Today was a beautiful day. I slept horribly, waking up at 4am, but so did Krissy, so we got up and did a nice, long yoga practice on the roof of the guesthouse. It was hot, even at 6am, but it was peaceful and grounding, and a perfect way to begin our day. All the children were back to the orphanage today, and there were so many familiar faces. It was so amazing to see all the kids, each of them running between us, showering hugs and kisses. They would grab your hand and refuse to let go, and that was fine and perfect. Srey Pi, Srey Na, Heang, Piset and Panet, Niroon, Sokheng, YoMa, it was so amazing to see them all smiling and hear their voices. Lavit and Lavin walked over from the village to visit us as well. Lavin was choked up seeing Krissy and Natalie and I, and I was sure I would lose it as well. Lavit was quiet and shy, but did not refuse being hugged and held, which I did for as long as possible. We played soccer for far longer than I am capable, I forgot how much I loved and missed these kids until I was around them again.
I joked with Meng about moving here, but honestly I would do it in a heartbeat. Cambodia has its problems; the trash, the corrupt government, the poverty, but I love it here so much. I love the people, the smiles, the chattering language, the strange smells. I could live here, if only for a little while. Visit the orphanage every week, play with the kids, help them learn. There is something about this place that steals my heart, and I know so little of the country.
It was an emotional day. Lack of sleep, so much happening. I was so happy, yet exhausted. We decided to delouse all the kids, get them cleaned up, and it started out pretty easy. I ended up delousing Niroon first, which then turned into an hour of taking care of him, as it started to pour rain and get cold. His shoulder is dislocated and he hasn't been to see a doctor yet, so he is in pain and needing love. He had no clean dry clothes, and was shivering cold, since he doesn't have an ounce of fat on his body, and all he wanted was for me to hold him and keep him warm. So there we sat, both soaked to the bone, me carrying this little 7 year old around like a baby, both covered in dirt, squeezing eachother as if nothing else mattered. I was almost sure that the little monkey, who is never still or calm, was going to fall asleep in my arms, as he buried his head into my neck repeatedly.
When Niroon was finally warm enough to get back to his antics, I began to help with the older girls, which proved to be quite a feat. Last year, the group before us did most of the delousing, so our job was easy. This year, the last treatment they had was probably from us a year ago, so there were millions of bugs to be destroyed. Not only is this an unpleasant experience, it is heartbreaking. They fight to get their hair done first, then sit for 45minutes to an hour being worked on. They endure being soaking wet, soap in their eyes and tangles picked from their long thick hair with small combs. These poor beautiful children are living every day with millions and millions of bugs crawling around on their heads. Picking all the bugs and eggs out of the combs is near impossible in its own right. A few times I just wanted to cry and hug them regardless of the creepy crawlies that I may also end up with. Needless to say I scrubbed quite hard with my anti-lice shampoo when I came home.
When the time finally arrived to head home for the night, my hands were pruny, my clothes were filthy, I was still soaking wet, and I was desperate to shower and delouse myself. The end of the day is always bittersweet, knowing we're leaving the kids and our trip is closer to ending is awful. Knowing we have tomorrow is always comforting. As we load up into our three tuk tuks, the children circle us, grabbing for our hands and clothes, all repeating, "Joop knea knai sai", or "See you tomorrow", and as we start to drive off, they hang onto the railings as long as they can, the crowd slowly diminishing as they struggle to keep up with our vehicles taking off down the road.....
I joked with Meng about moving here, but honestly I would do it in a heartbeat. Cambodia has its problems; the trash, the corrupt government, the poverty, but I love it here so much. I love the people, the smiles, the chattering language, the strange smells. I could live here, if only for a little while. Visit the orphanage every week, play with the kids, help them learn. There is something about this place that steals my heart, and I know so little of the country.
It was an emotional day. Lack of sleep, so much happening. I was so happy, yet exhausted. We decided to delouse all the kids, get them cleaned up, and it started out pretty easy. I ended up delousing Niroon first, which then turned into an hour of taking care of him, as it started to pour rain and get cold. His shoulder is dislocated and he hasn't been to see a doctor yet, so he is in pain and needing love. He had no clean dry clothes, and was shivering cold, since he doesn't have an ounce of fat on his body, and all he wanted was for me to hold him and keep him warm. So there we sat, both soaked to the bone, me carrying this little 7 year old around like a baby, both covered in dirt, squeezing eachother as if nothing else mattered. I was almost sure that the little monkey, who is never still or calm, was going to fall asleep in my arms, as he buried his head into my neck repeatedly.
When Niroon was finally warm enough to get back to his antics, I began to help with the older girls, which proved to be quite a feat. Last year, the group before us did most of the delousing, so our job was easy. This year, the last treatment they had was probably from us a year ago, so there were millions of bugs to be destroyed. Not only is this an unpleasant experience, it is heartbreaking. They fight to get their hair done first, then sit for 45minutes to an hour being worked on. They endure being soaking wet, soap in their eyes and tangles picked from their long thick hair with small combs. These poor beautiful children are living every day with millions and millions of bugs crawling around on their heads. Picking all the bugs and eggs out of the combs is near impossible in its own right. A few times I just wanted to cry and hug them regardless of the creepy crawlies that I may also end up with. Needless to say I scrubbed quite hard with my anti-lice shampoo when I came home.
When the time finally arrived to head home for the night, my hands were pruny, my clothes were filthy, I was still soaking wet, and I was desperate to shower and delouse myself. The end of the day is always bittersweet, knowing we're leaving the kids and our trip is closer to ending is awful. Knowing we have tomorrow is always comforting. As we load up into our three tuk tuks, the children circle us, grabbing for our hands and clothes, all repeating, "Joop knea knai sai", or "See you tomorrow", and as we start to drive off, they hang onto the railings as long as they can, the crowd slowly diminishing as they struggle to keep up with our vehicles taking off down the road.....
