This morning at the village coffee shop I watched Yay sit on a tiny stool and wash all the dishes from the morning in a large tub... and I'm wondering what it must be like to do the same monotonous job every day. Not monotony as Americans know it either. Its the same thing I'd have to ask women who sit behind small fruit stands all day hoping for 1 or 2 customers, ladies that push carts all day selling brooms and baskets, and men who's only daily task is to watch their cows graze.

Do they ever say, 'I just need change', 'I don't like my job any more', or 'I feel like I'm not doing anything with my life'? Probably not. Why? Why not?

I think I said that no less than a hundred times in my short career thus far.

Is it that they don't know there's more out there they could do? Are they resigned to do what they know (Cambodians are terrified of making a mistake; they'd rather do nothing than be in error)? Or is it deliberte because they understand it is just a task to be done and they draw satisfaction from how many friends they have, or how they've raised their kids, or how many dishes or cows they've been pleased to purchase...

Just watching her, despite her reasons, this is yet another part of their culture that I admire. To not be defined by what you do or what you have, but rather who you are.

I hope this lesson sinks in to my core and it is who I am as well. Is it cliche? Yes. Cliches are cliche because they have been said a lot. Was I sort of close to this mindset? I hope so, but I've never realized truth before like I have here.