Thursday, December 27, 2012

Saying Thank You

She sits across from me on the floor with her legs neatly placed to her left side.  Her back is perfectly straight as if her spine is a solid piece of wood. 

 Her face is weathered.  It tells a story. Each wrinkle and dry crack in her skin acting as a different chapter, providing us with insight in to the past.  

Her eyes are powerful but also tired.  Bags hang beneath them like an unbearable weight.  

The flies are attracted to her.  She doesn't notice.  They have become a part of her movements as she slowly shifts her feet.  

There is a 1 year old baby.  He sits in her lap trying to understand the world around him.  He examines his grandmothers hand.  His fingers disappear in the her muscular grip that has been sculpted by decades of hard work.  

She breathes deep and takes her time to speak.  Each word rolling off her tongue with equal importance.  

She pauses the conversation.  Her mind is working hard attempting to discover something. 

She turns to me with those powerful eyes.  She has found what she was looking for.  

"Thank you" she says in almost perfect English...

I am sitting in a one room shack.  It is the home of one of my students.  I am accompanied by the principal and assistant principal of TGC.  We are completing another home visit to check up on the parents and guardians of our students and inform them of their child's progress.

This visit is much like the last.  Upon arrival we are always welcomed with great enthusiasm.  The families welcome us to their homes and some even provide drinks or snacks.   Sometimes we are greeted by one family member.  Other times a crowd of people gather to hear us sit and talk about the students academic and social progress.

Visiting the homes of my students is always very interesting.  Seeing the environment that they spend time in when they are not at TGC has provided me with further insight in to who they truly are.  After meeting parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters and dogs I have a better understanding of what makes each of them tick.

Let me be extremely blunt about this.  My students live in conditions that most of you would consider to be absolutely awful. When I visited many of these homes for the first time 4 months ago I was placed in this world of poverty.   Although it was only for a few hours, the experience left a large impression on me.  During my initial visit I wasn't completely shocked but instead my eyes were opened to the true reality of Cambodia.  Away from the restaurants, bars and temples are a group of people struggling to get by.  Away from the Tuk-Tuk's, markets and five-star hotels are human beings living in terrible conditions.  And away from all of this are my students.  

My second round of visits last week only added to my first experience. Not only did it remind me about who my students are but it has also provided me with another opportunity to be reminded about what I am doing here.

..."Your welcome" I say back in my awful Khmer.  

What is she thanking me for?  What did I do?  She is the one who is taking care of nine grandchildren by herself.  She is the one working so hard to help her grandchildren survive.  She is the one who is inspiring, not me. 

And yet, she is the one saying "Thank You."  

Maybe she is thanking me for helping her grandchild with English.  Maybe she is thanking me for teaching him some new football skills.  Maybe she is thanking me for reaching out to him when he wasn't feeling well.  

Or maybe she is just trying to make me smile....





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