Background: I was born in a farmer family whose daily income relied heavily on farming. My family is big for there are 11 of us, and when my grandfather was still alive there were 12 of us. It's such a tough responsibility for my parents especially my father to feed 9 kids including an aging grandfather. When we were little, we didn't understand much about how hard our parents had to work. We were always hungry and often fought each other or cried for food. I and my elder brother often broke into fight because of cold rice in the morning. When i was about 8 years old, i was already an active farmer helping with rice planting, rice cutting and so on but later on my parents recruited me to be a cowboy instead, which i did until i was 18 years old. Everyday for 10 years, i was looking after the cows. Sometime, it was just so hot in the sun and sometime it was just so cold in the rain. I was always hungry when coming back home and always wished there was some food left or my mother had cooked the food early. I have a lot memory being a cowboy and a hard-working farmer. When i was about 15, i worked very hard on farming. Everyday during rainy season, i had to get up at 4am to plough and then looked after the cows in afternoon until 5pm. I learnt life lessons through those years, and it has become such training ground as i grow up. Life and Education: Being born in a poor family, i always wish to help improve my family. I always dream of giving my parents a good rest and let them enjoy life. Therefore, i thought education was the answer. However, my family was not be able to support me as they didn't have enough money and were always busy with farming plus other stuffs to make sure all of us had something to eat. I didn't blame anyone for that. But instead I tried to work really hard with my studies and i raised up my own chickens so that i could sell them to support my studies. It worked quite well. What's next, I started my high school life in 2003 where i met most of my best friends. I've got 4 best friends at high school and we get along so well. We really had so much fun together, and honestly speaking we spent too much time playing and visiting each other homes more than studying. Then in 2005, each of us decided to move from our family to stay together at school hoping that we could help each other with our studies, but we ended up spending more time talking, playing, fishing in the lake nearby, and sleeping instead. However, it was such a great time in life and we still keep talking about it whenever we meet up in these day. Then in 2006, i had to change my school to the capital of Kompong Speu province because the school i was attending ( Chanthnal High School) didn't have enough teachers. Life with new challenges: I
didn't have much foundation at grade 10-11 so it was tough when i moved
to grade 12 especially at the town. Everyone was far a head of me.
Only when i studied at town that i heard about studying at university,
scholarship to study at Phnom Penh and abroad. I got really interested
in those new ideas but I didn't perform well at all for the first
semester. I was just about to survive, so how could i compete with
others for scholarship?
I never thought of studying at university
because i knew my parents could not afford it. However, when i reminded
myself about my family future, and a desire to see them live in a
better life, it seemed there was something pushing me to study really
really hard. I disciplined myself to study really hard for the final
semester hoping to earn a scholarship.Every night for 3 months, i studied from 8PM- 2AM, and then got up at 5.30 AM to memorize the lessons. I gave everything i had for studies. To my surprise, it worked out. I got a scholarship to study at one of the university in Phnom Penh in the field of Business Management at the end of 2006. I was very happy because my dream came true. Then i moved to Phnom Penh City, which i faced other huge challenges with studies, accommodation, and many others. To be honest, i felt like i was a foreigner in my own country when i first arrived Phnom Penh. A year later , i took an entrance exam at IFL for English study and i passed so i decided to study two degrees at the same time, which later on i felt i was killing myself alive. On top of that, i took a part-time job at church in 2009 for a year. So, from 2009-2010, i was very very skinny and tired. However, God is very good He took me through those tough years. Finally, i graduated one degree in 2010 and another one in 2011. Relief...and relief.
A NEW BEGINNING: I felt so proud of myself when i got scholarship to study at Phnom Penh. I thought of getting good job after graduation. I thought i was walking on the right path toward my final destination-that is to get a good job. However, one day i realized that life has more meaning than that. It was not just about getting good degree to get a good job and then everything was just about myself. I learnt that life is the journey not the final destination and it is more than just about oneself. And life is a joy no matter what i have or don't have and success is about enjoying life and using it to its full potential and help other people do the same. This realization came only when i started to know one amazing friend-Jesus. My life was completely changed, my identity was completely switched off once i received Jesus as my God and Savoir. I'm not saying that studying hard to get a good job is a wrong motivation. I totally agree it is right. But what i mean here is that i could easily ruin my life, lose all the joy, and then become so selfish just to pursue one final destination that i thought was real success. But what if i could not get there? I guess, i would be so depressed and hatred towards myself and probably others who involved. Praise God that He reveal the truth to me at the right time. I know He loves me and has a wonderful plan for me. So, i choose to put my trust in Him not in my own abilities. It doesn't mean i stop doing everything and sit down to watch. I still try to work hard with what i need to do but i work with joy and peace and hope in my heart knowing that God is in control. The result is hugely different. Thanks...! July 2013