SatJaDham Presents..
                                Living Overseas...

                             By Amphon Guy Phiaxay

	Often in our dinner table, I hear the phrases "In Laos , this taste
100 times better" or "This fish or chicken is not as good as it was in
Laos".  Frequently during the view of the Thai movie or Lao video, our
elders would mumble about how they miss the Southeast Asia
sceneries and how beautiful it is.  They wish they can go and relive of
what they see in the video.  These comments lead me to wonder how
our parents justified their reasons of still living overseas.
	If I was to ask the questions of why are they(or we) here?  I
would be swamped with the communist and quest-for-better lives
stories.  Many times we were reminded by the horified stories of our
parents' lives under the communist system.  Some of the most famous
stories are about those that went to the so-called Re-Educational camp
(Sumana) - which at times can be as cruel as the German concentration
camp (or Holacaust) during World War II. The second part of their
reasons is that we are here to have better education and lead better
lives.  Back in Laos, it was their dream to come the lands of
opportunities..to be in these modernized and advaced country.
	Now that we are here in these dream countries- far away from
home, many have their wish come true??  Most of us in overseas are in
a more liberated and democratic countries.  The opportunities to get
educated are there for us to take.  Overseas definitely offer better
technology than Laos.  Besides in most places overseas, we can still
practice our Lao traditions and have lao food (well close to it anyway).
Heck, we can even still have Pia (young cow poop) or padek (laotion-
style pickle fish :) ). I thought I would never smell those sweet aroma
again when I first arrived in Canada. In bigger cities, there are some
buddhist temples that we can attend.
	At the same times, however, there are many things missing and
some hopes and dreams unfulfilled. For instance, in Laos,  we always
wanted to see snow.  Now that we are here in the cold climate, my
family sometimes wish that snow isn't here.  It's true that many live
happy lives, but some people have hard times adjusting to these new
environments. We oftern hear our elders 'awwwh' and 'aaahh' after they
learn about the beautiful and every-day changing Laos from friends or
relatives who had just visited our homeland recently.
	The older they get the more they want to be back in their home
country.  There are some that have gone back.  Many parents are still
here for one important reason - that is for their children to receive higher
education here.  Many of these parents have hard labour jobs so they
can have money for the kids to attend good schools.  Our elders often
speaks of us studying overseas and going back to build bridges and
highways in Laos.
	As part of the younger lao generation, I hope that every young
kids out there appreciate what our elders had gone through in order for
us to have opportunities for better lives.  The luxuries we enjoy living
overseas are results of the our parent's sacrifices and overcoming many
hardships and obstacles.  They have given up a lot to be here. Some are
longed to be back home.  One day we should go back there too.  As my
grandfather always said, "I want to be buried where I was born' -- which I
translated to " The bird will always return to its nest after a long journey'.

Hak Hpaang ...
Amphon Guy Phiaxay

Any comments are welcomed, please post up here on SCL or email
laolit@tuddy.cc.monash.edu.au