Monday, August 3, 2015 4:50 am
Alarm goes off. It is time to start the day because we are headed to Angkor Wat and surrounding temples to see the sun rise and just have an adventurous, World Race debrief, kind of day.
5:30 am
We arrive at the at the temple site, hop off of our tuk tuks, and move closer for the perfect spot to see the sun rise over the temple. I am still sleepy and not totally there.
As one of my teammates and I walk towards the entrance of the actual temple, I hear a sweet young voice calling above the crowd, “you want magnet, key chain, po card. what your price?” I turn to see the a boy wearing a dirty green shirt but the cutest smile that was brighter than the rising sun.
He hooks me and sure enough I was going to buy something before the end of this conversation. While asking for the prices, I was slipping other questions in like “what Is your name?” , “How old are you?”, and so forth. I bargain on prices and told him I would actually buy something if he would let me tickle him. All I wanted was a good laugh from this kid. He gave me a stern no and a huge grin. I acquired a few magnets and lost a few dollars, but he had a sale and I knew that brought him some joy.
We walked around the temple grounds for awhile and I found my little buddy again, trying to sell more souvenirs to some other tourists. He had two girls penned up for a while and without any luck, he heads back over to me hoping I would buy again.
He was not going to get me again, but I was going to get him. I starting digging into other questions like “do you go to school” or “do you have family”?
That’s when it got real.
I learned his name Is “Le sing” (that was the way it sounded anyway). He is 7 years old and he is in the second grade. He is one of six kids, having three brothers and two sisters, one of which is too young to come to the temple so she stays at home. I asked “where is his father?” and he pointed across the temple grounds to a rather young looking man selling more souvenirs to other tourist. He wakes every morning before 5 to be ready to sell to help provide for his family. He sells in the morning then in the afternoon we goes to school, he continues.
Wow! This kid has lost his childhood. He wakes up every morning way before the sun to be able to help provide for his family. He may or may not even get to go to school to be able to learn the basics to help them move up in the world. At 7 years old, he should sleeping in, playing with his friends, or just be getting up to get ready for school.
Even though I have been on this race about 7 months, it has finally hit me that this is real life for some kids around the world and this is not even the worst. He sell key chains and postcards but he does not have to sell his body to fill the desires of someone’s lust. He wakes up early each morning, but he is not forced to work all hours of the night. I say that because here in Siam Reap, you can not walk down some streets without every ten feet someone asking if you want a massage with a happy ending.
I most likely will never see this kid again, but the images of him and his smile are ingrained into my mind. Pleas pray for him with me. Pray for more income so he can be a child, instead of having to fulfill adult roles as a seven year old. Pray for opportunities for him to find out that Jesus loves him and wants great things for him. Pray most of all that he is protected from the evils of the sex industry here in Cambodia.
