Follow me, now, away from Thailand, with its $1 fried rice and endless American amenities, and toward Poi Pet, a tiny border town tucked into the corner of Cambodia. Breathe in through your mouth as we pass through, please. It isn't just nicknamed "Toilet town" because it rhymes.
Hop on the back of this motorbike and trust me as we honk and swerve our way around 20 kilometers of Khmer traffic. Look around and take in the country — rice field as far you can see, roadside stands of straw selling gasoline out of rusty glass Pepsi bottles and the only police in town shading themselves from the sun and playing cards.
And hold on tight now, because those first thirty minutes on pavement were a breeze. Now we have another half hour on a dirt road with more dips and swells and rocks than the fiercest white-water rapid you've ever ridden. We'll pass the big market first, on the right, with the women sitting, crouched, and hitting flies off the fish you'll soon eat, and the men hovering over your future vegetables, shirtless. Another 15 minutes and we're at the small market, where we buy our bananas from a lady who hasn't yet realized that we don't speak Khmer, and talks to us ceaselessly each time we approach.
Here we are now, at New Hope Children's Home. Hop off the back, please, and open the gate for me, and I'll drive you past the barn/classroom/bathroom, dodge as many potholes as possible and take you into a lovely little lime green building with a sliding metal front door and unswept tile floors.
Spend the day with us tomorrow, and you'll see something truly special.
***
How did you sleep last night?
Yeah … it doesn't really cool down at night. Or ever. But don't worry — Rachel and Courtney got up early to scramble eggs and chop pineapple for our breakfast. If you need to brush your teeth, grab your bottle of water and do it outside — there isn't a sink on the property and the two-minute walk to the restroom isn't really worth it. And don't use that water! It comes from the pond. We only use the pond water for bathing.
Come outside now and go to work with us, digging a trench so that a future team will be able to have a bathroom. I know that's not a shovel you're using, that it's more like a hoe, but you'll learn to dig with it once you form the calluses. Okay, the hour is through now and we can go back inside and eat lunch — fried egg sandwiches.
The afternoon passes slowly, so grab a book and try to secure one of the hammocks because the breeze blows through. And be careful when you stand up because the heat will have made you weak and dizzy. When you're ready, we're going to teach English to about a dozen kids from the village. We don't have a translator, so remember to use lots of hand gestures.
Before you know it, it's time for dinner. Guess what we're having?
It's eggs.
Remember, we don't have a fridge, so we can't keep any meat. We eat dinner and we enjoy the electricity for a few hours, sitting around the table and talking in the light. Look out for those bugs though — they fall from the sky like hail. And yes, we do think that those huge spiders on the wall are plotting against us, but we can't reach them to fight back. We wait.
But listen, the generator just stopped humming. It's time now.
Darkness.
***
Did you see it?
I know it's hard because I'm so close, and you're so far away. So let me take you closer.
When I woke up, it was to the sound of steps in the kitchen, steps of women who loved us and woke up early to cook for us. When I got out of my tent, I was three inches away from Nate and heard Mickey and him stirring and laughing about how hot it was again. When I got to breakfast, I was so thankful for food that it didn't matter what it was that we had to eat.
When we worked, we listened to sermons and were filled with the Spirit. When we discovered potatoes in the market after a week, we were overwhelmed with gratitude. When we rested in the afternoon, we learned more about the Lord and had time to read. I read six books last month. When we taught English, we saw the glow on the kids' faces and learned that you don't need to know the same language to express love.
Have you ever seen a little boy who doesn't speak English stand up, flex his arms and declare himself a Man of God? Get close now and truly see.
When we had finished dinner, we didn't move for hours — we just stayed together and talked till the lights went out.
Adjust your eyes and focus once more because this is what I have been trying to make you see. When the lights went out, we didn't leave. We stayed at the table.
In the darkness, we truly began to see each other.
In the darkness, we became brothers and sisters.
In the darkness, we found our home.
Before we go away, take a second to look at the stars hanging in the night sky and remember that the Light is all around us.
