Some of you may have heard that Cambodia's former king Norodom Sihanouk passed away last week. Despite a checkered history, it was he who led Cambodia to independence from French rule, and has perhaps remained the Kingdom's most prominant and symbolic figure. I wish we could have been in Phnom Penh to be among the thousands who came to welcome his body back to the Royal Palace. To be part of the emotion that has flooded the country.
Here in Prey Veng, people were glued to their TVs. Ming Sarun told us she felt so sad watching the ceremonies that she couldn't eat. All funny TV shows and movies have been banned for a week. On Sunday our church deliberately played only accoustic music rather than the typical super-amplified set. A picture of the king was displayed modestly at the front of the room, swathed with black satin. Small pieces of black ribbon pinned neatly on shirts.
In a nation were, from my foreigner perspective, it seems like so many feelings remain hidden beneath a will to survive and a fear of offending, I am reminded of the depth of emotion an entire nation can feel, even for a man who most have never met.