I think the most rewarding part of this volunteer class (cong tac xa hoi) is that fact that you can change little lives “a little at a time.”
I think that I’ve become more responsible and dependable. Before this experience, I was pretty afraid of hurting the kids or doing things wrong. As a result of service-learning, I am proud to say that I KNOW HOW TO PUT ON A DIAPER FOR KIDS AND HOLD A BUCKET FOR THEM TO PEE IN :D YAY!!! What an accomplishment! Never in my life would I ever come close to anyone’s pee before. If I didn’t sign up for volunteering, I would never ever been expose to such task until when I become a mom and have to deal with all of this.
I learned about myself and my self-value. Everything was usually handed to me and I had a lot of people watch after me especially because I was the youngest and the only girl in the family. But through all of this experience, I learned that I was capable of many things including the fact that there was still a language barrier between me and the teachers, I learned to work my way around it to help them wherever and whenever I can and get my hands dirty.
From being around all the teachers and kids, I think that it has pushed me into perhaps a career path where I go into teaching (definitely not high schoolers, and probably not elementary school) college students are a little more motivated because they first of all got in to college :) ahhhhh and maybe those plans are inclusive to my plans to get my MD or PHD some how...BUT wherever I go, despite which paths I take in my life, I will always have this experience with me and the knowledge that I obtain in the process.
--peace and love
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
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.
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.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Familiar Food and Familiar Faces - Miền Nam
No doubt...Sài Gòn is the place to be. You can go shopping, eat, bar hopping, get mugged by people on motorbikes in the middle of the night, pretty much everything you can do back at home in the states but 10x better. Because underage drinking makes everything even better. LOL.
I also met chị Hoang-An--my now adoptive chế. hehehe. We were pretty much spoiled. We got a nice ass hotel, free breakfasts, bomb-ass food, some True-Religions---you name it but the three missing parts of this experience was Chị Mốc, Lena and Thầy Gerard.
After thirteen years, I finally got to see my cousin, chế Ngọc, again. I remember when I was seven, my family and I were staying at my aunt's house for a few days while we were in Cần Thơ. When the electricity in the neighborhood went out, my brother was playing games on the computer. He got so scared that he leaped from the desk to the bed but he fell short and his head hit the bedframe and split his eyebrow (a little above the forehead). We called for a taxi and drive him to the hospital because he was bleeding pretty heavily and needed stitches.
Besides her giving me these puppy figurines from her room. I remember growing up, every one called her lazy. ). I wanted to ask her about our family history but she didn't know much. The sad thing was that what she knows about our family history was what she heard from the children of our family friends that she hung out with. She told me that the only time she saw or talked to grandma was when she would come over to bring her food that my aunt had just prepared.I didn't really know her much, but as I learned this time around, she started her own business selling bedding and mattresses in Sóc Trang (my mom's hometown). After a long conversation with her, I think that she's grown to appreciate more of what she has and longingly regrets the fact that she was not so close with the family.
I think that a lot of this has to do with the fact that she was heavier than most girls in Vietnam and she also grew up without parents as my aunt passed away of cancer and my uncle died of depression not long after my aunt's death, leaving my cousin with one older sister in Vietnam and another in California.
A lot has changed since I was last in Cần Thơ. Apparently the house that my aunt own is located on property that the Vietnamese government plans on taking to widen the roads, thus many resident in that area now lease their home and are afraid to do any renovations to the house as it might be teared down. A lot has changed, the circumstances has change, but all in all Cần Thơ is still my home and I love it, despite the night life and places to go and things to do. I enjoyed being in the little comfort of home.
I also met chị Hoang-An--my now adoptive chế. hehehe. We were pretty much spoiled. We got a nice ass hotel, free breakfasts, bomb-ass food, some True-Religions---you name it but the three missing parts of this experience was Chị Mốc, Lena and Thầy Gerard.
After thirteen years, I finally got to see my cousin, chế Ngọc, again. I remember when I was seven, my family and I were staying at my aunt's house for a few days while we were in Cần Thơ. When the electricity in the neighborhood went out, my brother was playing games on the computer. He got so scared that he leaped from the desk to the bed but he fell short and his head hit the bedframe and split his eyebrow (a little above the forehead). We called for a taxi and drive him to the hospital because he was bleeding pretty heavily and needed stitches.
Besides her giving me these puppy figurines from her room. I remember growing up, every one called her lazy. ). I wanted to ask her about our family history but she didn't know much. The sad thing was that what she knows about our family history was what she heard from the children of our family friends that she hung out with. She told me that the only time she saw or talked to grandma was when she would come over to bring her food that my aunt had just prepared.I didn't really know her much, but as I learned this time around, she started her own business selling bedding and mattresses in Sóc Trang (my mom's hometown). After a long conversation with her, I think that she's grown to appreciate more of what she has and longingly regrets the fact that she was not so close with the family.
I think that a lot of this has to do with the fact that she was heavier than most girls in Vietnam and she also grew up without parents as my aunt passed away of cancer and my uncle died of depression not long after my aunt's death, leaving my cousin with one older sister in Vietnam and another in California.
A lot has changed since I was last in Cần Thơ. Apparently the house that my aunt own is located on property that the Vietnamese government plans on taking to widen the roads, thus many resident in that area now lease their home and are afraid to do any renovations to the house as it might be teared down. A lot has changed, the circumstances has change, but all in all Cần Thơ is still my home and I love it, despite the night life and places to go and things to do. I enjoyed being in the little comfort of home.
can you sayyyyy sooooociety?
Volunteering at Sao Mai opened my eyes to the community. Never before have I had the opportunity to work with such an organization or kids. And it’s great seeing how much some of the teachers just love and adore these kids while some teachers just teach them tough love.
When Lan, Nancy and I were painting and there was a group of about 20-25 college girls from one a educational university right across the street from Hanoi University. Although they came from many different backgrounds and experiences, they were all at Sao Mai for one reason and that was to check out the vicinity, one in which they might work at in the near future.
All the girls there were really friendly and caught us off guard when we were painting and they were so kindly enough (and excited) to help us transform the playground for the children. It’s inspiring such young people so motivated as I “used” to be dunno what happened to me :( LOL. I sound like I’m older them…we were born in the same year -_- Moving on…I talked to a few of them while they helped us paint and apparently there are quite a few organizations like Sao Mai out there besides Thanh Xuan Peace Village.
I guess in the states I was very oblivious to everything that was going on out there. It’s opened my eyes and it’s like a whole new world out there. It’s a shame that took me this long to realize that there are people out there suffering every day.
My dad told me to remember to appreciate everything that I have any disabilities like blindness, and that I have people to take care of me. And lucky for the kids at Sao Mai for having such lovely parents…I see it in the kids eyes when their parents or grandparents comes to pick them up. And to have an organization to care and educate their children.
When Lan, Nancy and I were painting and there was a group of about 20-25 college girls from one a educational university right across the street from Hanoi University. Although they came from many different backgrounds and experiences, they were all at Sao Mai for one reason and that was to check out the vicinity, one in which they might work at in the near future.
All the girls there were really friendly and caught us off guard when we were painting and they were so kindly enough (and excited) to help us transform the playground for the children. It’s inspiring such young people so motivated as I “used” to be dunno what happened to me :( LOL. I sound like I’m older them…we were born in the same year -_- Moving on…I talked to a few of them while they helped us paint and apparently there are quite a few organizations like Sao Mai out there besides Thanh Xuan Peace Village.
I guess in the states I was very oblivious to everything that was going on out there. It’s opened my eyes and it’s like a whole new world out there. It’s a shame that took me this long to realize that there are people out there suffering every day.
My dad told me to remember to appreciate everything that I have any disabilities like blindness, and that I have people to take care of me. And lucky for the kids at Sao Mai for having such lovely parents…I see it in the kids eyes when their parents or grandparents comes to pick them up. And to have an organization to care and educate their children.
Friday, November 5, 2010
relAtionshipppppppppps
i think one of the hardest things when an outsider comes into an organization is developing a solid relationship. and i think that it was more difficult just because we are foreigners so at times it is harder to build trust between the two sides.
luckily, students who volunteer at Sao Mai next year with have a pre-developed relationship with the organization. starting out, i was pretty nervous and anxious every day that i went volunteering. in the beginning, the teachers did not really give me any task. and i was kind of glad of that fact because i didnt really know how to handle the kids, but as time went on, i was better able to understand how the classroom is ran.
I didn’t really develop or try even to develop a relationship with the teachers until the next few days I was at Sao Mai. But the teachers quickly became open and they started asking questions and wanting to know more about me (its not that I like to brag about myself) but the classroom felt more open. They asked me if I had a boyfriend and my family and the typical questions like why I was in Vietnam.
Later, as the months went by, they always shared food that they brought with me and they were just really happy to see me (WHICH IS AWESOME!) and the sad thing is that once I started painting the playground, they didn’t have the extra help that they had with me around. So like all relationships, things take time to build. And the one thing that I regret the most is the fact that I didn’t get to know the teachers as well as they got to know me. Besides the fact that I met co vinhs daughter and found out that chi thuy has two sons I do not know much about their lives because I was too afraid to ask. So in the next weeks I hope to get to the point where im close enough that the would invite me to their family’s wedding like nancy did. Heheh ;)
luckily, students who volunteer at Sao Mai next year with have a pre-developed relationship with the organization. starting out, i was pretty nervous and anxious every day that i went volunteering. in the beginning, the teachers did not really give me any task. and i was kind of glad of that fact because i didnt really know how to handle the kids, but as time went on, i was better able to understand how the classroom is ran.
I didn’t really develop or try even to develop a relationship with the teachers until the next few days I was at Sao Mai. But the teachers quickly became open and they started asking questions and wanting to know more about me (its not that I like to brag about myself) but the classroom felt more open. They asked me if I had a boyfriend and my family and the typical questions like why I was in Vietnam.
Later, as the months went by, they always shared food that they brought with me and they were just really happy to see me (WHICH IS AWESOME!) and the sad thing is that once I started painting the playground, they didn’t have the extra help that they had with me around. So like all relationships, things take time to build. And the one thing that I regret the most is the fact that I didn’t get to know the teachers as well as they got to know me. Besides the fact that I met co vinhs daughter and found out that chi thuy has two sons I do not know much about their lives because I was too afraid to ask. So in the next weeks I hope to get to the point where im close enough that the would invite me to their family’s wedding like nancy did. Heheh ;)
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Women' Day
Fortunately for me, I got to celebrate Women' Day with my ladies, the boys, and Thay. It was definitely worthwild...a day waking up to flowers, watching Nancy, Irene, and Kristine swallow a snake heart, chewing on snake and trying real hard to imagine that it was chicken, drinking snake blood and bile, and singing to Cau Vong Khuyet. I think it was the closest ever was to being a vampire; it couldn't have been a better day (minus the blisters I got from my damn heels from Hoi An).
In addition, my Services Marketing professor bought food and drinks for the women in class on behalf of the handful of joys in the class. The boys even brought in their friend to play the acoustic guitar while they seranaded us. My professor began busting out his rhymes...and mocking his marriage (all for the fun of it--I'm pretty sure he loves his wife). LOL.
I was afraid that Women' Day was another day that some genius made up to make money like Valentine's Day. BOY was I wrong! It's actually celebrated to honor all the historic women and heroines in Vietnamese history.
In addition, my Services Marketing professor bought food and drinks for the women in class on behalf of the handful of joys in the class. The boys even brought in their friend to play the acoustic guitar while they seranaded us. My professor began busting out his rhymes...and mocking his marriage (all for the fun of it--I'm pretty sure he loves his wife). LOL.
I was afraid that Women' Day was another day that some genius made up to make money like Valentine's Day. BOY was I wrong! It's actually celebrated to honor all the historic women and heroines in Vietnamese history.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Don't Dis My Abilities
No matter where we go, no matter what we do, no matter who we are, people are always judging us except for The Big Guy upstairs.
I came into Sao Mai with an open mind and no expectations. Through the weeks and months there, I have grown to appreciate the things I have more often. Although I do not agree with all the ways in which the organization is run, I have quickly learned to appreciate that there are non-governmental organizations like Sao Mai in place. Sao Mai provides children with an education while catering to their special needs. There are teachers that pulls the kids out one at a time to teach them. This is a great one-on-one time for the kids to excel because all the attention is focused on them. I really respect the organization and even more recently because I learned that the teachers are trained regularly by Peter, a British specialist for children with disabilities. Although the teachers are train in how they teach and handle the children, their mental conceptions of the kids remain the same and they do not seem to change how they perceive the children in the sense that they don't believe that the children has potential in the world and that they will never be accepted by society.
This job is designed specifically for people who live children and have patience and tolerance. When people hear the word tolerance, the words: discrimination and racism come to mind, but I mean that they have to train themselves to deal with situations like this one child who has mood swings.
My jr. high, Irvine Intermediate School, was the only school that had a program designed for students with psychological and mental disabilities. I remember one of the boys serenading me with the song "Come Clean" by Hilary Duff (popular song at the time). He would sing the song for me for days. nd there was Peter. Peter has down syndrome. He would chase my friends and I every where and so we played along. He was a really nice guy and he had a great sense of humor. I remember learning that he was Vietnamese when I saw him at mass with his family. Growing up, I didn't feel any kind os separation from those with disabilities. I think that I'm a pretty diversified person, thanks to my parents, but there are many instances not too long ago when it was hard to accept myself because of my appearance or because of the things that I do. I think that when we learn to love and accept ourselves, it is easier to accept everyone. It is difficult but I think that we all should get past that point and once we do, we'd be happier and better people.
Acceptance and tolerance is applicable to everything, whether the trend is having Apple Ipods or the way we dress. People seek approval and acceptance from society as a whole.
I came into Sao Mai with an open mind and no expectations. Through the weeks and months there, I have grown to appreciate the things I have more often. Although I do not agree with all the ways in which the organization is run, I have quickly learned to appreciate that there are non-governmental organizations like Sao Mai in place. Sao Mai provides children with an education while catering to their special needs. There are teachers that pulls the kids out one at a time to teach them. This is a great one-on-one time for the kids to excel because all the attention is focused on them. I really respect the organization and even more recently because I learned that the teachers are trained regularly by Peter, a British specialist for children with disabilities. Although the teachers are train in how they teach and handle the children, their mental conceptions of the kids remain the same and they do not seem to change how they perceive the children in the sense that they don't believe that the children has potential in the world and that they will never be accepted by society.
This job is designed specifically for people who live children and have patience and tolerance. When people hear the word tolerance, the words: discrimination and racism come to mind, but I mean that they have to train themselves to deal with situations like this one child who has mood swings.
My jr. high, Irvine Intermediate School, was the only school that had a program designed for students with psychological and mental disabilities. I remember one of the boys serenading me with the song "Come Clean" by Hilary Duff (popular song at the time). He would sing the song for me for days. nd there was Peter. Peter has down syndrome. He would chase my friends and I every where and so we played along. He was a really nice guy and he had a great sense of humor. I remember learning that he was Vietnamese when I saw him at mass with his family. Growing up, I didn't feel any kind os separation from those with disabilities. I think that I'm a pretty diversified person, thanks to my parents, but there are many instances not too long ago when it was hard to accept myself because of my appearance or because of the things that I do. I think that when we learn to love and accept ourselves, it is easier to accept everyone. It is difficult but I think that we all should get past that point and once we do, we'd be happier and better people.
Acceptance and tolerance is applicable to everything, whether the trend is having Apple Ipods or the way we dress. People seek approval and acceptance from society as a whole.
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