Your Voice Counts 2007

Loung Ung Asked Us to Re-Post This for You, on Her Behalf:

"A Birthday Wrapped in Cambodian History"; [Op-Ed] by Loung Ung.   April 17, 2005 pg. 4.15

Here is an excerpt from the New York Times Op-Ed piece:

"TODAY is my birthday. April 17 is what's on my driver's license and other documents. But I don't know for sure, and probably never will. All I know is that I was born in Cambodia, sometime during 1970."

She continues later in the piece ,"On April 17, 1975, the Communist Khmer Rouge regime took over my country, and my charmed life came to an abrupt end. I remember that day well. I was on the street playing hopscotch with one of my sisters when rows of mud-covered trucks drove by. On the trucks, men in uniforms were yelling into bullhorns, ordering us to leave our homes, telling us that the Americans were going to bomb us and if we didn't leave we would die. Chaos and fear swept through Phnom Penh. More than two million people were evicted in less than 72 hours."

Click here to read the entire  New York Times article - A Birthday Wrapped in Cambodian History.

Family Ties

In the memoir, we follow Loung through her teenage years.  She talks about how when she was younger she liked to go to the movies with her brother Meng, but "at 14, I've decided that I don't want to be seen by my embarrassing brother in public anymore".  Maybe you've had similar feeling about your own parents?  I can relate to what Loung is feeling, but from the parent side.  I have two teeanage sons who would not want to be seen with me at a movie theater.

But the early teenage years go quickly, and most of us re-examine the bonds within our own families. In one of the final chapters Loung writes, "that living life to the fullest involves living it with family." (p.237)

We are given several glimpses of the way that Meng teaches Loung the values that he feels are paramount: the importance of pride, gratitude, and loyalty to family, community and cultural rituals. Would you share some experiences from your own life where your family taught you something important? Or are there particular examples in the book of the way that Meng teaches Loung these values that resonated with you? Click on the Comments link below.

Jackie Kremer, Reference Librarian, jkremer@mail.fairfield.edu

Out of the Poison Tree

This morning I had the opportunity to pre-screen the film Out of the Poison Tree, made by Beth Pielert, the daughter of Fairfield University professor, Gail Ostrow. This film documents a Cambodian-American family's quest to find out what became of their father during the genocide perpetrated by the Khmer Rouge. The documentary takes the viewer on a trip back to Cambodia on the eve of the long-delayed U.N. tribunal.

This movie is very well made, with great camera work and captivating sound. After having read Lucky Child, it was the closest I could come to visiting Loung's homeland without traveling myself. Hopefully, we'll be able to show this film in the Library when you arrive on campus this fall. I think you will find it remarkable.

Because of this film, I have learned about the Landmine Relief Fund and a dedicated Cambodian named Aki Ra who tirelessly removes landmines so his country will be safe for his people. He and his wife have adopted some 20 children maimed or orphaned by landmines. Learn more at Landmine Relief Fund.

Ramona Islam, Senior Reference Librarian & Instruction Coordinator

What films would you recommend to raise awareness of genocide or land mines? Join the conversation by clicking on the Comments link.

Talking about the Book- Posting by Joan Overfield, Library Director

When I first picked up Lucky Child, I found it challenging and definitely outside my experience and comfort zone to read about genocide, landmines, starvation, the Khmer Rouge, Pol Pot, survival, war, culture shock, immigration and cultural assimilation. Definitely not my typical beach book! Yet, I was drawn in by the fascinating juxtaposition of two sisters, Chou and Loung and their personal, and sometimes riveting, experiences separated by war and growing up continents apart in Vermont and Cambodia. I was drawn in further by themes I had more personal experience with—family, courage, privilege, guilt, cultural awareness, fitting in as a teenager, siblings and, most immediately, separation as my own son prepares to leave for college.

Lucky Child is rich with themes to reflect on and discuss. I am excited that the Library is hosting the book discussions to be held during your first week at Fairfield. I invite you to stay after the book discussions for our film festival featuring “The Killing Fields”, “The Joy Luck Club”, and “Spanglish” –all selected to continue the conversations started by our common reading of Lucky Child.

You can expect great things from the DiMenna-Nyselius Library. This blog, the film series, and hosting the book discussions typify the library staff’s desire to actively engage with students and to provide the resources, facilities and services to support and enrich your Fairfield experience and help you be successful over your next 4 years.

I hope you will join me in being open to new experiences, new people and new ideas at Fairfield University.

Joan Overfield, Library Director

Have something to say about the book Lucky Child? Please click on the Comments link below.

Being Thankful - Posting by Catherine Aldi, Jogues Hall RA

How lucky we are when we're able to help others. Student and RA Catherine Aldi reflects on her volunteer experience:

After my sophomore year in college, I volunteered at a camp for children affected by AIDS. Spending just a week with these young children changed my life and made me rethink the small things I take for granted. One eleven year old girl had been sexually abused and physically beaten; she was growing up in a poverty-sticken foster home. Talking to her made me realize how lucky I am to have a living family that can provide for me. This experience changed my character and allowed me to be thankful for the small things in life.

Have you had an opportunity to help others in need, or were you the grateful recipient of another person's kindness or generosity? Join the conversation by clicking on the Comments link.

Families in Wartime - Posting by Abena Banful, Dolan Hall RA

My brother was in Iraq and contacted my family about a mission that he was on where he was sitting at the top of a tank which is where he normally sits while doing these missions. He said that he got this weird urge, as if someone, or something was telling him to get inside the tank and within seconds of getting in the tank it was bombed. He called my mother and thanked her for praying for him everyday while he was there and that was weird because he is the type of person who was never big on religion. That just brought me closer to my family and appreciating the moments and not taking them for granted, but it also brought me closer to God.

Abena Banful, Dolan Hall RA

Has the Iraq war deeply touched you and your family? Join the conversation by clicking on the Comments link.

Courage - Posting by Josh Kenney, Regis RA

While Loung's story is most exceptional and inspirational, I find her sister Chou to be the sister that has overcome the most adversity.  Bound by her customs, she is faithful and unquestioning of the authority of her family and her husband.  She also had to endure the aftermath of the Khymer Rogue regime far longer than Loung.  The patience in which she braved the war-torn third-world conditions of Cambodia- without a mother or father - is truly remarkable. 

Were you inspired by a figure in Loung's story, or your own life who overcame adversity or a particular challenge?