Lee, My Cambodian Wife

The name Leora is a difficult name for many people to pronounce or remember, especially in Cambodia. That is why when Ariel and I started volunteering at an orphanage I decided to make life simpler and call myself Lee. Of course the problem, which I only realized later on, is that I am not used to people calling me "Lee" and therefore, do not always respond. If you add on top of that the fact that Cambodian children have an accent when speaking English and sometimes when they say one syllable words they put a different letter at the beginning, my name can come out as "she," "me'" or when one of the 4 year-olds call me, sometimes just "eeee."

Regardless of the issue with my name, these kids have no problem communicating with me through body language, smiles and hugs. There are about 35 kids at the orphanage that has neither running water nor electricity. They sleep in an building that has a tin roof over part of it and a straw roof over the other half, bamboo netting for walls and a thin piece of plastic for the floor. All of their possessions can fit into a 1 foot by 1 foot locker. In short, they are poor...dirt poor...but yet still so happy.

It amazes me that a country that has been through so much still has the most smiley people I have ever met. The orphanage is 12 km from the town of Siem Reap and when Ariel and I cycle out there each day, we are greeted with dozens of smiling faces, waves and "hellos" from those passing by. Then when we arrive at the orphanage we are inundated with more smiles, high fives and hugs.

Our days are exhausting but also so rewarding. I wouldn't want it any other way.


If you want to learn more about this orphanage and other NGO projects in Cambodia, check out http://www.coso-orphanage.com/.