Special Interviews, Special Moments

Over the past few days – I have had the chance to interview amazing individuals.  Individuals such as a fisherman who, at age 58 had the body of a buff 25-year old, and shared with me his fishing equipment and daily catch.  I have met with heads of villages and heard their stories, meetings every single one of their children, parents, relatives and siblings.  I have met with hotel staff, souvenir shop owners, restaurant workers, travel guides, storekeepers and more.  In 5 days, we have conducted over 35 in-depth interviews and conducted over 40 surveys.  Yes- we are exhausted.  But what has kept us going has been the people and their willingness to share, and their want to have their stories heard and recorded.

At the local Pawn Shop in Ngwe Saung, Myanmar

 There are a few moments that stand out in my mind as I try to capture all that we have been able to witness in these few days here.  One moment in particular that stands out is when we went to take a picture with the local pawn shop owner whom we had just interviewed.  He smiled and agreed and then disappeared in the back of his shop.  I asked Hosana what was taking so long and he looked at me and shrugged his shoulders.  All of a sudden, the pawn shop owner comes out wearing his best crisp polo, but even better is the treasure that comes out proudly toddling in front – his two year old daughter is in her best dress with a matching Mickey Mouse hat.  She was absolutely adorable and as her father proudly scooped her up in his arms for our photo, it was impossible not to smile.

Visiting the Monastery

Another special moment was when we were able to enter the Ngwe Saung monastery and interview a monk.  He is 53 years old and has been a monk for 32 years.  As we walked up the entrance barefoot (you cannot wear shoes in the monastery) I was nervous.  Hosana said he had to practice his language and make sure he didn’t say the wrong thing because you have to address monks in a special way.  What if I say the wrong thing?  Or do something offensive without knowing?  As we tiptoed up the wooden stairs to meet the monk, I was nervous.  But as soon as the monk gave a wise, modest smile with this little twinkle in his eyes, I realized it was going to be ok – but more importantly, that this was one really really unique and special opportunity.