The Living Skeleton

Josh Brown writes about his experience on a mission trip to Cambodia I and Thailand.

Going on a One Mission trip to Cambodia and Thailand is one of the best things I’ve ever done.

Having never been to a developing country, the degree of suffering shocked me. From seeing deliberatelymutilated babies to rubbish piles the size of small vehicles, the adventure proved life changing.

The team I belonged to spent a number of weeks at the Wat Preah Yesu orphanage near Siem Reap. I joined a construction team that built a range of playground equipment for the children to clamber over. Welding for many hours each day and finally seeing our finished product was rewarding. After some sightseeing in Cambodia, we made our way back to Thailand. Little did I know the most confronting moment of the trip still lay before me.

Having seen deliberately-mutilated beggars in Cambodia and spoken with landmine amputees, I thought my exposure to suffering had reached it peak. I was wrong.

As we approached the Buddhist AIDS hospital, the serene gardens belied the harsh interior we were about to enter.

Waiting for us within the walls of the makeshift hospital lay people in what I can only describe as an attempt at thirdworld palliative care.

Our task was to simply love and hold these men and women. One man who stole my heart could not move at all. I held his hand and brushed the flies from his face as they tried to crawl into his eyes. This living skeleton had only days to live but I know, on some level, our hearts connected.