July 2021: Staying Positive

STAYING POSITIVE

Even in a pandemic, good things happen. And maybe they seem even better because it is during a pandemic.  Who knows for sure?  Regardless, we are grateful for them. 

For starters, we have new bikes!  Yes, donated bikes make us do a little happy dance because each one makes it possible for another child to get from home to school each day.   And while schools remain closed, Heartprint’s in-house school teacher continues to develop weekly study packs for students in our area to continue their learning in both English and Khmer. 

More refurbished bikes arrive ready to be distributed to our community.

Every month, what feels like dozens of big small miracles happen at Heartprint.  One of July’s starts with the story of two boys in our village. 

We’ve known the boys, young men now, for several years. We’ve seen their families struggle with the effects of extreme poverty.  Unemployment, uncertainty, hunger, and lack of education all lead to unbelievable stress and, too often, drug or alcohol dependency.  Some children are even left to cope on their own, as was one of these boys.  Still, both boys worked hard in their studies and knew there could be a better future for them if set on the right path. They just needed to find the trailhead of their journey. 

And they have. There’s an organisation here called HAVEN where disadvantaged youths are trained in work and life skills.   Pheap obtained Haven applications for the boys, helped them fill out the forms and submit them.  (We hadn’t done this before, but we are thrilled to the bone that we have now.)  Then we waited.  But, honestly, not for long.  Both boys were invited in for interviews.  We were so excited!  And nervous. It’s a competitive process and only eight spaces were available. Three of us from Heartprint went with them to the interviews - just as support, sitting outside the room.  Lots of fingers were crossed.  Our two guys deserved this opportunity.  Needed it. 

Thang and Sokhom waiting nervously after their interviews

The interviews went well, but we had no way of knowing what the outcomes would be.  So, we waited. 

Then, this week, Pheap got the notice that both had been accepted to the training program!  The whole neighbourhood heard her shouts of joy.  Now, days after our initial celebration, we still tear up as we make plans for them to travel to this next marker in their young lives. 

They will move into group housing provided by Haven - overseen by an experienced housemum - and begin their training. You can read all about the program at HAVEN. So exciting!

July was also the month that saw the publication of our children’s book, “I Know the World’s Worst Secret.”  The idea came from a stack of resource books donated by a fellow expat in Siem Reap.  One was about a little girl dealing with parental alcoholism.  Because this is a common - and largely untreated - problem in our community, we decided to translate the book to Khmer.  But after a while, we decided it would be better to make it our own.  

There were lots of uniquely Cambodian stories to include and families whose experiences would help us provide something truly relatable to families in our village. So, with the help of Jason Argenta for writing, translating and so much more - and Elizabeth Gilmore Creates for illustrations - and, of course, everyone who shared their stories or their donations to help us make this a reality...it’s here!  

Once we can congregate again, we will use the book as a starting point for helping both children and parents deal with the realities of alcohol addiction.  We hope this will inspire them to take part in our counselling sessions. 

Which leads us to our invitation for you to join us in our Silent September campaign. There are so many mental health challenges inherent in being poor in Cambodia. Covid has exacerbated those challenges by an as yet unknown multiplier. If you participate in Silent September as someone staying silent or by supporting one who is, you help us help children and families who need to find their own voices to cope and heal.

Finally, how would you like to Zoom into Heartprint? Catch up with all of us and let us catch up with you.  We’ll host a two-hour zoom (stay a few minutes or for the whole party) where we can talk “in person”. Ask any questions, tell us what you think; basically, spend some time together. It’ll be Sunday, 8 August, 11 a.m. Siem Reap time. Let us know if you want to join and we will send you an invite. 

There are always regular posts about our big small miracles on Facebook. Join us there if you haven’t already.

Here’s to an Awesome August!  And don’t forget….Silent September is just around the corner.