live in Ranong as migrant workers.

Yet despite of the difficult situations where they are in, one can see how they bear all those hardships for the sake of, at least, experiencing a better life that they haven’t experienced in their own country.

Teaching the students at MEC and relating with other people enables me to immerse much deeper into their own situation. Students and our Burmese staff whose parents, brothers and sisters are in Myanmar, or working somewhere in Thailand, mother and father separated from each other, hide their loneliness behind the “tanaka”.

Tanaka, once applied to the skin, gives a cooling effect. It makes someone feels beautiful. As I perform my task as a teacher and as a friend, somehow I am able to help them realize that there is something greater, something good in life than the difficulties they experience. I like them to see that life is beautiful spite of the ugliness they feel in own lives.

As we continue our work amongst the Myanmar migrant workers in Ranong, our presence may give a soothing effect to the difficulties they carry. We may somehow be a “tanaka” to them.

 

 

 

_________________________________________                                                                                                                                             

“Rev. Arnold Garferio, sm is a Marist deacon. He was the first Filipino Marist to be ordained as deacon in Ranong, Thailand.  In this article, he reflects on his journey on mission in the Thai-Burma border. This journey was part of his  Marist Mission Experience (MME) in Ranong, Thailand. “

Filed Under: News

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Recent News

  • Growing Hope – 2020 Annual Report
  • Stories and Smiles – 2020 Report
  • It was one of the most absorbing, stimulating, and educationally connecting experiences in our professional lives.
  • Stories of Hope: Marist Asia Foundation Annual Report 2019
  • I will not let the words ‘no chance’ control my life.

Marist Asia Foundation

Ranong is a fishing village in the South of Thailand where migrant Burmese come to escape conflict and poverty in their own country.

The Marist Mission Ranong seeks to help Burmese refugees by offering educational opportunities, supporting their basic health needs, and assist migrants as they seek a better future for themselves and their children.

The Marist Mission Ranong is an initiative of the Society of Mary and it relies heavily on the involvement of its friends and supporters.

Recent news

  • Growing Hope – 2020 Annual Report
  • Stories and Smiles – 2020 Report
  • It was one of the most absorbing, stimulating, and educationally connecting experiences in our professional lives.

Search

Tags

ACU Among the poor Burmese Migrant Children Burmese Migrants Burmese Migrant Workers Education Education Programmes Elections Graduation HIV/AIDS Marist Mission Marist Mission Ranong Migrants Myanmar Online learning Online Learning Programme Refugee camps Small Change Big Difference University Online Diploma Volunteer Vulnerable Children
Copyright © 2023 · Marist Mission Ranong. Developed and hosted by Church Resources NZ.