TV 3

Day before yesterday we were asked to do a 40 minute live talk show on the topic of abortion in Mongolia. Leave it to Mongolians to tell you the day before. But since it was about abortion, Hetee and I didn't want to reschedule. We were born ready!

We were nervous but the day started like any other which helped calm my nerves. A sink full of dirty dishes, kids' toys everywhere, and unannounced company were the order of the day.

Around 4 we took the kids to my parents' house where they would be spending the night. Hetee and I made plans to have dinner at The Empire following our 7 pm TV studio appointment. Since we were all dressed up and it was Friday night and all. =)

We came home, got dressed and got our ideas together. Hetee downloaded a presentation he made onto his phone for transport and we were ready. (It turned out to not be in the right format but they kept it and will air it later.)

We left home for the studio at about 6:25 in hopes to meet with the manager and staff. As it turns out the station manager's wife was 7 months pregnant with their second. She and I barely exchanged names and we were already talking about stomachs, due dates, and other things men would never talk about. We exchanged phone numbers and agreed to get together later this week. She and her husband signed up for my next birth class, too. =)

Quiet on the set...

The fact that we were going on live gave me the willies. But the Mongolian public has been hungering and thirsting for the truth about abortion so I was almost positive that we wouldn't be getting any prank callers. It was one of those "I was born for this" moments. Even so, Hetee and I are not TV people and we were definitely stepping out of our comfort zones.

As we were talking about fetal development, the phone rang. I held my breath and concentrated hard to hear what the caller was saying. Sometimes I can't understand Mongolian too well on the phone because I can't see the movement of the person's mouth. But this time he spoke slowly and I understood everything.

The caller was gushing as he spoke about how he and his wife visited our home months earlier when she was pregnant and everyone was telling her to have an abortion. He said that I comforted them and gave them hope with my advice (this is where my eyes started welling up with tears). He said they went to UB to give birth because the Darkhan doctors would not take them. They now have a perfectly healthy daughter and his wife is doing well also. All of this ON THE AIR!!!

I took this opportunity to talk about how people and doctors counsel women to abort just to stay on the safe side when something is wrong. I told my own story with Abi (one day I'll go into it here) and encouraged women out there to protect their children from such doctors and to give their babies a fighting chance.

After that the phones really started ringing! We had a few callers who wanted to meet us at our house, too. =)

Hetee talked about sexual abstinence before marriage and staying pure for your future spouse. A concept that is virtually unheard of in Mongolia. The man doing the interview was so mesmerized that we went over time 5 minutes! We cut into their next program!

Everything we said was so well received and we give God the glory. We were invited back to teach our abstinence course (13 classes) and air them as well. So it looks like we'll be getting to know the station manager and his wife and the crew of TV 3 a lot better. One of them asked if they could come to church next Sunday.

After the taping, at about 8:30 pm we headed over to our favorite place, The Empire. We ate an entire pizza and basked in the glow of our cell phones that were going off non-stop. Our church members were calling and text messaging to let us know they watched and were proud of us. One lady from my G12 didn't have a TV so she asked the neighbors if she could watch with them. She texted me to let me know that her neighbors would be visiting our church on Sunday. =)

At The Empire there was live music (loud!) and lots of people. We even spotted a celebrity. During this whole time I had my camera but Hetee and I are notoriously bad picture takers. We forget or just don't feel like it. Then we kick ourselves. So at the moment we're kicking ourselves for not taking pictures of the TV thing. Oh well; next time.

Well, I'm off to pick up the kids...

Till next time! Here's to saving lives!