Completely Gratuitous

I'm enjoying the last few days before the real work of the second semester starts. Coming from a short Vietnam-Cambodia trip, I want to take all that I saw and write something inspiring. Thinking back on that, I'm filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude - gratitude for the things I have, gratitude for all the things I saw that enlightened me, gratitude that I realized through this trip that I have a lot to be thankful for.

Unlike most of the trips my family has taken, it is my first time to go to countries that are almost no different from ours. While Vietnam is on its way to becoming progressive, the presence of poverty is still very visible. Cambodia, on the other hand, does a lot to ground you. The people are kind and beautiful, and I don't mean just physically (though most of them look like we do), bu when you look at the lot of them you see a kindness in their eyes that eases you. True, there are some "enterprising" locals who will overcharge for commodities, but that's more due to necessity than anything else, I think.

In Siem Reap, Cambodia (which was my favorite of all the places we visited), the kindest person I met was a tuktuk driver named Dara. He was always smiling when we saw him, never complained when we added extra stops to our itinerary, and never overcharged (I think he might have undercharged) us for anything. Though he was always cheerful, during off-times when the others would be shopping we would talk about his family, his resentment of the corruption in his country, and the struggle to find a job that paid well despite the lack of good English. I know these things happen in our country as well, but perhaps, because so often we fall into our routines, we become sheltered to the traces of poverty all around us. Or me, at least. A lot of people are still poor, but it is a relief to see that there are still a lot of people who can be kind and honest in spite of poverty.

My parents keep telling me that because we were provided with a lot more than they had, that we should try harder and attempt to go farther (Kind of a spin on "To whom much is given, much is expected"). Though it was a sentiment that was always repeated to me growing up, remembering it now after the trip kind of renews my drive to try harder, because I can.