Positivity is Contagious.

        From the greens of the trees to the blues, reds, and yellows of the buildings, this city is dripping with color. Since I’ve always been drawn to brightly colored things, it was easy for me to love the city of Phnom Penh. I didn’t fall in love with the country until I interacted with the locals; they exude love and kindness that comes with not being afraid that other people will hurt you. I’ve only seen this lack of fear in places where the people have experienced significant tragedy.

        From 1975 to 1979, the Khmer Rouge tortured and killed over three million people. They turned high schools into prisons where they would torture anyone who was educated or looked smart and would accuse them of being a spy to justify their actions. Once the soldiers had gotten all they needed from the prisoners, they would transport them to the killing fields and kill them. Now, there is a stupa in the middle of one of the two thousand fields that hold the skulls and bones of the victims killed in cold blood. Out of the millions detained, only seven survived. Three adults and four children. Despite everything these people have gone through, they are incredibly kind and vibrant and have passed these qualities onto their children. 

        The kids at the school we’ve been teaching at are always laughing, passionate about learning, and are full of life. Their positivity is utterly contagious. When we were scraping paint off the wall or the staircase, the kids would try to take the sanding brushes and paper from us. Each time I’d tell them no, they would then pout and watch for a while and again try to help us. While they would watch us, they would sing little songs in Khmer, recite funny rhymes, or play hand games. It’s nearly impossible to stay on task when the kids are singing in your ear or begging you to play games with them. One boy, in particular, is constantly asking to be picked up, spun in circles, fly like superman, or flip upside down like spider-man. His name is Kemain, and he has completely stolen my heart.

        I’d be happy for my arms to feel like jelly (because of paint scraping) for the rest of my life if it meant my heart would feel this full and my smile was this big all the time. We’ve only been here for four days, and I already never want to come home because of the bonds I’ve created with the kids, and I cannot wait to create new ones and deepen the ones I’ve already made.