This article was written while I was working for World Vision Cambodia.
Title: Pov Ching, Children Love
and Respect me
Pov Ching was a guy with
rude attitude who never used good words to anybody in the family. He got angry
easily for no reason. He always argued with his family members. Pov recounted,
“I used an axe to intimidate them whenever I had an argument with my family
members. All the neighbors and everyone in the village would come to my house
to intervene and to stop me. I thought they had terrible memories of me.” Pov
now is now very active in development work, and he has set a very good model
for other children and youth in the village. But it was not like that
before. World Vision staff members always encouraged him and get him to learn
lots. Pov seems to have broken from his past and had changed himself to be a
useful person for his community.
“Children in the village now love and respect me. I am very happy to see myself changed for the better,” smiled Pov Ching, 18 years old, who was considered a rude son and a disrespectful person.
Pov is an eighth son of nine siblings who is experienced with the hard life. In 2004, his elder brother died and around 18 days later his father also died. This unexpected death put his family in difficult living conditions. Pov once, his mother asked him to drop out of school to seek a job and to earn income to support the whole family. Pov sadly shared, “My mother wanted me to stop studying because the family needed food to eat. But I didn’t listen to her and I was bored every time I stayed at home.”
Though Pov was a hardheaded person who is aggressive; he never wanted to give up his studying when his mother asked him to stop. He sometimes was driven by stress from his family conditions, so he spent time away from home to shoot the birds with a slingshot. He confessed, “I sometimes did not go to school regularly when I was mad at my mother who really wanted me to drop out of school.”
Pov caused problems and he had arguments almost everyday. Pov family members seemed always miserable during the times when Pov was home. He was only looking for reason to pick a quarrel with his family members. Once, he made his mother cried because of his attitude and he shouted insulting words to her while she tried to stop Pov from fighting with his younger brother. Pov never listened to any advice of his mother, and he didn’t do what his mother had asked of him. She wanted him to help tend the cattle and to cut grass to feed the cattle. He usually incited other children in the community to fight and make trouble.
Pov’s attitude and behavior were gradually changed when he became a youth club member of World Vision Cambodia in 2008. Pov has started to learn from every word and act of World Vision staff who always conducted meetings with children and youth in the club. Pov shared, “I feel really ashamed myself to think about my attitude and behavior in the past when I see a good model and characteristics of World Vision staff. Since then I have committed myself to be a good person with respectful attitude and to love others.
”He added, “Every session that I have learned from World Vision staff, it’s really awakened me to be the one with the positive change. I have learned many lessons like child rights, the causes and effects of domestic violence, hygiene and live in the cleaned environment, and morality in the daily life. I keep sharing with my family members and other children in the community all I have learned.”
Pov now becomes a key person in the youth club, and he is responsible to teach some sessions to other club members. He grinned, “I was really surprised when all the club members selected me as the club leader. Since then, I feel really happy and want to do good to set a good model for them.”
Pov leads his club members well, and he has initiated ideas to perform the theater in the village to educate the community people to understand about domestic violence and children’s rights. He breaks into smile and said, “My club members used to perform well in the village for thrive, and there were lots of community people came and watched. I am sure they have learned from our performance because it’s from the real situations in the community.”
Asking about his past time, he recounted, “I know I have completely changed now, and I am sorry to my family members and others in my village that I used to cause violence and bothered them, and I feel ashamed really.”
Every members of Pov’s family are really happy to see he has changed. His mother now understands about the value of education and encourages Pov to study hard, so he would help the family to live in better conditions. Pov said, “I now teach basic English language to some children in my village for free. I love them and want them to be a good person for our society. And I have two dreams; I want to be an accountant for a private bank because I like numbers. I also want to be a good lawyer to seek for justice for the poor and to eliminate all forms of corruption in the community.”
Pov’s mother, Som Koub, 62, a farmer, turned to smile and concluded, “It’s unbelievable with the real change of my son. Pov was such a cruel son with bad attitude and did not respect anybody. He now loves his siblings, relatives, and is a helpful one. I am thankful that World Vision has helped to transform my son into a new person. Everybody in the village, especially children really admired him and respect him.”
“Children in the village now love and respect me. I am very happy to see myself changed for the better,” smiled Pov Ching, 18 years old, who was considered a rude son and a disrespectful person.
Pov is an eighth son of nine siblings who is experienced with the hard life. In 2004, his elder brother died and around 18 days later his father also died. This unexpected death put his family in difficult living conditions. Pov once, his mother asked him to drop out of school to seek a job and to earn income to support the whole family. Pov sadly shared, “My mother wanted me to stop studying because the family needed food to eat. But I didn’t listen to her and I was bored every time I stayed at home.”
Though Pov was a hardheaded person who is aggressive; he never wanted to give up his studying when his mother asked him to stop. He sometimes was driven by stress from his family conditions, so he spent time away from home to shoot the birds with a slingshot. He confessed, “I sometimes did not go to school regularly when I was mad at my mother who really wanted me to drop out of school.”
Pov caused problems and he had arguments almost everyday. Pov family members seemed always miserable during the times when Pov was home. He was only looking for reason to pick a quarrel with his family members. Once, he made his mother cried because of his attitude and he shouted insulting words to her while she tried to stop Pov from fighting with his younger brother. Pov never listened to any advice of his mother, and he didn’t do what his mother had asked of him. She wanted him to help tend the cattle and to cut grass to feed the cattle. He usually incited other children in the community to fight and make trouble.
Pov’s attitude and behavior were gradually changed when he became a youth club member of World Vision Cambodia in 2008. Pov has started to learn from every word and act of World Vision staff who always conducted meetings with children and youth in the club. Pov shared, “I feel really ashamed myself to think about my attitude and behavior in the past when I see a good model and characteristics of World Vision staff. Since then I have committed myself to be a good person with respectful attitude and to love others.
”He added, “Every session that I have learned from World Vision staff, it’s really awakened me to be the one with the positive change. I have learned many lessons like child rights, the causes and effects of domestic violence, hygiene and live in the cleaned environment, and morality in the daily life. I keep sharing with my family members and other children in the community all I have learned.”
Pov now becomes a key person in the youth club, and he is responsible to teach some sessions to other club members. He grinned, “I was really surprised when all the club members selected me as the club leader. Since then, I feel really happy and want to do good to set a good model for them.”
Pov leads his club members well, and he has initiated ideas to perform the theater in the village to educate the community people to understand about domestic violence and children’s rights. He breaks into smile and said, “My club members used to perform well in the village for thrive, and there were lots of community people came and watched. I am sure they have learned from our performance because it’s from the real situations in the community.”
Asking about his past time, he recounted, “I know I have completely changed now, and I am sorry to my family members and others in my village that I used to cause violence and bothered them, and I feel ashamed really.”
Every members of Pov’s family are really happy to see he has changed. His mother now understands about the value of education and encourages Pov to study hard, so he would help the family to live in better conditions. Pov said, “I now teach basic English language to some children in my village for free. I love them and want them to be a good person for our society. And I have two dreams; I want to be an accountant for a private bank because I like numbers. I also want to be a good lawyer to seek for justice for the poor and to eliminate all forms of corruption in the community.”
Pov’s mother, Som Koub, 62, a farmer, turned to smile and concluded, “It’s unbelievable with the real change of my son. Pov was such a cruel son with bad attitude and did not respect anybody. He now loves his siblings, relatives, and is a helpful one. I am thankful that World Vision has helped to transform my son into a new person. Everybody in the village, especially children really admired him and respect him.”
-Ends-
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