Under the Mango Tree

This week I have been working on a research project which looks at mothers and toddlers. The idea is; we take a base line measurement of oral health and general health, then do an intervention (dentistry, oral hygiene instruction, and general hygiene such as lice, scabies etc). We did the base line measurements this week. The village is about 40km away from Phnom Penh across the Mekong river… although this does not seem long in terms of NZ (Reporoa to Rotorua, Waiouru to the ski field, Upper hutt to Wellington, Dunedin to Wakawaiti ) it is a world apart from Phnom Penh. 

The roads are all dirt, the houses are made of flax/corrugated iron/bamboo.  The main industry here is farming, they harvest rice, corn, and Mangos. They are very proud of their organic mangos. I can tell you that you don’t know what mango is until you’ve tasted it right off the tree!!

To recruit our study ‘participants’ we have been going from house to house and, seeing where someone lives gives an amazing insight into who they are. At the door is a picture of the married couple and inside is meticulously clean with usually little to no furniture on the bamboo slatted floor. The main aspiration in life is to get married, have babies, and work the field.

Sitting under the mango tree taking shelter from the heat and trying to rehydrate, I wondered: could all of my needs be met by living in a place like this? I admire the companionship within the family unit. The husband and wife team that ride the moto, drive the ox, or load the truck with their harvest. It seems almost as if the purpose is to complement each other in the functions of life.  So, would my needs be met? I guess if you use the infamous Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs then: Physiological: Tick! safety: Tick! Love/belonging: big tick! Esteem: Maybe? Self actualization: No Tick! Have I been ruined for the simple life or is my perception of need been skewed by the western ideal of ‘self’ as the centre of all?

Maybe the question is: Am I prepared to replace ‘self actualization’ with something other than self?? THANKFULLY I DON’T HAVE TO!!!

A view from the Mekong River looking back towards 'Bang Thom' a temple just north of Phnom Penh (it's marked on the map at the top)

The mighty water dragon that transports us (and around 16 tonne of Mango) to the other side of the Mekong

Dodgy Dealings in Dark Corners

I am spending about 3 days a week tutoring and running seminars at the International University, Faculty of Dentistry which is housed in a 6 story building. After the first class starts for the day the doors are locked and the students can't leave until their school day is over.... EXCEPT if you go through the dental clinic. The problem being that the only way to get to the dental clinic is through the Deans office at the corner of the building. I found out today that quite a few students know this. The president knows this as well, and when there are students passing through he watches their shadows from the other side of the road where his office is. So today after lunch time, there was an onslaught of small Cambodian bodies making a passage way through the Dean of Dentistry's office. In response, the Dean (Professor, specialist in paediatric dentistry, pillar of dentistry in Cambodia, Crusiader for children and all around superstar) advised 'Quick turn off the lights then no one will see' As we waited for the traffic to subside in the dark shadows of the office he exclaimed with glee 'look they’re making a wear pattern in my carpet!'

That, my friends is: dodgy dealings in the dark corner of the Dean's office!!!