Hello people. Esther here. Hope you guys had a great rest after the trip. I shall be the first to put up my reflections! :)
The house building, soap making and distribution, as well as interacting with the children at Hope Village left a great impression on me. They are things which I have never done before and will never have a chance to experience in Singapore. I am very glad that I took the step to go for this trip.
I seriously thought that we were going to build a concrete house but it turned out to be a wooden one instead. In my perception, I thought that it would be rather easy. But after doing it, I felt that it was not as simple as it seemed and as I thought. It was due to our team work and the expertise of the carpenters that we were able to get the work done earlier than the scheduled timing. The shaving of the bamboos, the nailing of the bamboo floor and the four walls of the house. It all seemed so easy. But I am sure that most of us suffered muscle aches from shaving the bamboos and had our fingers hammered numerous times from nailing the bamboo floor. Not to mention the second day when we put in extra team work and time to finish the four walls of the house. All the perspiration, peeing behind umbrellas, physical exertion and the hour long, plus kind of bumpy and dirty, truck rides to and fro was WORTH IT when we saw the gratitude from the house owner. :) I am super happy that I was a part of the team, part of the reason for the happiness of the house owner, that I have contributed something and part of something great! :)
Soap distribution left a rather large impression on me too. I saw a whole stretch of village with similar houses. I saw how the villagers lived in a village like that. Wooden stilt houses with many things under it. Pigs, dogs, cows, hens, hammocks, you name it. I didn't know that it's actually very cooling under the wooden houses in the afternoon until I experienced it for myself. The dogs there were pretty scary. There is actually a cause for a huge celebration whenever a new child was born, we were even invited into the house to see the newborn baby and the mother. That was the only time when we put the Khmer language to good and proper use. I can even remember them even now as we used them for so many times talking to the villagers. It was so heartwarming to see the kids use the soap that we gave to them right after school.
b. Were there learning points during your trip? What have you learnt? About yourself, your fellow expedition mate, Cambodia, orphans, etc.
Firstly, I learnt so much from my fellow expedition mates. We should seriously not judge a book by it's cover because everyone is so much more than what I initially thought! Each and everyone of us has our individual strengths and weaknesses and it's good to have learnt from one another whether you realised it or not within the 12 days of seeing one another all the time.
Cambodians are definitely very different from Singaporeans due to the different culture and standards of living. They are simple, happy and contented people who do not have problems expressing their love through actions.
I learnt A LOT from the orphans. I know that under their smiles and playfulness, they do have a sad story behind them. I feel ashamed of myself when I saw a 3 year old girl bathing on her own and a girl a few years older than her washing her own clothes. They are forced to be independent at such a young age and I finally understand why they were so happy that we came. It's because we showered them with love through little actions like holding their hands, hugging them, carrying them and playing with them. But there is only so much that we can give and do, which is rather sad when I think about it sometimes.
Lastly, what have I learnt about myself? I am not as strong as I thought, both physically and emotionally. By going on this trip and interacting with the Cambodians, I found myself putting down my guard. It is only through this that I can learn more about myself. In Singapore, I feel that we are always guarded against people and putting on a strong front due to the environment that we live in. It's over there that I felt more humane and in touch with people, love, care and kindness. I learnt that it does not hurt to be weak, it does not hurt to trust. Most importantly, we must be in touch with our own feelings.
c. The theme of this expedition was 'Challenge your perspectives". Did this happen? Did you have a new insight? Or do you now have a new perspective?
Well, the trip definitely widened my horizons. Seen a new country so full of history and culture. Stayed there for 12 days soaked in the Cambodian atmosphere. Worked hard and played hard. Many things are difficult to express in words but the memory remains and I am going to bring them with me for the rest of my life.
d. Call to action. Do you feel you have contributed at the expedition? Would there be future expeditions for you? What are your plans (related to community service). What does the future hold for you?
Well, I feel that the activities that we did. Namely house building, soap making and distribution, as well as interacting with the children at Hope Village will definitely contribute something to the people there no matter how minute it is. But I for one am certain that I received more than I gave. For each time I give, I learnt something and received ten times more. I DEFINITELY want to go for future expeditions. No matter how many mosquitoes there are in the toilet and sand fly bites I get, it's all temporary. But what I have learnt is for LIFE. Definitely worth it. I am sure that no matter how many times I go, I will surely gain new insights.
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