Just as I was starting to question if I would be able to fulfil my dream of travelling to Cambodia later this year, an omen from the mysterious world of cyber space, jolted me out of a bout of self-pity. I’d spent the entire evening trying to connect my mobile to Facebook with no success. I was about to give up when the screen lit up with notifications of messages and calls from friends who didn’t hesitate to return my messages. ‘What messages?’ I asked myself, till I received this stern ‘Nans, stop playing with your phone again”. Apparently, I had inadvertently pressed ‘Messenger’ triggering an avalanche of responses, including some from friends I had left behind in Cambodia. I choked back the tears as I heard the familiar voice of my friend Clara. A modern-day saint who has devoted her live to the less fortunate, and who I was privileged to work alongside for several years. Some of my former students, who are the future of this struggling little Kingdom, told me of their lives today, some successful, others still trapped in the cycle of poverty.

So no more ‘smashed avo’ & coffee when out and about. Instead the saved coins will bring me one step closer towards the day I can finally share a feed of my favourite noodle soup with friends at the local market near the Olympic stadium, in Phnom Penh, close to where I once lived.

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