WHAT I LEARNT FROM VOLUNTEERING ABROAD
Do you ever stop and think - what the hell is wrong with people?
The amount of times I thought that when I was living and working in London was pretty much every day. I would get dirty looks for helping someone homeless, people would push past me and squeeze themselves on to a packed tube, then look at me with disgust for having a laugh or saying hello to someone!? I couldn’t get my head around it. Why are people so self-centered and selfish? I started to hate London and this was my home! I wanted to feel love not hate, I wanted to see a different culture, and most of all I wanted to help people.
I made the decision to quit my job and go to Cambodia for three months volunteering. To be honest I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t know that much about Cambodia and I had never been anywhere in Asia.
I found the perfect charity to work with; Cambodia Health Education Media Service (CHEMS). A local NGO built upon improving the quality of life and education for the young generations via multimedia projects such as radio shows and educational leaflets. It was perfect for me as I knew I would be on the front line and I was able to utilise the skills I had in media to help. I couldn’t wait.
Arriving in Phnom Penh and leaving the airport was a huge culture shock! I’d never seen anything like it. It was so hot, dusty, and manically busy! I was picked up by someone holding a card with my name on it, put in a tuk tuk, and off I went… I’ll be honest, I was terrified.
I had selected to stay with a local family for the duration of my stay as I wanted to soak up as much culture as I could and get to know the locals on a much deeper level. But I soon became very lonely. I would go out to the charity I was working with, go back to my home-stay, eat and go to bed without having much interaction with anyone. I wanted to speak to others who were going through the same thing and I was missing home so badly at this point I thought about giving up. I would sit and cry on the phone to my partner and my parents thinking I wasn’t capable and that I couldn’t make it through the full 3 months.
After much discussion with my family I decided to leave the home-stay and go and live in a volunteer house with the other volunteers I had met out there. It wasn’t a decision I took lightly and I really didn’t want to upset the family I was with as they were perfect! I wasn’t ready to give up; I just knew I would not be able to be my full self if I wasn’t with people I could talk to in depth about my experiences.
Once I had settled in more to the work, the environment and the culture, I started to see more clearly. I was experiencing so much; learning about a culture and country that was all so new to me. There was so much tragedy surrounding this beautiful country yet the people were so cheery and were always helping each other.
For those of you who may not know much about Cambodia, they have had a really tough time. During the 1955-1975 Vietnam War, the United States dropped upwards of 2.7 million tons of bombs on Cambodia, exceeding the amount it had dropped on Japan during WWII (including Hiroshima and Nagasaki) by almost a million tons. During this time, about 30 per cent of the country's population was internally displaced and hundreds of thousands killed. This monstrosity lead to the uprising of the Khmer Rouge who came to power in 1975. They propagandised the US bombing campaign to great effect and ended up in power, during which time another 2 million or so Cambodians died from execution, hunger and forced labour. The Khmer Rouge was a brutal dictatorship that ripped through the country like a disease, the effect of which is still being felt across the country today.
I visited The Killing Fields and the S21 prison whilst out there, and let me tell you something, I’ve never known horror like that. It really messed me up for a few days. (I'd rather not write the horrific details of what happened at these places in this blog but would advise you go away and learn about it when you have time). I also visited slums where I would film for the charity Dara Children’s Trust and what I saw broke my heart to pieces; tiny children living with AIDS and running around in bare feet through rivers of sewage and rubbish with no help or support from the government.
What brought me around from the sorrow and negativity was the love and the spirited nature I had got to know. There was so much corruption still alive and kicking but the locals were so special. One little girl said to me when I was showing them the camera I was filming with – “now I know how to take a picture” - as she smiled and laughed with me I couldn’t believe how different our worlds were.
I was invited to weddings and ceremonies, learnt how to speak some of their language, walked with elephants in a sanctuary, tried the most exotic food and watched as they would celebrate the life of a lost loved one for 7 days - extensive celebrations and rituals to guide the spirit to the light. It was simply beautiful. Their spiritualism and respect for their elders was something I had never seen before. It really touched me.
I met some truly inspirational people whilst in Cambodia and there are a couple in particular I would like to mention…
Yong Sreng - our Volunteer house leader, a young Cambodian man who spends his days teaching volunteers about his country and his culture. He would go above and beyond to make sure we felt safe and comfortable and took us out on so many trips. A self-taught photographer and all around lovely guy.
Kim Sokuntheary - the lady who runs CHEMS. She is a true inspiration to any young woman in Cambodia and across the world for that matter. She set CHEMS up and runs it through applying for bidding from all over the world and manages multiple projects at once to enrich the lives of the youth in her country. She treated me with nothing but kindness; she would always buy my lunch and make sure I got back to the volunteer house safely. When I had to say goodbye to her I was very emotional and the tears came on strong. I had been truly touched by such a strong and powerful woman. She had been a child when the Khmer Rouge was in power and I can only imagine what she went through, yet she treated me and others like her family. I have so much respect for her.
When I look back at my 3 months in Cambodia I am filled with a strange feeling I can’t quite describe; a real mix of emotions. Sad because I had such an amazing time in the end and it really has left a mark on my life. Happy because I was there, I did what I went to do, and I feel like I have left a footprint somewhere on this earth. Regretful because I wish I could do more. Hopeful because I know there are people like me from all over the world doing exactly the same. Concerned because maybe the corruption won’t end and they will be constantly battling. But most of all, I feel inspired.
I am inspired by their attitude to life and their spiritualism. I wish we could be more like that in England. It baffles me at times why people want so desperately to live in England where there is so much bitterness and selfishness.
So what did I learn from it all, the ups and the downs, the sweat and the tears… ? Well one thing is for sure, I appreciate my life so much more now. It really did prove that you should never be ungrateful for what you do/don’t have as there are some communities out there who truly have nothing.
I've also learnt that I am capable of much more than I thought; if I am determined and I put my mind to it I can do it. I learnt that there is so much to learn of the world, both in the tragic histories of places but also in the beauty of other cultures and how they live their lives. I learnt that the world can be a very cruel place, more often than not at the hands of the people, but it is also the people that will re-build and come together to get through those tough times. I have learnt that having faith in yourself and in the others around you really will make you a better person and in turn will help you live a better life.
I would encourage anyone to go and volunteer abroad. Do your research on where you are going and how you want to help. If you choose to do a home-stay just make sure you are ready as it may feel isolating. Go in to the experience with a clear and open mind and try to soak up as much as you can. Say yes to new experiences and always treat people with kindness. It will change your life.
Leave your footprint and spread good karma. I promise you won’t regret it.