On her T-shirt is the silhouette of Angkor Wat, a 12th century Buddhist temple and symbol of Cambodian pride. But as the rice is distributed with promises of more to come, it becomes apparent the real pride of Cambodia is people like Mom, a Cambodian who, after 26 years in the United States, returned to her country as a Maryknoll missioner. I thought it would be easier to just give money. Mom teaches English at a Catholic parish and manages the books at a Maryknoll-run rehabilitation center for the handicapped. What's needed is somebody who cares, somebody who is here because of love.
Love is what motivates Mom.
It's a love that conquers all, even the pain of returning to a broken, scarred country. It was difficult for me to see such hopelessness in the faces of so many people. So difficult in fact that Mom, after only seven weeks, returned to the United States. For two months she wrestled with the decision of whether or not to return. Sixteen months after returning to Cambodia, Mom has yet to visit the infamous Killing Fields.