Vichheka Sok

This article was written in 2009 while I was working for World Vision Cambodia.

A day in the life of Mai Mao, 10 year-old girl

Ten-year-old girl Mai Mao lives with her parents who are farmers.  Her mother Heang Yoeum is forty years old and her father Ean Mao is forty-five.  They live in an old wooden house with thatch-roofed and thatch-walls.  Though the family is poor, the house area is always cleaned.

“After sweeping the house, I slice the banana tree and mix it with rice bran to make pig food. Then I go to school around 7 A.M. My classmates and I sweep the classroom before the teacher starts class. There are about thirty students in my class and I have a few close friends,” said Mai.

Every early morning, ten year-old Mai Mao brushes her teeth and take a bath.  Then she sweeps the house with the help of her two elder siblings. Mai is the third daughter of five siblings, and she is now in grade 2 at Muni Rangsey Hob Primary School, which is located about 130 meters from her house. Mai walks to school with her friends.

“My mother gives me 200 riels (0.05 USD) for buying snack at school. I sometimes buy sugar cane or potatoes,” shares Mai, adding that during break time I like to skip ropes and flick rubber bands with my classmates. 

“I love Mathematic session at school because it’s easier than other session, and I want to be a teacher because I want all children to listen to me and study hard,” smiles Mai, while her parents is sitting nearby and smiled with her.

“I leave school at around 10:30 A.M, but sometimes at 11A.M, it depends on the session and all students give goodbye greeting (bow the head down and salute the teacher with two hands together) to teacher before they leave school for home,” says Mai.

“When I arrive home, I immediately mix rice bran with the sliced banana plants to feed the pigs. I take care for all 10 piglets and my elder sister takes care of the piglets’ mother. After that I wash my hands and eat lunch. Our usual food is fish and vegetables that my parents have planted. Someday, we have pork. Before and after eating, we always wash our hands. My mother reminds us if I forget to do this, she said it would make us sick from having dirty hands.  It is not proper hygiene,” adds Mai while her younger brother teased her about washing hands.

Mai looks skinny, but she is healthy and she likes to help her parents to do some chores around the house. Mai takes the cows to the field and she also helps to harvest rice. Mai sweeps her house and describes, “At round 3 P.M in the afternoon, after harvesting rice in the field, I take all the cows home and I also take a shower. Then I start to slice banana-tree for the piglets’ dinner.”

“After giving food to the piglets, I like to play skipping games with my siblings at home. We really enjoy ourselves and later on we wash ourselves well with soap and change into home clothes,” recounts Mai.

“When the sky is a little bit dark, my siblings and I use kerosene lamp because there is no electricity and we read Khmer literature books together and I also do my homework. My parents also sit with us and advise us to study hard,” grins Mai.

Mai’s father smiles, “Mai and her siblings usually go to bed at around 8:30 P.M. after reading and doing homework together. Mai is modest and works hard and never argued with her siblings. All my children are good and they are really helpful with the housework.”

“We don’t have any room in the house, so we all just spread out the mat and use mosquito nets separately. But I sleep with my eldest sister, Thea Mao, who is in the 7^th grade. I always help her to prepare the mats and pillows to sleep,” describes Mai.  Mai and her family does not have indoor nor outdoor toilets and Mai would like to have a toilet for her house one day. Mai smiles and concludes, “My family and I usually go to the bush nearby the house for that we use as toilet.  We bring a shovel with us to cover up our traces afterwards.  I always clean my hands for hygiene.”

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