Cori Petro's Newsletters from Cambodia

October, 1999

To my family and friends:

Welcome to my first Maryknoll Newsletter! I will be sending these to you approximately every other month to let you know what I have been up to, and to remind you to stay in touch. I hope that these will be interesting for you to read, and as I get settled in Cambodia there will also be pictures included.

I thought that I would being this journey by sharing with you what led me here and what I have been doing...

Looking back, I have always dreamed of the opportunity to form relationships with people overseas. While so many things have led me to this point, my experience with Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity had the most profound impact on me. Although the anthropological aspects of India fascinated me, I was drawn in even more so by the people whose lives were so different from anything I had ever conceived. Getting to know them put human faces on the phrase "the poor" that we read about in newspapers, and each report of suffering began to feel like a personal loss. I still can't explain or even comprehend what it was about those individuals, who I knew for such a short time, that captured me. However, I am sure that this new journey will immeasurably deepen my understanding and change me in ways that I can't begin to imagine.

After my experience in India, I spent several months feeling absolutely powerless to do anything to alleviate the suffering of the people I had met. However, I eventually came to realize that as one member of a larger community I would be able to play a small part in making someone's life better and work with people to change their circumstances. Now I am excited to return to Asia and to become more deeply involved in the joys and sufferings unique to their way of life. The most exciting thing is that I know I could never give as much as I will receive.

To give you a little background information, the Maryknoll Mission Association of the Faithful (MMAF) is the lay people's branch of the Maryknoll family. MMAF is currently made up of 120 adults (including families with a total of 55 children) who live in 16 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. We sign renewable 3-year commitments and work in a variety of ministries. Typical projects include: small business development, education and skills training, health work and AIDS outreach, human rights, community development, rural farm support, environmental concerns, public policy advocacy... you get the idea!

The basic beliefs which MMAF is founded on are summarized in the Vision Statement which says, "We respond [to a call to be present to the world's suffering] by crossing boundaries of culture, nationality and faith to join our lives to those of the poor, marginated and oppressed peoples of the earth. With them we strive for peace and fullness of life... We celebrate the holiness of everyday life and even amidst sin, suffering and death we proclaim the hope of the resurrection... We learn from the experience of the sacred in other faith traditions and offer the gift of our own faith... Seeking to be a bridge between sending and receiving communities, we dedicate ourselves to weaving connections of mutual respect, understanding and solidarity among people worldwide. . ." If you would like to learn more about Maryknoll, please check out their web site at www.Maryknoll.org (especially the "lay missioners" link)-they explain the organization a lot better than I ever could!

Right now I am in the middle of the four-month orientation program. To my surprise, the most challenging part has been realizing that I first have to understand myself in order to be successful in helping others. There are 14 other candidates in the group. We are of all different ages and from all different backgrounds, and in looking at our team it is obvious that our diversity is our strength. I knew that the people here would blow my mind. Although orientation has been intense, I have to admit that I never realized how much fun we would have.

Following orientation I will be home for one month before heading off to Cambodia in mid-January. Out of my fellow candidates, four others are going to South East Asia. We're all thrilled to be going and excited at the prospect of reflecting on and sharing our experiences through these newsletters.

These newsletters are just meant to be little updates, and I hope they will not take the place of more personal communication. I will have e-mail and postal mail in Cambodia, and I will give you the addresses as soon as I have them.

The hardest part of leaving is how much I am going to miss all of you, and wishing that I could be there with you for all that will happen during the next few years. Please keep in contact and let me know how you have been doing- it will not be the same as being there, but at least we'll know where to start when we can finally catch up in person! This is a very special time for me, and I want to end by thanking you so much for sharing in it.

Take care and know that you are all in my thoughts.

Love,

Cori

July 2000

To My Family and Friends

Hello! I hope that all of you are doing well and enjoying the summer! While the weather in the USA is getting hotter, the monsoon rains are beginning to cool Cambodia. Since Phnom Penh is full of palm trees and other tropical vegetation, my favorite way to relax is to sit on the porch and watch the powerful storms.

This month I had a wonderful opportunity to visit the province of Takeo. This is a rural area with beautiful mountains and yellow-green rice fields. Maryknoll collaborates with several groups there to ran a hospital that provides Cambodians with affordable eye-care. In addition to this, foreign doctors provide practical training for Cambodian optometrists who have little hands-on experience. It was amazing to see what they accomplish with few resources and, importantly, how the project is enabling Cambodians to help other Cambodians.

After visiting the hospital, I stayed in a rural village where a Maryknoll priest celebrates mass once a month. One villager, who heard about Catholicism while he lived in a refugee camp, began this prayer community. Upon returning to Cambodia he traveled to Phnom Penh three times each month for a period of four years to attend catechism classes. Although there are only two baptized Catholics in the group, many villagers gather to pray, listen and learn.

The homily that night asked: what does Jesus' death 2000 years ago, in a place far away, have to do with your lives? It is a valid question for everyone, and it is something has been present in my mind. The priest spoke about Jesus' deep love for all people and the dignity of each individual as a creation of a loving God. Jesus showed us how to love others even when it seems painfully difficult to us- this is a powerful example in a country where years of genocide and starvation taught that to survive you must protect yourself at all costs.

These are fundamental values for Cambodia, and the world, in order to begin building a just and stable society. Maryknoll's purpose in Cambodia is not to convert Cambodians to Catholicism, but to live out the values of our faith. Our hope is that sharing our spirituality will positively influence people of all religions, and that we will be better people for having known them and shared with them. Living in Cambodia I have learned profound lessons from the friendship and affection given to me by people who have very few material possessions.

Thank you all so much for the support that you have given me, it has helped me tremendously to know you are on this journey with me. I love reading your e-mails and letters so please continue to write!!

Peace (in Khmer, Sontehpeap),

Cori