In the year 2000, I was working with an HIV and AIDS prevention organization in Cambodia. The epidemic was accelerating, and the solution seemed straightforward: distribute condoms and teach people how to use them. Teams fanned across the countryside with boxes of condoms, demonstrating their use on bananas. We returned home satisfied with our work.…
As a species, we have repeatedly acted on inherited prejudices, convincing ourselves that certain groups are somehow less human, less deserving of dignity—or even of life itself. In doing so, we have committed atrocities while telling ourselves they were necessary, justified, or deserved. The dehumanization that precedes genocide, the racial hatred that fuels violence, the…
From childhood magic to religious belief and finally to lived compassion, this reflection asks a simple question: what remains when illusion falls away—and love stays? When I was a child, I loved watching magic shows on television. The idea that someone possessed powers I did not, fascinated me. I was especially taken by the magician who…
While sorting through old boxes of memorabilia, I was struck by how easily forgotten moments can still shape who we become. Reading old letters and names from my childhood reopened memories that helped explain some of my long-held attitudes. One of those memories involves Eddie, a neighborhood boy I once played with on Bluebird Street.…
For several years, I worked as a counselor at a Youth Center in the southwestern United States. While the work had its rewards, it also had its drawbacks. I primarily worked with disadvantaged Navajo and Zuni youth, and ran a center for the Spanish youth who lived on the wrong side of the railroad tracks…
I didn’t climb too far up on the educational ladder in life, but I have had a few good teachers, the best one by far being Experience. When I was 4 years old, I was taught by my parents and Dutch community leaders that it was alright to tell a lie to the police about…
Most of us can remember singing Oh, Be Careful Little Ones What You Do as children. Maybe it was Sunday school, or maybe kindergarten. If you’re like me, you can probably still remember most of the hand motions. I didn’t realize it then, but that simple song would later echo in my mind when temptation…
A few days ago, we were visiting Prey Veng, Province of Cambodia, and on our way back to the city, we picked up a man and his pet duck. The duck was not all that comfortable being in the van at first. It started squawking loudly and thrashing its wings, making the ride difficult for…
I can still remember that first time I bowed to the Buddha… such a simple act, and yet perhaps the most defiant and difficult thing I have ever done. I have not lived the life of a saint. I’ve been a rebel from as far back as I can remember—fired from every job, court-martialed in…
“There is a Wine that flows from the vineyards of the Lord, Its sweetness aged in jars of clay, its price none can afford.And wise men say that he who tastes its sweetness on his tongueWill understand the Mind of God and evil overcome.” With tear-filled eyes, a dying father passed these words on to…
What if the most dangerous belief we hold… is that we still have time? I don’t think there are many who haven’t already reached the same conclusion, even if we try to deny it—that as a species, through our actions and our silence, we have crossed a line from which there may be no return,…
He comes and goes as he pleases, working quietly behind the scenes. Most times we’re not even aware of his presence — not until he’s ready to steal another from us. The children may grow restless, or the dogs bark more than usual in the night… but we choose to ignore such signs. To acknowledge…
In 2001 Wat Ou Poat was selected to be the Pagoda where we would build an HIV and AIDS clinic. It wasn’t my first, second, or even third choice of locations at the time, because The Khmer Rouge had destroyed much of it and some of the stupas, supposedly had even been used as holding…
In 2001, just as The Wat Opot Project was opening its HIV and AIDS clinic in Bati, Takeo, a young monk from the Wat Ou Poat Pagoda came over to observe the activities. He was more than just curious, he was interested in helping us out with the children’s program. As the program developed and…
Before there was time I existed, in a dimension far different than now. My whole world was self-sustaining, to no one I needed to bow. But a question arose from somewhere inside, ‘How different would my world be, If I didn’t know all the answers and the future were up to me?’ In a burst…
