Smath

Twelve year old Smath has grown up smart and clever. Her parents are fisher folk. She has two younger brothers and a younger sister. Smath did not attend school before, staying home to take care of the younger children. Smath has been sponsored since the beginning of the Childcare program here, and since the opening of "House of Love," she has happily studied there. Although she still has to take care of her younger brothers and sister and cook for them on Saturday and Sunday, she is starting to experience an unusual lifestyle. "What are you learning at House of Love?" I asked Smath. "Khmer language and the Bible." she said. "What do you like best at House of Love?" "Eating chicken." the team members couldn't help laughing. I asked Smath "Are your daddy and mommy Christians?" She said, "No." "Well then, do you believe in Jesus Christ?" "I do. I go to church every Sunday." A Christian brother said that Smath has attended church for two years. "Are your parents opposed?" "No. They are very happy that I have come to the House of Love." "What would you like to do in the future?" "I want to be a teacher, so I need to go to college." Wow! May Smath work hard so that she can be a good teacher some day and be a blessing to her country's next generation.

Vibol

Fourteen year old Vibol used to be a wandering orphan in the village, begging food to eat. When he was accepted for registration in House of Love, he was the last of the 100 children to be sponsored. If he had not been sponsored, I am afraid that Vibol would still be living as a street child, never getting enough to eat. Vibol's English is poor, but he is studying hard. Every day he was looking up words in a borrowed English dictionary. Afterwards one of the church brothers told me that Vibol wanted to learn better English so that he could become a pastor some day. Team leader Rev. Polly Ho bought a dictionary and asked the brother to give it to Vibol. When Vibol got this present, his face lit up unbelievably bright. It was unforgetable! Although he did not know who had given it, he still came running over to say "Thank you! Thank you!" It was just a small dictionary, but Cambodian children are everlastingly grateful. On the other hand, we who have too much, have far too little gratefulness.