"A Paradox" author unknown

A Paradox

"The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings, but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints; we spend more, but have less; we buy more, but enjoy it less.

We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time; we have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgment; more experts, but more problems; more medicine, but less wellness.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often. We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life, not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor. We've conquered outer space, but not inner space. We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've split the atom, but not our prejudice. We have higher incomes, but lower morals. We've become long on quantity, but short on quality.

These are the times of tall men, and short character; steep profits, and shallow relationships. These are the times of world peace, but domestic warfare; more leisure, but less fun; more kinds of food, but less nutrition. These are days of two incomes, but more divorce; of fancier houses, but broken homes.

It is a time when there is much in the show window and nothing in the stockroom; a time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to make a difference, or just to... hit delete."

Author Unknown

'Green' Youth Camp: Baan Unrak Goes to the Beach!

We did it! After years of talking about it, months of planning for it and the hard work and energy of several dedicated volunteers (and donors), we successfully brought 14 teenagers from the Baan Unrak Children's Home to experience a once in a life time opportunity: a Youth Volunteer "Green" Camp on the beach! Baan Unrak jungle kids finally got to see the ocean!

 The goal: to provide experiential learning opportunities to disadvantaged children from the Thai/Burmese border town of Sangkhlaburi. 

scenic shot at Jason's beach, aka Ao Nang

The journey: 1100 kms traveled in 2 days from the village of Sangkhlaburi to Krabi. We piled into the back of our school bus and survived the heat, rains and exhaustion of the road trip...but it was all worth it for the smiles we saw that day the kids set foot on the beach in celebration of our arrival!

The kids: These children selected to travel were picked primarily because they have proven to be good role models and leaders in the home, and because teachers and volunteers that directly work with them found them to be hard working and well-deserving of such a wonderful opportunity.

sports day on the beach, kids vs volunteers!

The inspiration: My own life experiences have taught me that an important part of self-discovery can be found in service to others. Life in our little village can be hard and there are limited choices for work and employment...meaning more times than not our kids have a hard time envisioning a future outside of manual labor and government teaching gigs at the local schools.

visit to local tourist attractions

Travel is an escape; an opportunity to experience new environments, new cultures and more importantly travel provides an opportunity to broaden one's horizons when thinking about the future.  The inspiration for this project was to inspire our youth to pursue higher education and to motivate our teens to pursue a higher quality of life than that they currently see as the norm in our poor village.

rock climbing with volunteer guides

 The sponsors: The youth camp was hosted by Projects Abroad Thailand (Krabi) and a special thank you to Ingrid Sprake for inviting our kids to participate and working restlessly to require all the approvals and funding for the camp to be such a great success! Also, thanks to Vishal, Ant, Ruang, Miew and all the community and conservation volunteers from Projects Abroad for creating a warm and welcoming environment for the kids and for making every moment a teachable moment about marine life, coastal conservation, motivation and self improvement.

scuba diving with Thar Gyi

Green Camp: The 'green' camp activities included: beach clean ups; lending a hand planting in a local forest restoration project; recreational art workshops using local resources as inspiration; an introduction to Southern culture Batik painting; marine/coastal conservation workshop and introduction to responsible tourism practices; visits to local heritage sites and temples; an educational mangrove forest walk hosted by government guides; as well as fun interactive games and ice breakers with the team of international volunteers in charge of leading the camp experience!

rock climbing, barefoot!!! jungle style

Adventure Activities: Thanks are also due to individual sponsors and donors for their time, energy and support in providing extra adventure activities: Aqua Vision Dive company for providing the boat, equipment and teachers for a one day discover scuba lesson for our kids; Andaman Sky (and Andy) for providing the equipment and guides for a one day rock climbing adventure course on Railay Beach. Our kids never imagined one day diving under the ocean or experiencing the thrill of dizzying heights and challenging rope work; so special!


The camp was a great moment of achievement for me and for everyone who supported me since the very beginning. I hope this camp marks the first of regular camp and volunteer opportunities for the children at Baan Unrak as well as the children from neighboring home and programs in our small community.

Interested in supporting this project next time?
My website is still in its draft phases, but the donate button works if you're keen to help us out!

Also, check out my Facebook photo albums for all the photos collected from this amazing trip!
Baan Unrak travels to Krabi 
Baan Unrak Green Camp
Baan Unrak Adventure Activities

Mothers on my mind...

Mothers are on my mind a lot these days...This week I have unexpectedly found myself assuming the role of primary care 'mother' for 3 little girls (each of them only 9 years old.)  

Every morning I wake up the girls for 6 am meditation. Following meditation I send them to the children's rooms for bathing and after they've dried and dressed they come back to me for braiding hair, brushing tiny teeth and eating breakfast. Since it's the school holidays they spend the remainder of their day following me around. Where I go, they go. They've spent hours playing outside, watching movies on my computer, and reading Thai lullabies to each other on my small floor mat (as they are doing exactly at this moment.) At night, the teenagers will usually crowd in my room to watch a movie (it's the Star Wars saga this week they're into) and by 10 pm I have to kick everyone out to get the little girls to sleep at a reasonable hour. We enjoy a night-night reading session before it's lights out, a kiss on the forehead each, and a few hours of peace and quiet for me to catch up on my own reading before we do it all over again tomorrow.

How exactly did I find myself responsible for 3 little girls? Destitute mothers, that's how. Here on the Thai/Burmese border, poverty is a daily struggle for both the Thai population and political refugees fleeing Burma. Many parents in this village are simply not able to feed their children, let alone pay school fees that would allow their kids to break this cycle of poverty.  In our home, we offer a solution to break this cycle of poverty (free education for children) and the home provides vocational training, support and opportunities for single mothers to gain employment and sustain themselves along with their children. 

However, for some mothers this is not enough. Some mothers have become so broken and hopeless that they seek only protection in the arms of a man. Jasmine's* mother left for this very reason, last week. After 6 years of living in our home and doing well in her battle against depression, Jasmine's mother snuck out of our home last Thursday, with hardly a goodbye, leaving behind her four children:Jasmine, her older as well as two younger brothers (the youngest only 3 years old.) To make matters worse, and certainly more confusing, she left following not quite a man but a Tomboy (a girl who identifies herself as a man.) 

This has been especially hard on the children, and no one is certain what the future may hold for the mother. Will their family ever be reunited? We honestly don't know. Jasmine has since asked to stay with me, in my room, with the company of two of her best friends. Our sleep over has extended more than a week now, and they're looking to move in full time if I am ready to accept that. Today Jasmine has asked me if she can call me Mom, and I respond with smile and a cuddle each time she talks like this, however I haven't yet quite figured out how best to navigate her emotions nor mine. The little girls are precious and the positive attention I give them every day, well I can see that they have gone a long time without it. I'm happy to give love where I can and certainly to those who are in need, but surely I need to think carefully about what effects my decisions (and these circumstances) will play in my life. It's a waiting game for now...

Yours Truly, 

Stef

* Names have been changed to protect the privacy of our children...