Three years ago I had this crazy idea to bring teenagers halfway across the world to work hands-on to help children in need in Cambodia. With the help of a small army of volunteers and the confidence in this program from a phenomenal educator, Jen Gutmann, we are currently knee deep in our second year of service trips. Through all the challenges, logistics, meetings, fundraising and sleepless nights, I must say it has been just as sweet the second time around. There are a million moments worth writing about, the problem for all of us when blogging is narrowing it down to just a few. For me, there is one moment that I keep coming back to. After we left the orphanage at the end of the first day, and we were piled in in the tuk- tuk, six people deep, the energy level was incredibly intense. It is genuine, unfiltered, and like listening to the sound of pure happiness. The students struggle to express in words the day they just had with kids that they are already, madly in love with. It is in that moment that all the time and effort it takes to get us here, doesn't matter. I would work ten times harder, just to be able to experience that moment over and over again.

As the feelings start to grow, the students start to grow, and this is a beautiful thing. We have ridiculously high expectations for them and they have risen to the challenge. I am proud to say that the first team in Cambodia this year has accomplished so much in our first week at the orphanage and all over the city. It began with cleaning a yard full of trash at the orphanage accumulated over years and years and covered in maggots. This was closely followed up by scrubbing two toilets (holes in the ground) that are shared daily by 60 people (including us). The highlight came when delousing the heads of children who have grown up living in garbage and had never had the lice removed from their heads. We had a shampoo station, washing station and combing out station...it wasn't enough. With each swipe of the comb there would be at least 6 lice bugs and approximately 20 eggs.  Needless to say, the students have worked hard, and done a lot of nose plugging and gagging in the process. We were able to get the roof to the orphanage extended to cover the stage-like area where all 33 of them sleep every night. They had grown accustomed to getting soaked every time their was a heavy rain, or having to sleep on top of each other, huddled in the corner. We have also started the tedious process of getting running water at the orphanage for the very first time. The first step was meeting with the Village Chief (No, I am not joking and yes I was disappointed he wasn't wearing some sort of feathered head wear.) The next step was getting the paperwork gathered and notarized which happened today, and tomorrow we will submit the paperwork to the office in Phnom Penh. They have always used a plastic milk jug type device, tied to a rope, and thrown in a deep well to gather the water. In the bottom of the well you can see all the other jugs that have come loose and fallen to their demise. They pull up one jug at a time, for every dish and piece of clothing to be washed, every tooth that is brushed and every "shower" for 43 people at the orphanage, every day. I don't know if you can even fathom what this would be like. For drinking water they boil the rain water.  If it doesn't rain, there is no water. If they don't get volunteers they sometimes don't have enough rice. They are constantly offering their water to us and we are running out of excuses not to drink it, as we are drenched in sweat and politely saying no with dirt in our teeth. You get so thirsty sometimes that you start to weigh the pros and cons of actually drinking that water...something one of the students found out the hard way!

We began organizing their tiny little dressers, where they each get about one drawer to store all of their possessions. This typically consists of some dirty clothes, trash, and their metal food tray that has been washed sporadically from meal to meal. We did also find a random bag of rice and a live goldfish. We later found out that the bag of rice is used by the school to get the kids to attend every day. If they make it Monday through Friday then they get a small bag of rice to take home. Yes, this actually works. We are still investigating the goldfish. 

After accessing their clothing situation we distributed all of the donated clothing and shoes that we brought from the states to the children. Another thrilling moment, to watch a child put on their first pair of shoes that aren't flip-flops and to be old enough to be absolutely unable to hold in their gratitude, excitement or.... gas. One boy actually farted he was so happy! A moment I will not soon forget or stop immaturely giggling about.

Throughout the week we have been able to visit four additional orphanages and two different communities in the "slums."  We distributed clothing and medical supplies, played seemingly endless soccer games, created origamy tadpoles and works of art with crayons, and of course, we smothered all the children with our love. We also spent time bringing Cambodian history to life by visiting the S-21 genocide museum and the Killing Fields, in an effort to bring it all together and help create the "big picture" for the students. For a country with such a violent history it's still hard to believe the happiness you find in everyone we meet here. Behind those smiles are families that were ripped apart and have spent the last 30 years trying to rebuild, even with all of the odds stacked against them. I still learn something valuable every day I spend in this country about survival and the power of the human spirit. Tomorrow is another day and another opportunity to give everything we have to make life better for someone who needs it.  Thank you for your continued support!

Lots of love,

LM