For Just One Day

January 3, 2008

Never in a thousand years did I think I'd be spending New Year's in Cambodia. I'm much too old for the party, techno scene, and in recent years I haven't made it to midnight, which has been fine with me. Liz, Abby and I planned to have a Mexican Fiesta (as a bit of a joke) for dinner, top it off with some margarita's and then usher in the New Year on Pub Street in Siem Reap, home of the famous Angkor Wat Temples. As we sat down at Viva, we took a table outside, knowing full well that we would be hounded by street beggars and the kid con-men that come by selling whatever they have. Surrounding us were tourists with their party hats on, glimmering under the low-lit street lights. As soon as we sat down, three young street kids came and stared at us. Liz, being the friendly, outgoing, compassionate person she is, started talking to the kids. She immediately asked if they wanted something to eat.

What you need to know about Cambodia is that it is poor--the poorest place I've ever visited. And Siem Reap is world's better than Phenom Phen, where we stayed for 3 days (2 days too many). We read that it's better not to give the street people money but rather to give it to places that can distribute the money to the poor. The idea is to not perpetuate the begging, and in my view, they don't want the tourists to be "turned off."

The kids, a 12 year old boy, an 11 year old girl and an 8 year old girl, immediately said yes. They were small children. The 8 year old looked as old as the 12 year old. They were dirty and barefoot in the trash and urine that dominates the streets. I hesitated, not knowing if the restaurant would mind, but Liz was having none of it and directed me to grab a couple of chairs as the kids would be joining us. Not long after, the wait staff was looking at us strangely and amusedly. They didn't seem to believe what was happening. All the partiers and tourists would never do this. Before we could even look to see what they were getting, they were ordering their food. We sat there with them and spoke in broken English as they repeated everything we were saying to them. "Hello. Thank you. I'm good." They were possibly the cutest kids we had ever seen. The 8 year old was missing both her front teeth and had black curly hair and the best smile you have ever seen. She was smart, copying every word we wrote on the paper with great concentration. The 11 year old was quiet but kept an eye on her brother and her cousin. Her shy smile was innocent, which is not a common sight in Cambodia. We wondered where their parents were. We wondered why they were on the streets. We wondered if they had been part of the devestating sex industry that rules the country. We hoped for the best for these children although we knew that after this night, after one night of not having to beg, that they would be destined for a life going nowhere, with no future in sight. We rang in the new year with roman candles and lots of drunk tourists dancing around to techno music and stood there and watched, then headed back to the guesthouse a little after midnight. We told the kids to meet us at our guesthouse the next day at 10am so we could buy them clothes and shoes. They must've understood because when we came back from breakfast they were there waiting, with another little one in tow. This little boy was 4 and was just as cute as the other ones. The kids were cleaned up, and we were surprised (and pleased) that their mother was along to see what people were taking their kids all around town. We did wonder where she had been last night but at least she was here. We took the kids to eat in the market and, as we sat with the locals the kids ate and ate. You could see the tight sense of family as the 12 year old boy fed his cousin and cleaned his face off, which was covered in pieces of rice. We let the kids finish but not before some weird whispers and words from the young guy sitting across from us. He would look over at me and say something I couldn't understand and then giggle and give me a creepy smile. I'm sure it was something about being a white male in his 30's with young Cambodian kids and sex. It seems to be completely okay with the general population, but that is another story all unto itself. After we left the table, we headed to get them some shoes but detoured to the sunglasses case where we thought, "why not?" and bought all the kids sunglasses. Most people don't wear them here so it was a nice treat for them, and they loved it. Next, it was time to try on shoes. We took up the entire aisle of the market, and since the kids didn't have shoes anyway, we had them pick out what they liked and of course sized them up and had shoes thrown everywhere in the aisle at the market. We didn't care because we wanted these kids to have one normal day of being just a kid. After we bought them shoes, we headed directly to get them a new outfit. I felt a little out of place, but the girls did a great job in picking out cute clothes and helping the kids dress. I had to get Liz to help me take the 12 year old to get an outfit, as I felt like I would get looks of disgust picking out an outfit for a young boy. The kids tried on all sorts of clothes until we found the ones that looked the best. The 4 year old didn't care and just did what he was told and looked absolutely adorable in anything he tried on. They were happy and being kids. They certainly knew what was going on and just seeing the smiles on their faces was thanks enough. They were happy. I put the 4 year old on my shoulders and carried him through the streets with the other kids laughing and dragging Liz and Abby by the hands. The little boy was grinning from ear to ear and had put his chin down on the top of my head. I thought he was falling asleep, but I believe he was just enjoying the moment. We took them back to the guesthouse where a Tuk Tuk driver was waiting for them to take them home. We had arranged a ride for them so they could get the full experience. We stood there in the driveway, saddened but smiling, as they waved goodbye to us. The rest of the day, we missed them. We wish we could've done more. Maybe played games with them for a while. Just spent more time with them. It was the best start of a new year you could ask for. I was helping children with two other wonderful people, trying to make a difference...even if for just one day.