A reflection of Cambodia

When arriving back in the United States, the man at the Department of Homeland Security said, "Thailand and Cambodia? There are a lot of temples in Thailand and Cambodia!" That certainly is true! And I visited many of them. I had been to most of the temples we visited in Cambodia, but we visited some I hadn't been to. Kings of this area would build multiple temples, relatively close to each other. Sometimes I wondered why. The temples were built at a time of prosperity in Cambodia. It was the peak of their prosperity. After the attack of Thailand in the 12th century, Cambodia has never regained it's prosperity, and did not gain independence until 1993.

When visiting the temples this time, I was struck by the carvings on the outside wall. On the walls, there are carvings of daily life in Cambodia at that time. The temples I visited were built between the 9th and 12th century A.D. That is 1,000 years ago. The significance of these carvings to me is that the way they lived 1,000 years ago is pretty much they way they live today. Although development took place, probably for centuries, that development was lost due to the Khmer Rouge. Their history was essentially erased. The carvings showed people cooking meals over fires....95% of the population cooks over a fire today. The carvings showed people going to witch doctors for consultation in who they should marry......the people of Cambodia continue to attend the witch doctors today. The carvings showed people obtained their water from a well.....70% of the population continues to obtain their water that way. As long as I have been in Cambodia and as many times as I come back, their level of development never ceases to amaze me. While they do talk on cell phones and drive mopeds, and many have access to electricity, the lights and mirrors are still of very poor quality. A common person wouldn't not recognize a Cambodian house as habitable. Many can't afford soap or toothpaste. This never ceases to amaze me. The Cambodian nation is a very, very poor nation with very, very poor people that have very little. I asked a Cambodian how much money he made. $70 a month working 6 days a week. That's less than $1,000 a year, less than $3 a day. The orphanage I volunteered at served a little bit of rice and a little bit of meat for lunch. That is not much more than they ate during the Khmer Rouge, and people were starving to death. People starve to death still. That is why the orphanage is so full. It's incredible. And, sad!