The Power of Touch

Sokhal: my favorite little guy at Happy Home

We were finally able to make a trip to see the quilters a few days ago (Kathy and John hire women who are HIV+ to make quilts that they sell). This idea came about when they started a daycare for HIV+ widows to drop off their children while they went to work. Well, when a woman dropped off her baby and came back two months later, they realized that they needed to make some changes. There is a stigma to hiring these women, making it difficult for them to find jobs, so Kathy and John created a place for them to work! And they provide the daycare for their children while they are at work.


A happy quilter

We picked up some quilts to take home with us to sell and also massaged all of the women. The first woman I worked on started tearing up and crying as I massaged her. And when I was done, she gave me 5 of the tightest hugs I've ever received and 3 kisses on the cheek. All of the women were so appreciative of the work we did with them. I think we were all tearing up before we left.


Massaging the quilters! We had a great time with these wonderful ladies.

After that, we went to a different hospital than we usually go to. We started in the TB ward and then went to the AIDS ward to massage people. We only had about an hour and there were 30 people, so we only had about 15 minutes for each of them. Sometimes when we go in with all of our supplies, we're eyed with a bit of uncertainty (and who can blame them? they don't know us!). I first asked one man if he wanted a massage and he said no, so I went to the woman in the bed next to him. He watched as I worked on her and then he was ready to get one himself. I love that. We took a little longer than we had planned to, and it's my fault. I just couldn't stand the thought of anyone there not getting a massage (if they wanted one) when everyone else got theirs. I didn't make everyone wait for too long, though!


Here I am: Working on a man in the TB ward

After that we went back to Happy Home (the daycare/transition house) and brought the kids a bunch of toys. It was amazing to see how well-received this new stimulus was! We also gave the caregivers there a massage lesson, so they can continue the work after we leave.



Life is always good when there's a baby in your arms!

And so goes another long day in Cambodia!