iNTEREST

What drew me most to Sao Mai was the fact that the organization mainly took care of kids who were affected by Agent Orange directly or indirectly. I didn’t know what to expect in the next few months of volunteering and what challenges I might have to face. It was kind of scary because I didn’t know how the kids would act.

Before this, I remember that some kids might have attachment problems. For example, this one girl at Thanh Xuan Peace Village grabbed a hold of Phuong and wouldn’t let her go unless she promised to go to her hometown with her and her dad. And she couldn’t leave because she lived at the organization.

I know that there are many challenges that one must overcome, as this is all a learning experience.

Back in spring 2009, I took a course called Making of the Modern World. In the course, we were supposed to do a research paper about a country during a certain time period and develop an argument. I choose Vietnam between 1954 and 1975 and my debate was that Agent Orange was the #1 cause of birth deformities in Vietnam. I specifically chose Vietnam just so I can learn more about my heritage and Vietnamese history along the way.

Although, Agent Orange is “not a cause of autism and birth deformities” according to some of my sources, I do believe that there are still people who are affected by Agent Orange and pass on the toxins that are embedded in their blood to their children.

If I remember correctly, Anh Thai said that Vietnamese still like to blame the war for all the deformities. BUT one must remember that there are always other factors like malnutrition, water sanitation, etc. that may inhibit and cause deformities often seen in victims of Agent Orange.