Being in Kampong Speu, it is evident how hard everyone works each day. They cook over tiny piles of burning wood. They wash their clothes by hand. They make everything they need on their own. They break their backs in the rice fields. And this level of hard work is a constant, even if you are over 50 years old.
It is a culture of discipline and dedication to labor. And it is expected of everyone to do his or her part to help provide.
But one thing that does not always fit into the equation for every child is an education, the freedom to learn. School costs money. And once you are of working age (about 15) many times you are expected to start working in the near by factories in order to bring money home to support your parents and younger siblings. But working from 7 am to 7 pm every day leaves no time for school.
I met a beautiful young girl who shared with me that all she wants to do is learn. That her parents are constantly upset with her because she is choosing to stay in school in hopes of being able to go to a university in Phnom Penh. Tradition tells her she should stop school and go work in the factories. Family tells her learning English will not put food on the table. But she endures because it’s her dream. It’s her passion. It’s her favorite thing to do.
I am so inspired by her courage to do what she knows God wants for her even when her whole world is going against her. I am impressed by her discipline to wake up extra early each morning to start cooking food to be sold, so that she still contributes to her family’s well being. And I am so thankful that she chose to share her tender heart and passion with me. Her desire to learn has had an everlasting impression on me.
We are given so much where we are from. So many opportunities, so many avenues to learn. I pray I remember to be thankful for that freedom each day. And I hope, as this beautiful girl has displayed for me, that I never let society’s idea of the right way to live ever stop me from passionately chasing after my own dreams.
