"Cambodia is my homing beacon, although it has not been home for a long time. I attend the call of Cambodia to fulfill an inner yearning of the soul. In Cambodia, I am a stranger who is uncomfortable with the temperament of the land and the nature of the people. I leave Cambodia and return to America to find the comfort of home, a place whose disposition I understand. I am home in Cambodia and home in America, but America is the home of comfort. I feel safe in it.
Cambodia is the home of memories, the taste and scent of tropical fruits, the call of childhood. Cambodia is home to the colors of simple sarongs and sophisticated silks. I attend to the calls of Cambodia, but I have also left her behind like a mistress who has satisfied her lover. California is a home that provides many reasons to disregard Cambodia, but Cambodia is not easily forgotten. Songs and phrases of hope make me think of Cambodia and what she can have one day." (49)
"The plane landed at 6:30pm in LAX, and I arrived home two hours later. After I ate, I remembered that a long, hot shower was necessary after the many hours on the plane and the feeling of never being clean while I was in Cambodia. I enjoyed every moment of my hot shower, feeling extremely refreshed. I snuggled under my blanket, trying to find the comfort of being home and the sense of familiarity, but my mind drifted. Cambodia makes my heart ache, but I have a love affair with her that I cannot end." (97)
From Reflections of a Khmer Soul, Navy Phim
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