Local Markets

On New Years Day morning, on our way out to Tahsang Village, we stopped at the local market in Kumphawapi.  We needed some offerings and food for our visit to a special Monk near the village where my Mother-in-Law was born. 

 

At the local markets, just about anything can be purchased - clothing, hardware, prepared foods, flowers, plants, DVDs, CDs, meat, seafood, turtles, eels, snakes, frogs - basically if it is alive or was once alive, it is for sale. Local people and people from outlying villages shop at these local markets.

In all villages there are small, very small, markets where villagers can buy certain necessities such as cooking oil, sauces, soap, shampoo, canned mackerel, soda, beer, whiskey, snack foods and sometimes eggs and a few vegetables. These markets supplement villager's shopping trips to the local markets.

Local markets are located throughout towns and cities in Isaan. In rural areas, there are markets set up alongside the road where people gather to sell and buy. Some of the markets are temporary setups on specified evenings of the week (night markets).

Duang Buying Some Live Eels to Bring to Monk

Local markets are a combination of indoor permanent facilities and temporary outside facilities. The indoor facilities are large dark open sided buildings or a series of connected buildings with corrugated sheet metal roofs. Inside there are rows and rows of fixed raised tables where the vendors set out their goods to sell. Outside facilities consist of a low raised wood rough platforms typically covered with plastic tablecloths upon which the merchandise is displayed along with a small spring scale to weigh the goods.

A large umbrella protects the goods and vendor from the elements. Sometimes there is a small plastic chair or aluminum lawn chair for the vendor but quite often they sit atop the platform along with the goods.  

We were shopping at the local market because the food is cheaper than at the big international stores, and most importantly the selection for the types of foods that the Lao Loum people eat is much greater there.

Fresh Food Being Cooked Over a Charcoal Fire

Shopping in the local market is not just the matter of going in, grabbing what you need, paying for it and getting out. These local markets in Isaan also are centers of gossip and social interaction. People end up meeting their friends and relatives at the market so they stop and talk. The vendors also join in and ask questions about family matters. The simple task of selecting vegetables to buy also requires an involved conversation - to ensure the best quality, best price and most likely most importantly of all be perceived as a "kuhn jai dai" - a good person, someone with a good heart.

Part of the Fresh Fish and Seafood Section of the Market

Dried Fish For Sale

Pig's Heads At A Station of One of the Pork Vendors

Scattered throughout the interior of the indoor portion of the Kumphawapi market there are large charcoal grills where fish and meat are cooked. Large metal ducts take the smoke and fumes up and out through the sheet metal roof. Cooked products are lined along the counter for sale. In other areas people use propane gas burners to cook sweets. The sweets are typically corn or rice with coconut as well as sugar added. I particularly enjoy the corn kernel- shredded coconut waffles fresh out of the waffle iron.

Fresh Fruit, Mangosteens, 25 Baht a Kilogram ($0.38 a pound)

Another Fruit Vendor, Everyday Is "Wear What You Want Day" At The Talat Sao

Inside the market the aisles are very narrow as well as crowded. We had arrived around 7:30 A.M. so it was the height of the morning market rush.  In addition to buying items for the day and days ahead, many people were buying their breakfast. You need to be careful walking because the concrete floors are not level, have abrupt changes in elevation, and are in various states of disrepair. Lighting levels are low inside the market with illumination provided by a small number of exposed fluorescent tubes and bare light bulbs. Interestingly, many of the bare light bulbs are now the eco-friendly fluorescent type. An occasional cat or street dog will also wander by to further complicate navigating through the market.

A Stall Selling Dry Goods and Some Goods that are Wet in Bottles

Some of the vendors, typically those who are selling canned goods have updated their booths with small TVs or stereos. This provides some entertainment and distraction for their children or grandchildren who accompany the vendors.

Typical Thai Desserts Being Made For Sale

Soup's On!

Between the sights, sounds, and smells, a stop at the local market is always entertaining as well as interesting.  There is also no telling what you may learn about just anyone, too.  I have written several times before that there are no secrets in Isaan.  The local market specializes in ensuring that and for free!

Duang Headed Out of the Talat Sao in Kumphawapi

 

Fresh Plaa-Muck

 

 

New Years Day is celebrated in Thailand as well as Chinese New Year, Thai New Year (Songkran) and various Hill Tribe new year celebrations.

All the New Year celebrations are times for families and friends to come together for eating, drinking, singing and dancing.  These occasions are also times when special merit making, as opposed to merriment making, can be earned through offerings as well as special religious rituals.

Just as there are special foods associated with specific holidays such as Easter, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, New Years Jan 1 is a time for many people in Thailand to eat plaa muck, which you most likely know better as squid or calamari.

On our way out to Tahsang Village on 1 Jan to gather up the clan to go see a special Monk, we stopped at the market in Kumphawapi to pick up some items for the trip as well as offerings to the Monks.  We had gotten up early at 5:00 AM so we arrived at the market around 7:00 A.M.

It appears that the recent opening of the Tesco-Lotus Superstore just down the road from the traditional Kumphawapi market has not adversely affected the talat sao (morning market).  The market well well stocked and it was just as crowded as when I first encountered it 6 years ago.  I find that reassuring because just as I believe in local solutions for local problems and conditions, I believe that the more a community can be self-sufficient the better served its members will be.  Keeping the profits of groceries in the community is more beneficial and more market responsive to the local community's needs than shipping it off to large urban centers or worst of all - offshore multinational corporations.

After we had finished our shopping, which will be subject of a separate blog, we returned to our truck parked across the street in the large vacant lot next to the banana seller's stall.  I heard an announcement from a truck's P.A. system and asked Duang what it was all about.  She told me that the man was selling "plaa muck" (squid).  I looked and saw about three cars from our truck, a man in the back of a pick up truck filled with several plastic coolers.  I wandered over to check it out.

Fresh Live Squid For Sale - 400 Miles from the Gulf of Thailand

The vendor had opened one of the plastic ice chests and with a wood stick was stirring up the water in it.  The water exploded with black liquid and the frenzied movements of white withering squid appendages - the cooler was filled with live squid.  Live squid - beautifully formed, firm and with bright yellows eyes - 400 miles, 8 hours from the Gulf of Thailand!

Duang caught up with me and as I took photographs, she translated my questions and the vendor's replies.  The man and his wife had gone to the docks and purchased the squid right off of the boats that night.  After loading up their plastic containers, they drove 8 hours through the night to Kumphawapi.  Although New Years in January is an official one day holiday, many people take 5 days for their celebrating.  The squid vendor will remain in the area and return to his home in Bangkok after five days.

Stirring the Squid

The man had installed a series of battery powered aerators and pumps to keep the squid alive.  Similar arrangements are also used in the market to keep the fish, eels, and prawns fresh and more importantly alive.  It doesn't get any fresher than being alive.  There is no concern about purchasing bad seafood when it is still wiggling when you leave the market.

The man tended the squid while his wife handled the customers.  There was a simple spring scale on the back of the tailgate and the money was kept in a pouch secured around her waist. Customers selected their squid from several that had been removed from a large cooler and displayed in a plastic tray.  The vendor's wife weighed the selected squid on the scale, placed them in plastic bag and collected the money from the customer.

I was very impressed for many reasons.  The first reason was the realization that although I was 400 miles from the ocean I was able to buy fresher squid than most of my friends who live near the water back in Connecticut.  I could buy it not because of any technological advancement that Thailand has over the USA but because of an individual's initiative to meet a market's needs.

The market system of Southeast Asia, for me, represents a paradox.  Although the markets do not have much in terms of commercial refrigeration and advanced packaging, I believe that the food is actually fresher for the consumer.  Without widely used refrigeration and packaging, the food has to be fresher.  Any spoilage would be obvious to the consumer who can handle the items, inspect the items, and smell the items before purchasing.

I was secondly impressed with the ability of a person here in Thailand with some initiative to create a business.  I can only begin to imagine the permits and licenses required if I were to decide to create a similar business back in the USA such as driving up to Maine and filling up ice chests with lobsters to then keep alive and drive to New York City (roughly 400 miles) to sell in some parking lot. For a start I know that there would be business license(s), commercial plates required for the truck, health permit(s), tax permits, and God knows what regulations to be followed for transporting live seafood.

Here is Thailand as well as countries such as Vietnam, Laos, China it is very simple for a person to set up a family business.  It is all left up to the individual's imagination and initiative. As the Nike slogan says ... They "Just do it".

In the USA if you were to hire a teenager every week to care for your children while you and your spouse went out for an evening or two, you, to properly follow the law, would have to consider the babysitter to be your employee.  As an employee, you would have to have a taxpayer number, make Social Security contributions (old age, and health) on behalf of your employee, withhold the employee's required Social Security contributions, withhold Federal taxes from your employee's wages, withhold state taxes from your employee's wages, contribute to unemployment insurance for the employee, report all kinds of information to both the State and Federal Government. You would also be responsible for maintaining all kinds of records.  Oh - you are also responsible to first determine that your babysitter has the legal right to work in the USA.  Now is that any way to run a country or to encourage people to start businesses or even to hire any one who has not established themselves as a business?

All Is Not As It May Seem, or As You May Hope

The Charcoal Maker's Niece

Earlier this month, I wrote about the charcoal maker's niece.  In my blog I had indicated that the three year old girl had been offered to Duang and I to raise by her grandmother.  Her grandmother is not in good health, the girl's parents have not been seen or heard from in three years, and the grandmother wanted to be sure that the little girl's future would be secure.

Duang and I consider ourselves, at 49 and 63 years old, to be too old to commit to raising a young child.  However, Duang's son and his wife are interested in having a young child.  We shared the information with them over the phone and photographs over the Internet.  They were very interested in pursuing the matter further.

In the week before Christmas, Duang and I drove out to Kumphawapi to visit the little girl and her grandmother at their home.  Once again, as I had a few times in Bangkok, I visited a unique neighborhood, a neighborhood with streets so narrow that a full sized vehicle can not go down.  You access the homes by bicycle, motorbike, soemlaw, or tuk-tuk.  Duang and I chose to walk.

The neighborhood is one of those compact densely populated areas where there are no sidewalks and if the walls of the houses do not meet the edge of the street, there is no more than two or three meters of dirt separating them.

These are working class neighborhoods with many of the people working from their homes - small shops, small restaurants, stalls selling soft drinks or local cuisine.

These are working class neighborhoods where people live most of their day outside tending to their children and socializing with each other.

These are working class neighborhoods where there is no "Neighborhood Watch" programs because part of every one's day is to watch and participate in what is going on about them.

I enjoy these neighborhoods because there are so many great opportunities for photography and many children to talk to.  These are relaxed neighborhoods where people all know each other and if you are a stranger, will quickly know your name.

We did not know exactly where the little girl lived but after asking at two different locations we quickly and easily found their home.

The little girl and her grandmother lived under another uncle's house.  The older homes in Thailand are elevated approximately 2 meters (6 feet) above the ground on either wood or concrete columns.  Elevating the homes makes a great deal of sense - it minimizes the risk of damage due to flooding, it makes the living area of the home cooler by allowing for air circulation beneath the floor, it helps to minimize access of the living area by creatures great and small ranging from ants, termites, dogs, and chickens.

There were no exterior walls for the little girl's living quarters beneath her uncle's house.  In the center of the area there was a small area, approximately 3 meters by 3 meters (9 foot by 9 foot) where the grandmother and little girl slept on elevated platforms.  Their meager clothing hung on a clothes line strung between two columns of the uncle's home.

The floor of the living space was compacted dirt.  Furniture was limited to two raised wood platforms with woven reed mats, sahts, upon them. It was on top of these raised platforms that they ate, napped, socialized, played, and watched life out on the street.

Our visit went very well.  Although I did not understand what was being said, I understood a few key words and could tell from body language what was going on and how it was going on.  Another very interesting dynamic was also going on.  People, both men and women, kept stopping by to meet us and listen in to what was being said - obviously checking us out.  It turned out that a vast majority of the people were relatives who lived in the neighborhood.  It was obvious that they cared for the little girl.

The little girl was even more charming than the first day that we had encountered her.  She sat next to Duang and called her "Yai" (grandmother). She displayed a great deal of intelligence, and vibrancy.  She played with just a small doll's head and told how she would like to have a doll.  She told Duang that she recently had her fourth birthday but did not have any cake like the other children had.

When Duang and the grandmother walked off to buy some snacks, the little girl remained behind with me and entertained me with her natural modelling skills.

 

 

 

 

The visit went well, and Duang told the Grandmother that we would return the next day with Duang's son and his wife.  They were driving up the 8 hours to Udonthani from Rayong where they have jobs on an industrial estate to attend the ordination of his cousin as a Monk.

So far Duang's son and his wife have been unable to have a child.  Duang's son had spent about two weeks of his earnings to help pay the costs associated with his cousin becoming a Monk. This offering besides helping his cousin was also an offering in the quest to have a child.  If you read up on Buddhism you may find statements that Buddhists do not pray for divine intervention.  That may very well be true in the theoretical sense but I have found the practical reality is different.  I know many Buddhists who pray to Buddha for help, good luck, and myriad other earthly requests just as Christians pray to God, Jesus, or Saints for the same assistance.

We had told the little girl that the next day we were going to a big party in Tahsang Village. She said that she wanted to go with us and dance.  I thought that that was a great opportunity for my stepson, his wife, and the little girl to get to know each other better in a more relaxed atmosphere.

On the way back to our home, I asked Duang if the grandmother had asked for any money.  Duang said that the elderly woman had not asked for money but that Duang wanted to give her 19,000 Baht ($670 USD) for the three years that the woman had raised the child but no more money after that "gift".  I remarked to Duang that I thought that the story the grandmother had told us about the little girl not eating one day was not true.  After witnessing the concern of the neighbors and the quality of life in that neighborhood, I was convinced that if her grandmother was unable to feed her, family and neighbors would have.

The next morning, Duang and I did our weekly grocery shopping.  This week we added a simple dress, three pairs of panties, two little dolls, and six slices of birthday cake to our cart.  We went out to the little girl's home with my step son and his wife.

When we arrived at the home, there appeared to be no one around.  Once again our presence was noticed by relatives who helped locate the grandmother.  The grandmother and little girl were taking an afternoon nap.

The grandmother spoke to us for awhile and the woke the little girl up to meet with us.  We gave her the gifts and she thanked us.  There was a great deal of conversation but I sensed that things were different and I was sensing bad vibes.  Whereas the day before the little girl was charming, she was now rather reserved if not sullen.  It was obvious to me that things were not going well.

The grandmother said something to the little girl and the little girl had a meltdown.  We left shortly after that.  We stopped at a drink stall just around the corner from the little girl's home.  We had ordered lemon ice tea - not the add water to some powder drink but the fresh brewed tea and real lemon typical Isaan drink - made to order.  As we waited for our drinks, the five women at the stall and Duang struck up an animated conversation.  I didn't know exactly what it was all about other than it was about Duang and I along with why we were in the neighborhood.

On the way home Duang told me that the grandmother had talked to the little girl about leaving and going to live with my stepson and daughter-in-law.  I had not known what was going on at the time and sure would not have supported such a strategy.  Imagine being 4 years old, being woken up, meet two total strangers, and then being asked to leave your world behind to go live with them.  I suspect that it was not the best day the little girl has had  in her brief life.

Duang told me that the Grandmother wanted money every year whereas Duang's son wanted to make a single payment? Gift?  Offering?  This was apparently a deal breaker right from the start.  Duang then filled me in on the soft dring booth conversation.  When Duang told the women about being interested in having her son take care of the little girl, the women told Duang that it was not a good idea.  They said that the little girl was OK and had a good heart (nice), the grandmother just wants to make money.  According to them this had happened before but after a month the grandmother was demanding more money so the little girl was returned.

We were disappointed.  We were also sad for the little girl.  We did not feel bad about the gifts we gave the little girl.

We can not unilaterally change the world.  We are able to change the world one person at a time.  Our hope was that this little girl's life could be changed.  We were not able to change her life but perhaps for just a day we had made her life better.

Things are not as they always seem at first.  Things are not always as you hope or would like them to be.

Life is ... life is what it is.

So to paraphrase the late Paul Harvey "You know the rest of the story"  A story behind some of the photos for every photo tells more than one story.

Naga-mobile

In Gotham City, Batman drives around in his Batmobile.  His Holiness, the Pope, while traveling throughout the world is driven around in the Popemobile.

On Thursday, Duang and I attended a house warming here in Udonthani.  Duang's youngest brother had been hired to provide the entertainment for the celebration.  Here in Isaan, people have a party when they move into a new home or start a new business.  Part of the celebration is a merit making ritual where food offerings and goods such as robes and toiletries are given to the Monks.  The Monks and the family walk around the house three times before the Monks inspect the home and bless the home as well as occupants.



Monk Leads Procession Around New Home

After the religious aspects of the celebration have concluded, there is typically a live show to entertain the people.  The show typically lasts around 5 hours.  The celebration always includes a great deal of drinking and eating.

When we arrived at the new home, actually a new shop house, the religious portion of the celebration was about to commence.  The family will live on the second and third floors while the first floor is reserved for cooking and more importantly the family's whiskey distribution business.  I noticed an elaborately painted Mazda pick up truck parked in front of the home.

Nagas Guarding A Stairway In Luang Prabang, Laos

The truck was decorated in a religious motif, the mythological snake creature "Naga".  The Naga is a large snake creature that is found in Hindu as well as Buddhist religions. Nagas are not allowed inside of the temples but you will often find sculptures of the Nagas on the stairways leading up to the temples. For the Lao Loum people of Thailand and the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic (Laos) living along the Mekong River the Nagas are still believed to rule the river.

7 Headed Naga Outside of Temple In Luang Prabang, Laos

It did not take very long for me to determine that this tricked out vehicle, which I nicknamed "The Nagamobile" was the transportation for the Monk.  Monks are not allowed to drive but some temples have vehicles that are driven by laymen to transport the Monks.  In this case, it is a very special vehicle.

 

 

 

Headed Back to the Wat

I waited for the Monk to get back to the Nagamobile so that I could get some photos of him and his special vehicle.  Duang explained to him what I was up to.  As so often happens around here, the Monk was more than accommodating even requesting that Duang take pictures of me and him in front of the truck.

On the Road Again !

I often find myself smiling these days.  My smiles are neither condescending or scornful.  I am smiling the smiles that an inner joy and contentment brings.  Thursday was another one of those days of smiles ... thinking of the nagamobile.

Christmas Wish 2012

Lapa, Brasil

Another year has passed and once again it is one of Christianity's most holiest of holidays - Christmas

Hanoi, Vietnam

Bangkok, Thailand

Cusco, Peru

Curitiba, Brasil

This year I wish for everyone something that I am unable to purchase, make, or even give to you.

It is something that you can not even purchase for yourself.

I wish you ... Peace.

I am not wishing you "Peace" as in the lack of violence, or armed conflict, for to achieve that would require the cooperation and good will of far too many people, all people that I and you have no control over.

The peace that I wish for you this season is the peace that you can create and find within yourself.

The peace that comes from knowing that you have done your best and done all that you could.

The peace that comes from accepting and being comfortable with who you are.

The peace that comes from knowing that tomorrow will be better and the next day even better than   that.

The peace that comes from helping others in all the ways that you are able.

The peace that comes from living everyday as if it could be your last day.

The peace that comes from knowing that your beliefs and values are valid, and that although you have expressed them, you are not responsible to convince others nor do you need their agreement.

The peace that comes from knowing that others are not responsible for your happiness.

The peace that comes from knowing and accepting that you are not responsible for other's happiness.

The peace that comes from living your life as you choose rather than as you suspect others may expect you to.

The peace that comes from being self reliant and confident.

So for this season, I am wishing you the peace of happiness.

Kept On Truckin

Back in 1968, in the first issue of Zap Comix, there was a one page comic strip of many different men strutting confidently (i.e. about 25 degrees vertical from the ground with a distorted view of the bottom of their lead shoe) across different landscapes.  The drawings became iconic images of optimism of that era.

Even today there are many men over 60 years old that, to their embarrassment, still have a "Keep On Truckin" tattoo on their upper arm.

Well the other day during my stop at the staging area for sugar cane deliveries at the Kumphawapi Sugar Company, I came upon what I felt was Isaan's response to the proverb to "Keep On Truckin".

Parked amongst all the various models and ages of trucks heavily laden with freshly harvested sugar cane was an Isuzu lorry.  Lorry?  Lorry is a British term for "truck".  Upon close inspection of the vehicle, I could not in any good faith refer to it as a "truck".  Fred Sanford, the television character, drove a truck.  Jedd Clampett, another television character, drove a truck.  This vehicle was unlike any thing that I had seen before.

Riveted Bodywork - A Long Lost Practise

After some Internet research, I determined that Isuzu commenced manufacturing "lorries" in Thailand in 1957.  I strongly suspect that this was a lorry from 1957.  Why?  First of all the lorry did not have a sheet metal body. It had a STEEL body.  I saw portions of the fender that had RUST thicker than the sheet metal used in today's vehicles.  Secondly, portions of the bodywork were RIVETED construction.  I looked closely to ensure that the rivets were not for decorative effect.  Thirdly, the vehicle did not have doors on it.

No Need for Doors ... or Upholstery!

Closer inspection of the driver's compartment revealed a wood bench seat with no upholstery or cushioning other than a folded saht that the driver had placed himself.  There were no side windows either.  With no doors or windows there was no need for air conditioning.  There was no radio or GPS.  This lorry added a new meaning to "bare bones".

This lorry was obviously over 50 years old and still running.  This in itself adds a totally new aspect to the adage that they do not build them like they used to.  Given the lack of the Lao Loum "preventative maintenance" practises in regards to mechanical equipment, the fact that this lorry is still able to perform is a testament to the design and durability of its construction.  Here in Isaan, when something is broken it is typically repaired by shade tree mechanics.  With thick steel construction, dents are minimized, rust through is reduced, and repairs are easy to make when necessary.

The trailer portion of the lorry was constructed of wood and with a unique color scheme - definitely not original and most likely not even "lead free".  As I photographed the lorry I kept thinking of all the repairs that were made to keep this lorry... to keep this lorry truckin.

It appeared that the  windshield had been replaced.  The windshield seemed to fit properly but had a unique mechanism to keep it in place. Three ropes were strung across the face of the windshield to fasten it to the steel frame of the cab.

Yes this lorry has been kept on truckin long after comparable vehicles in the USA have been scrapped.

Once again I had witnessed how important it is that things be fit for purpose rather than "looking good".  Once again I had seen that planned obsolescence once could be resisted.  Once again I marvelled at the persistence and ingenuity of the Lao Loum people to make do with what is available ... for much longer than you might expect.

"Keep On Truckin"

Making Charcoal In Isaan - The Way It Is For Some

The Kumphawapi Charcoal Maker

I am constantly on the look out for interesting people, places, events, and things to photograph as well as to write about as I drive around Isaan.  For a few months now I have had my eye on an interesting process taking place outside of Kumphawapi, across from the Kumphawapi Sugar Company.  At first, I was unable to take photographs because my cameras were in Bangkok for repair.  Once I had the first camera back I could have taken photographs but I was usually not with Duang.  Although I am not concerned about stopping and photographing on my own, this was a process that I had not witnessed before  and I knew that I would have a great deal of questions regarding what I would be photographing.  Duang is a great translator and is just as interested in what we are witnessing as I am.

Sometimes when I am returning to our home in Udonthani from Duang's home village of Baan Tahsang, I take a left on to a dirt road that allows me to bypass the congestion of "downtown" Kumphawapi.  About one block's distance down the road, there is large piece of land where lump charcoal is produced.

Dirt Covered Mounds of Burning Wood Fill the Air With Acrid Smoke

Here in Isaan, out in the countryside, a majority of the people cook out doors over an open charcoal fire.  The charcoal fire is contained is refractory lined metal can - very similar to a a two gallon sized paint can lined with cement to create a one gallon sized pot with an opening at the bottom side for charcoal.  If you live or have lived in the United States,you are most likely familiar with brand names like Kingsford or Royal Oak for charcoal briquettes for cooking.  However here in Isaan, the people use locally produced lump charcoal. Lump charcoal is made by burning wood in a limited oxygen environment.

Charcoal briquettes are manufactured from wood byproducts with additives that help them light easier and burn consistently. Besides wood charcoal, briquettes typically also contain coal, limestone, starch, sawdust, Sodium Nitrate, Borax, and wax.

Interestingly the charcoal briquette for cooking was invented by auto giant, Henry Ford.  He had been looking for a way to get rid of or more likely profit from the sawdust and scrap wood waste produced by his automotive factories,  For years people were able to buy BBQ grills as well as "Ford Briquettes" from Ford dealerships.

Late Saturday afternoon on our way back home from Thasang Village with our Grandson, Peelawat, the three requirements to do this blog came together - I had my camera, Duang was with me, and the man was making charcoal.  As it turned out, we arrived just in time, the collier (charcoal maker) had loaded his soemlaw (three wheeled motorcycle) with bags of charcoal and was preparing to take them to his patron.

It was an interesting time to take photographs, the sun was getting low, the mounds where the charcoal was being created where profusely emitting billows of acrid white smoke.  The collier, his young niece, and his mother were also interesting subjects to photograph.

The Collier's Niece and His Mother

Duang immediately hit it off with the Grandmother.  In no time and, as is so common here in Isaan, they were involved in a loud and quite animated conversation.  Peelawat kept to my side as if he were my Photographer's Assistant or interested in learning to be ... a photographer.  The collier's little niece, at first was somewhat shy but after seeing some of the photographs, soon was following Peelawat and me around.  She also wanted to see the results of each photograph that I took.

It was very apparent that these people were very poor even more so than the subsistence farmers that I am familiar with.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Duang give the grandmother and then the little girl some money.  She gave them 90 Baht ($3 USD).   I was not surprised for I have often seen acts of generosity and compassion by Duang.  She is very religious and lives her religion every day.

Peelawat and the little girl got along very well.  Besides "helping" me, they would stop and play in the dirt with a small toy that he had brought with him.  He seemed completely oblivious and definitely not judgemental of the little girl's poor clothing or her body as well as clothes covered with black soot. It is one of my observations of life that young children are not born with prejudices or intolerance - they must be taught.  Unfortunately, those are lessons too easily learned.

 

 

From Duang's conversation with the Grandmother, I learned much about the life of the charcoal maker.  he, himself, did not speak all that much - he had a throat condition which given his occupation does not surprise me but does cause me concern for his future.  He is 52 years old and has been making charcoal for the past four years.  Previously he had worked at pulling plastic out of garbage.

The land where he makes the charcoal is owned by a wealthy man who lives close by.  The wealthy man allows the collier to make charcoal on the land and buys the collier's production.  The charcoal maker stays on the land in a ramshackle hut to protect the charcoal and to tend the fires all day and night.  His three year old niece and his mother live nearby in a small house.  They come out to the site to help fill the recycled fertilizer or rice sacks with charcoal.

The charcoal maker put 5,000 Baht down on his soemlaw 15 months ago and makes 2,500 Baht a month payments on it. besides transporting the bags of charcoal to his patron, the man uses the three wheeled motorcycle to transport wood to the site.  People contact him to clear their property of trees.  He cuts the trees and brings them back in the soemlaw to turn them into charcoal.  He produces a batch of charcoal every 5 days.  He sells the charcoal for 120 Baht ($4 USD) a bag with a bag being a 55 kg fertilizer or rice bag.  The price is based on volume rather than weight.

His mother is 73 years old and is not in good health.  She is concerned about who will care for her granddaughter when she is gone.  The little girls parents disappeared three years ago and there has been no contact with them since then.  The grandmother believes that they have died.  I had noticed an ulcer on the woman's foot when I was photographing her.  Today when I was speaking to Duang about the woman I told her that I suspected that the grandmother had diabetes.  After I explained what diabetes was to Duang, she confirmed that the old woman had "too much sugar in blood",  It is surprising how many people in Isaan are afflicted with diabetes.

Three Years Old and Confident

The grandmother asked Duang if we would like to take care of the little girl.  This is not the first time that we have been offered a baby or a small child to raise.  I have always shrugged it off as people being polite - sort of like "Oh you like children very much.  You are very nice people.  Would you like to raise this child?"  I never wanted to consider the alternative that the people were serious.  It is a reality that I would not like to acknowledge.

Giving children to be raised by others is not all that uncommon here in Isaan and it does not necessarily always have "human trafficking" or "sex trade" connotations.  Duang's older sister was given to and raised by one of Duang's uncles because the family ,was not able to support two children.  No money was involved in the matter of Duang's sister and apparently no money was asked for in the offer that Duang received on Saturday. It appears to have been motivated by a desire to find a better and more stable life for a child when you realize that you will not be able to.   It is sad and heart wrenching to know the suffering that many people, especially children go through in this world.  Suffering with a face is much more difficult to ignore than descriptions on a computer screen or printed page.

Work Is Done, Ready to go Home

The little girl had not eaten the day before because her uncle had left early in the soemlaw to harvest some wood.  The grandmother was unable to walk to the Wat due to her hurt foot to receive the food that the Monks did not eat that morning.  Duang had learned this after she had given the money to them. She was pleased to hear the grandmother say that they would be able to eat the next day because of Duang's offering.  The grandmother had complimented Duang for taking the time and interest in them unlike many women, married to foreigners, who are embarrassed by others who are not as fortunate.  It is not in Duang's nature to be that way and having "been there, and done that" she would never allow herself to be that way.

The little girl does not go to school because the grandmother does not have money for clothes or books let alone the tuition for the girl to attend school. Free school in Thailand starts with the first grade (age 6).  Duang feels very sad for the little girl and tomorrow she will make some clothes for her.  She also has contacted a young childless Lao Loum couple who are interested in taking care of a small child - especially a well behaved and intelligent as this little girl appears to be.  They are interested and will meet her later this month.  Maybe, as Duang often says "Buddha will take care".

On the way home, Duang spoke with Peelawat about the little girl and her family.  She used it as an opportunity to teach him compassion for others and to teach him to appreciate the opportunities that he has in his life.  The greatest appreciation that we can have is to take full advantage of the opportunities that we have available to us.  Duang is teaching Peelawat that.  I often tell my wife that she makes me a better person.  It appears that she intends to teach our grandson to be a better person to.

Just as with death, sheltering children from reality protects them from nothing and prevents them from learning to cope with the realities of this world.

I doubt that we can change the world for everyone, but by changing it for one person it is a start - a start worth taking.