Kong's house, December 2009

Thanks to everyone interested in this project. For a description of the project, see first blog entry. - Tomoko

Summary

1/24/10 $450 wired for work on the concrete floors. Floors are finished now.
1/15/10 Sent email to friends about blog
1/12/10 Created House of Kong blog
1/11/10 Called Kong. Got more background info. and history
1/11/10 $200 wired for starting work on floors. An engineer/construction worker is scheduled to start on Jan. 15
1/1/10 Naoto tells me the story of Kong
12/31/09 Naoto returns from Laos

Monday, March 8, 2010

Story of Kong's life

Here is the story of Kong's life that I edited slightly for readability:

Since I lost my mother when I was 12 years old I had to take care of my two younger sisters and two younger brother and very old grandparents. After my mother died, my father decided to go to another place for to be a worker to earn money to buy food and clothes for us. He left us alone with the very old grandparents. In that time I did not know what to do. The big problem for us in that time is food. We very need food and we were lucky to have generous people around our house. They gave us the food and also our house is not very good. When the rains come we have to move to the corner of the house.

After the 7 months our father came back and he had a little money to buy the good food and good clothes for us and we were happy in that time. I saw many friends going to school. I also would like to go too but my father said he has not enough money to give me to go to school, and when I was 14 years old I try to tell my father to sell 1 cow for money to give me to go to school but he never agree. Our father he would like to have a new wife but he was afraid a new wife don't like his children. We were very sad to see our father be alone and be alone until we growup. I was 15 years old and we make the plan to make our father have a new wife and he happy too. And then we decided to sell 4 of our cows to buy land to make the sticky rice farm for me I don't have the name in the house. I need the money to go to school in the city. 3 of his children get married now accept me and my brother, Ton Tarn, who lives with me now in country side. After 15 years the girls think they have to get married because they think they are getting old and because they have nothing to do. So after get married now they have many children and there is more population in family and the land they buy before is not enough for growing sticky rice and vegetables for all of them. And in the year 2005, the Laos government have to provided land for the population. All the families in Laos who own land have to pay for tax to the government each month. Some families have much money to pay for tax so they can get large land. We don't have money to pay for the tax every month so we had to sell the land for very cheap price to the government or to the rich man so I try many times to earn money to buy the land at home for me and my family now before it becomes more expensive in the future. I know the land to make the farm in the future will be expensive.

Now my father grows the vegetable in small land to sell and to get some money to buy food for grandmother. We lost our grandfather in 2005 of January winter season. He sleep at night and he died because he very cold we have not enough long clothes and thick blankets to give each other. So all the things in my past make me remember and I want to make my life be different from before. I don't want to be too poor. I want to study. I want to make money by my hand and my knowledge. Someday if I have some own money I want to buy land for to make my father be happy because now he is getting old. And now his knee is bad and he cannot walk and work a long time.

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