Written as Sambor Village, read as a place to live together

Hello.
It's Sambor Village Hotel again today, from the belly button of Cambodia.A record of September, when I remembered something important on the morning after the gentleman who talked about a handful of sand in the previous article left.

*At the end of September 2023, the hotel was flooded.
Even today, I can hear the voices of the sandbag festival from outside the gate. The women fill them, and the men carry them on carts and stack them. It's been all hands on deck, pure physical labor for the past few days.
But, come to think of it, no one is complaining.Even now, someone is shouting to an acquaintance passing by, 'It's hot, so go buy us some drinks! It's a donation, a donation!', and everyone is laughing.
The guy on the motorbike passing by is laughing too.
Every day, everyone comes to work at the flooded workplace where there are no guests, and each finds their role and something to do within the circle. Fooling around is the default. But no one is seriously trying to run away.

By the way, tourism in Cambodia is...

They say 'tourism is fickle,' but tourism in Cambodia as a whole fluctuates as extremely as the Sen River right in front of us.
Every year from late October to March, the number of customers visiting Cambodia increases, and otherwise, it drops significantly. Therefore, the standard for existing Cambodian travel businesses is how to earn enough in half a year to endure the remaining half.September, after enduring the first half when the tourism water level is low, is the tightest for cash every year.

On top of that, this is the second consecutive year of flooding, which is unprecedented in the last 10 years.
Last year it was a natural disaster. This year, it seems more like a disaster caused by human activity than a heavenly one, but either way, there is no compensation, so everything must be done on our own and out of our own pockets.
With payday approaching, the water is also approaching from the back of the property. That's not what I need right now, baby.

Actually, even before the water came...

In 2023, the world shifted to 'post-COVID,' and the movement of people became possible.Meanwhile, inflation, currency and climate fluctuations, conflicts between nations, and an unsettling atmosphere are occurring in various places.
The number of people visiting from outside Cambodia for tourism remains only slightly increased, and people within Cambodia are heading outside the country as if to release the patience of the last few years.Will I be able to pay salaries properly this month?
Will we make it through the next half-year?Actually, I was anxious.
At times like this, once you set your sights on a deep hole, your thoughts fall endlessly.
In addition, when you are soaked in water too much, your feet get cold, your core gets cold, and your thoughts get cold. My solar plexus is heavy, and my back hurts.Why is it so tough?
Couldn't I manage it in a way that isn't so painful?Wouldn't everyone be happier in the end if I left it to someone who understands management?

Just when I wanted to fall to the bottom of the hole of thought...

I received a message and a video from that time from an acquaintance I was talking to about a completely different matter: 'I still remember the few days I spent at Sambor Village. It was warm the whole time.'
In the video, there is a world overflowing with the vitality of life.

At the same time, there was a cheer from the sandbag group outside the gate. As if pushed by that voice, the men came running down the sloping road with a cart full of sandbags, laughing with the faces of boys. They had so much momentum that one of the guys in front was floating like Mario, shouting 'Yahoo!'

I suddenly came to my senses.

This place was a vessel that temporarily holds the lives of many people.
Both the guests and the members who work with me entrust a part of their life's time here.
That overlap of lives returns to each person as a memory, as a unique story for that moment.That is the essence of the hotel business.
A place where different people live together for just a short while. I've always said that Sambor Village is that.

I was scared, anxious, clutching onto things, and even more scared that there was little left in my hands, so I was about to throw everything away without looking.I can hear the shouting from the guys stacking the sandbags. They'll surely be back pushing the cart soon. Outside the gate, they are laughing too; it seems it wasn't a joke, and the drinks really did arrive.

That was it. The stories born here are more important to me than anyone else.

And then, my tear ducts collapsed.

That was close...I was about to let go of the time of life that everyone has entrusted to me.
I was about to throw away something important, leaving it to the fear of not knowing what to do.
This place is a place for everyone to live, and it is also a place for me to live.

I cried with the horror of the deep hole I was about to fall into, the 'I'm sorry' to everyone, and the warmth of remembering something important. Alone on the second floor of the stilt house, where I could hear voices from here and there, tears fell one after another.
At that moment, the member in charge of the midday meal poked their face out from the kitchen. They glanced at me, and without saying anything, went right back in. That guy, not saying anything at a time like this, is a good guy.
I can't show this side of me to everyone.

Thinking that, as I continued to be a mess, the staff came up from downstairs one after another. In my state of crying, I was surrounded.

'What happened? Tim came to call us saying the boss is crying a lot. Did something happen to your family in Japan?'
The leader asked. Tim, who is in charge of the meal, is also behind them.'No, it's nothing. Don't worry, my family is fine.'
'What? Tell us, you're clearly not okay, right? If it's not family, is it money?'

No, that's not it. That's not it at all.
Even when I tried to explain, neither English nor Khmer words would come out.

"Mun men te"
Repeating that it's not like that, that it's not what I meant, surrounded by everyone's gaze, I cried out loud like a child. Along with the tears, everything I had been holding back came spilling out.

Sharing important moments together

You know that bit the other day where I jokingly said I might run away before payday, and we all laughed? Well, that was about 10% true.
I wanted to run away from this situation. I was thinking, wouldn't it be better for Sambor Village if someone else were in charge?The truth is, it was hard to carry it all, and I wanted to escape.
But it's different now. I'm not crying because I want to run away. I remembered just how important this place is.
Guests only stay here for a few days, but the memories will surely remain.
The staff members spend almost every day here.And I, too, am being taught here what it means for people to live.

Once I realized how important that was, I felt so grateful that I started to cry.
I'm sorry for trying to run away.Thank you for entrusting a part of your lives to this place. To me, more than anyone, this place really is important.
I squeezed the words out while sniffling, mixing in broken Khmer and patchwork English. The leader caught the gaps in my words and translated them into Khmer. Each word soaked into my ears.

So, I finished by joking to hide my embarrassment, saying, "That's what I mean by saying I'm counting on you all from here on out." Both the members I hadn't really talked to like this before and the new guy were there in the same space today.

Even around me, as I was still sniffling, I could hear others sniffling too, or feel them gently rubbing my back.
At times like this, the high level of empathy of the people in this land really stands out.

Alright!
I'm okay now! I'm not crying!Once I decided to do my best, I started to feel energized!!

Somehow, I made eye contact with each of them, smiled without saying a word to mean "I'm okay, thank you," and we all headed to work.

When I joined the sandbag team,
"Oh, boss, here! A gift that just arrived!" they said, handing me a can of beer.Beer?! We're in the middle of work!

I retorted for a second, but hey, it's fine for today! It's okay, right!

Drinking beer while filling bags with dirt.
(It's super heavy)

Soon someone started singing, and someone else started dancing.

I don't intend to turn everything into a noble story.
There were preparations I should have made, and I should think more about the balance between ability and profit.

But. But.
It might be messy and childish, butisn't the fact that we are living together actually what's important?

Isn't cherishing what's important actually a shortcut, surprisingly?

Last year, the flood taught me.
This year, the flood taught me again.

Thank you, flood. But I'm okay now.
I won't forget what I learned these two times.And from now on, I think we can all cherish it together.

*After this, the floodwaters receded in the blink of an eye through an outlandish method, and a half-year of earning as much as possible began like a raging torrent.

As for the outlandish method, it is too outlandish to write here.
For those who come to the hotel, if you wish, I will tell you in secret along with a realistic reenactment of that time.

2023.11.26