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Published: June 27th 2009
This morning I received an email from a young monk I met in Siem Reap. His English is quite good, and the style of communication captures the sense of warmth that one so often feels from Cambodians. Among other things, he wrote:
Every day, can you remember me or not?
For me i remember you until end my life...
Good luck and good healthy don't forget take care , i worry.
From me Sokol
I'm sitting here at home in Jericho, looking out the window at the seventeen shades of green in our yard, admiring our freshly-painted Adirondack chairs, listening to a lovely variety of birdsong and appreciating how lovely it all is, and yet my thoughts are never far from Cambodia. How soon can I get back to that hot, dusty, trash-strewn place of poverty and smiling faces? And how long can I stay once I get there?
Jaz leaves for Siem Reap in about 90 days, and Steve and I will be on our way to visit about a month later. I look forward to seeing Cambodia in a lusher, greener, slightly less hot season. I can't wait to negotiate with the customs officials at the border. I can't wait to get on a bike and ride around town. I can't wait to have a cold beer with Steve and Lori. I can't wait to see Jaz in action, all settled into her new adventure. And to make it all even more fun, our friend Miriam is coming along for a couple of weeks!
Jaz is working hard at her CCV courses and putting in as many hours as she can get as a cashier at Shaw's Supermarket. She's saving every penny in every way possible: she goes out with friends, and watches
them eat pizza while she eats the peanut butter sandwich she packed for herself! I admire her dedication and drive. She has a goal in mind and she is making it happen.
We are so very lucky to have such a comfortable and wonderful life here at home, and yet the magnetic pull of Cambodia becomes stronger all the time. I would give up many comforts and conveniences and trade them for a different kind of meaning and satisfaction. Steve and I entertain ourselves with fantasies of moving to Siem Reap and starting a restaurant where he could train street kids, Jaz could teach them English, and I could do something useful yet to be identified. (My co-workers would probably suggest that I could take care of the paperwork!) It's a fun fantasy, but the question is what would it take to make it a reality...and do we have what it takes?
For a little update from the PLF, check out
this link It will tell you a bit about the solar project and computer classes at Tchey school where we taught. It's wonderful to see how well things are going there!
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Steph and Alexis
6 months - 4 continents - 18 countries
The Pull
Hey Jess, it is remarkable to read your entries from life at home and to see that your mind is straying quite frequently to that hot dusty land you called home for a few months. It is funny that steph and I only met you and jaz very briefly, but I often think about that time we spent talking and the two of you. Jaz is really amazing. Please tell her that. I think it's wonderful that she has such drive and courage, something I often think I lacked at her age. Other than your Cambodian dreams, I hope all is well. We are still globetrotting but will be home in a blink i Think. keeps posting. Alexis