Some thoughts on why I haven't posted in months

Not to suggest I haven’t been writing, or life has been uneventful. Oh no...

I spent time in Phnom Penh visiting families of my students; some of them reasonably comfortable, others living in the shadow of the rubbish mountain, Steung Meanchey. I ventured out into rural Cambodia, where my status as foreigner was sharply accentuated. I danced traditional wedding dances with friends, students, coworkers, and a whole bunch of people I didn’t know. I landed myself in that lovely Thai hospital again, my intestines disintegrating once more, leaving me incapacitated. I explored Singapore, and found it an oddly immaculate little island. I spent some peaceful time deep in the Pacific with family and celebrated Christmas. I watched my position change from “teacher” to something far more ambiguous and enjoyable.

I’ve taken many stabs at writing about these experiences, and my hard drive is littered with fragments. Half completed, because they lack a passion and spark that inspires me when I read it. Lacking of passion and spark because the one issue that has shook me is precisely the one I can’t discuss on a public forum like a blog.

I’m referring to The Global Child. Now that the issues have been resolved and we’re forging forward once again, I can simply say that we had some issues and lost some staff. I witnessed betrayals that shattered lessons I’d learned here and thought as irrefutably correct. We have gone through a bumpy period, and are now watching it recede into comfortable memory, the horizon of our future, again seemingly infinite in possibilities, extending out before our tired eyes. What we experienced was painfully necessary, like relocating a displaced joint or pulling a tooth, fully accompanied by the sigh and fuzzy comfort of knowing that the worst is over.

All the specifics I can give: three staff members have quit, and one student has left by her own choice.

What we’ve lost, we have gained in an influx of kind and talented staff. They have peppered our organization with spark, talent, and compassion. They have bonded with the kids and volunteers, and besides doing an excellent job in their field of expertise, have generally made everyones lives more pleasant. You’ll be hearing more about them as we grow closer to them.

Out with the old and in with the new is the (ironically) old aphorism. Sometimes change isn’t good, it’s just necessary. Fortunately, we’re seeing the requisite changes produce large dividends, in education, in productivity, in happiness, and most importantly, in vision and passion for the mission the organization was founded on.

We are TGC, and we’re moving forward. Thanks for all the support, and for hanging in there.

www.theglobalchild.org