Back in Phnom Penh

I have returned to Phnom Penh. Five plus hours from Siem Reap to the capitol city in a 15-seat van. Regardless of what happens, this trip should fun

I love Phnom Penh it is a great city, very modern in so many ways that make life easier but also modern in ways that are troubling.

All the amenities of a modern urban world from cell phone shops and casket stores to large malls and street food vendors.

The city also exhibits the stark divide between; those who have access to materials, power, and prestige, those who serve the powerful, those who serve the servers of the powerful and those who, commonly, through no fault of their own, live on the periphery scratching out a living from what ever is left behind.

These levels are part of all urban societies. Being here, I am faced with the fact that I am part of the upper level at least in how I am able to move through this world.

As an outsider I am able to go just about anywhere and do just about anything as long as I’m willing to pay. If I want to eat, I can choose anything that fancies me, if I want to go somewhere, or a single concern about paying for a ride passes through my empty head.

Just come here…I get to suffer from jet lag, a first world problem. Sure, anyone can get it, if they can afford to fly across multiple time zones.

Although there a many doing well in terms of their integration into the larger global consumerist martial world, there are many who are not.

I guess what I’m saying is that most people here have to do some form of the hustle to get by; needing to find as many ways as they can to earn money. Getting creative… not just dance.

I don’t actually know what the hustle looks like so maybe this  

There is a lot of need out there. There are also a lot of people trying to help.

This trip I have had the pleasure of getting to know multiple Cambodians. Having more conversations one on one than ever before.

Time after time in every conversation, people talk about what they are doing to improve the conditions of Cambodia. My home stay family has several avenues leading toward bettering their community.

Dara works at The Global Child, where they give educational opportunities to children who may not have them otherwise. Their homestay helps fund that work.

Everyone working with Reconnecting Cambodia is focused on helping people heal from wounds that have lasted for many years if not half a century.

Tree, my brother (from someone who probably is another mother but also could be the same mother, we just don’t know), does so much and supports so many through his advocacy that it is impossible to believe that only success is in the future of my country.

The individual stories are many, and each has the power to inspires others to do more.

That is where I see myself. Repeatedly, I’ve been inspired to get involved but have lacked the follow through.  This trip has given this to me without me doing much. I hope that my contributions to Reconnecting have been positive.

Ultimately, my desire to help comes from my origin story, I suppose. The sacrifices of the World Vision Cambodia staff and their leader Dr. Stan Mooneyham. Their selflessness is what gave me a chance and started my lifelong journey to balance my scales. (As a refresher, I believe a life well lived is one where a person sacrifices more for others than others have sacrificed for them.)  In this regard I will never be balanced.

Although I will never pay back my debts, I’ve always wanted to contribute to the work of World Vision. In the past I’ve attempted to get involved but was never successful. Not to throw anyone under the bus, but I feel it wasn’t on my end…

Anyway, I never gave up.  This time I was going to take it into my own hands.  I walked to the World Vision Cambodia offices (stupid google map took me the really long weird way around).

After the usual amount of nonsense, and havoc that I cause when entering a space, I was invited into the reception area to wait.

Several people came to greet me and asking me wanted or why I was visiting World Vision. I tried my best to explain, however, the communication between some with limited English skills and the Cambodian staff showed to be more difficult than it should have been.

For once I had an idea that was: A: pertinent to the current situation and 2. Was actually coherent. I took out my phone and showed one of the gentlemen a picture I thought might be helpful.   

 

There was a flash of recognition in his eyes.

 “I know that baby.”

“What?”

“Do you know who this baby is?”

“Yeah, that baby is me.”

He looked at me with some degree of skepticism. Point at me, “you, you are that baby?” 

Having momentarily forgotten what picture it was, look quickly., “Yeah, that’s me.”  There was a look in his eyes I didn’t understand he then stood and walked away.

As fast as he stood up and left the room, I was afraid he was being chased. I didn’t get up and run…although I really wanted to.

He came back with several other people including the head of Communications for World Vision Cambodia.

After confirming that I am indeed the baby, I was invited to come back and talk to the staff at their weekly Monday morning devotional. I wasn’t planning on coming back to Phnom Penh but hey, how often do you get invited to come tell your story to an office full of people who work for the organization that gave you that story, not often I think.

So now I’m back in Phnom Penh and I gave my short talk and met most the World Vision office staff. A lot of them were out in the field doing the work.  

Everyone was so welcoming and happy to meet me. I guess getting visited by a former client (I don’t know if that the right word) doesn’t happen all that much. Getting visited by the adult form of a baby in a picture that is widely know is even more rare.

The whole experience was new for me. I’d never experienced a worship service Cambodian style; it wasn’t much different than services in other languages. With talking and songs (I didn’t know the melody so as usual I stood there awkwardly).

 I got to wear one of those earphones, that a translator was speaking into, I felt like a spy or a UN ambassador.

I have not been shy about how my relationship with religion, particularly American Christianity had become complicated in recent year.  (I’m taking about normal Christianity, not Christian Nationalist…I hate those guys…they are all assholes.). Because World Vision is a Christian organization, I worried my current state might be an issue.

Turns out it wasn’t a big deal. My being there was very impactful on so many people.

I was given a tour of the offices by the administrative assistant to the site director. Such a cool person, and…and She also showed interest in Reconnecting Cambodia, as did several others.

 

I’m so glad that my visit went well, I was worried I would do something ridiculous, which I didn’t. In fact, it went so well that I was informally invited to go to some of their field sites, where they are helping the people of Cambodia when I return in the spring. There are some hoops to clear. Just the prospect of doing, I don’t know, it would be ridiculously amazing, and majority heart breaking. Regardless, I have vowed to keep in contact and plan to help out anyway I can.  

They have also asked me to comeback and do an interview in a could of days so that will also be fun.

All things considered, even though I haven’t been able to directly do a lot of work for my community here like removing land mines or starting a school, I think in some small way I have inspired other to do good or I’m delusional and I’m a waste of breathable oxygen or both.

Presenting the new look Tony aka the WTF were you thinkingTony

If you would like a refresher please see blog post.

The first introduction to project red pin https://projectredpin.blogspot.com/2019/03/welcome-to-project.html