Reflection on the Arn Chorn Pond GIP Event on March 6, 2019
The GIP event on March 6 allowed me to listen to Arn Chorn Pond, a Cambodian genocide survivor and the founder of Cambodian Living Arts (CLA), for a second time since I've been at Poly. I was once again struck by the amount of strength and fortitude Arn Chorn Pond possesses. He managed to survive both the brutal Cambodian genocide and the deaths of his family members while also transitioning to a completely new world (the US). Even just by hearing him speak about his past experiences, I could see how much and for how long he struggled with everything he had been through, yet he still managed to move forward with his life and create something beautiful (CLA) out of it.
As Mr. Pond told us about the period of time when he went through a deep depression and was suicidal, I was reminded of a couple of things. First, not everyone is okay. Even if they might seem fine on the outside, most people are struggling with their own problems and are just putting forward a brave face. As a result, we need to show compassion, patience, and kindness to others instead of instantly judging or excluding them based on our own preconceived notions. Second, things are not always going to be easy in life. There are going to be times when everything seems bleak or I want to give up on something, but I'm going to just need to keep on fighting for what I want instead of throwing in the towel. And third, the idea that stuck with me the most throughout Mr. Pond's talk is the idea of making relationships and connections with people to foster understanding and camaraderie. As Mr. Pond said, "Who says?" that the white and black South African kids can't get along, "Who says?" that the Israeli and Palestinian kids must fight with one another, "Who says?" that the Cambodian and Vietnamese kids must hate each other. All of these people have the shared experience of suffering loss, pain, etc., and they are not so different from each other. Mr. Pond described his program to foster more of a relationship between gang members in MA with the local police in which local cops ref a football game between the gang members. This program allows the cops and gang members to learn more about one another and create an actual relationship. Relationships are key to getting along with people because they allow you to understand what others are experiencing.
Another message of Pond's was similar to Sama Wareh's message: We don't need to travel to Syria or Cambodia or somewhere far away in order to do something good in the world. There is so much to be done in our own communities too, which is where we should focus our efforts. All in all, this night was very inspiring, and I'm very glad the Poly community had the chance to hear him speak once again.
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| Source: https://www.hmd.org.uk/resource/arn-chorn-pond/ |
As Mr. Pond told us about the period of time when he went through a deep depression and was suicidal, I was reminded of a couple of things. First, not everyone is okay. Even if they might seem fine on the outside, most people are struggling with their own problems and are just putting forward a brave face. As a result, we need to show compassion, patience, and kindness to others instead of instantly judging or excluding them based on our own preconceived notions. Second, things are not always going to be easy in life. There are going to be times when everything seems bleak or I want to give up on something, but I'm going to just need to keep on fighting for what I want instead of throwing in the towel. And third, the idea that stuck with me the most throughout Mr. Pond's talk is the idea of making relationships and connections with people to foster understanding and camaraderie. As Mr. Pond said, "Who says?" that the white and black South African kids can't get along, "Who says?" that the Israeli and Palestinian kids must fight with one another, "Who says?" that the Cambodian and Vietnamese kids must hate each other. All of these people have the shared experience of suffering loss, pain, etc., and they are not so different from each other. Mr. Pond described his program to foster more of a relationship between gang members in MA with the local police in which local cops ref a football game between the gang members. This program allows the cops and gang members to learn more about one another and create an actual relationship. Relationships are key to getting along with people because they allow you to understand what others are experiencing.
Another message of Pond's was similar to Sama Wareh's message: We don't need to travel to Syria or Cambodia or somewhere far away in order to do something good in the world. There is so much to be done in our own communities too, which is where we should focus our efforts. All in all, this night was very inspiring, and I'm very glad the Poly community had the chance to hear him speak once again.
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