By Tom Barton
Savannah Morning News (Savannah, Georgia, USA)
If you believe in second chances and the power of freedom, then America is a miracle country.
Do Americans take freedom for granted?
Maybe some do.
But not all of them.
Especially not one man whose first refreshing taste of liberty came later in life.
A recent newspaper trip put me on a seat on a hotel shuttle bus. Behind the wheel in this near-empty vehicle was a man named Sar. It's an odd name. But that's what it said on his clip-on name tag, which was attached to his black bellman's uniform.
He was wiry, stood about 5-foot-6 and possessed the quick, efficient moves of a cat. His dark hair showed a hint of gray, although he was blessed with Asian ancestry that made guessing his age a complete crap shoot.
I figured he was a few years beyond 50. He told me he was 62 - including 18 years as a proud American.
"It's a miracle I'm even here," he said.
More on that in a second.
Today is Independence Day. Most working people have the day off. If they are smart, they will mark America's birthday by doing whatever they choose - going to the beach, cooking out, watching fireworks or just chilling. That's exactly what free people should be able to do when they're not clocking in.
It's called pursuing happiness.
I'm not sure what Sar will be doing today. But I wouldn't be surprised if he's working one of his two jobs, lugging suitcases and ferrying strangers from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m.
That's because he's got a family to support.
His second family. He lost his first family - and everything else - in the killing fields of Cambodia.
What started as chit-chat on a 15-minute shuttle ride ended with the realization that Sar may be the embodiment of America's hopes and dreams.
Here's part of his story.
Sar (I apologize for not getting his full name) was born in Cambodia, a Southeast Asian country cursed by regional conflict and wretched leadership for much of the 20th century. By far the worst was dictator Pol Pot. Between 1975 and 1979, he created a communist nightmare that was responsible for nearly 3 million deaths. Most died from illness, malnutrition or being worked to death.
Much of my knowledge of Pol Pot's twisted regime came from the 1984 Oscar-winning movie "The Killing Fields." In it, a New York Times reporter who's covering the war in Vietnam is befriended by his Cambodian translator, who in turn is captured by the brutal Khmer Rouge. It plunged the country back into the Stone Age by punishing anyone with brains, money or culture
Sar said he was among those targeted. He said he was sent to a re-education camp - a polite label for a compound built for brainwashing and torture - near the Thai border.
"It was 100 times worse than the movie," he said. To this date, he said, he still doesn't know what happened to his wife and two children, who were his first family. "It hurts me so much that I can't even cry about it," he said.
Sar was lucky. He survived Pol Pot and filed papers so he could enter this country legally. He said the process took about five years. He said his second wife, who's also Cambodian, have a child. She's in college.
"I work all the time and never take a vacation," Sar said. "But I'm not complaining about it. Why should I complain? America is the best country in the world. I eat lunch every day with people who came to this country from India, France and Italy. They came here with no money. Now, they have clothes and nice cars and jobs. And they still complain. I tell them if they don't like it here, they should go home."
Spoken like a man with experience.
I had more questions - like what was his full name and what happened to him in the camp. But Sar was on his employer's clock.
He said he had work to do.
Spoken like a man who doesn't take chances with anything - perhaps because he knows what it feels like to lose everything, and how tough it is to gain something back.
So yes, he's a miracle man. And if you believe in second chances and the power of freedom, America is a miracle country.
Tom Barton is the editorial page editor of the Savannah Morning News. His e-mail address is tom.barton@savannahnow.com.
Do Americans take freedom for granted?
Maybe some do.
But not all of them.
Especially not one man whose first refreshing taste of liberty came later in life.
A recent newspaper trip put me on a seat on a hotel shuttle bus. Behind the wheel in this near-empty vehicle was a man named Sar. It's an odd name. But that's what it said on his clip-on name tag, which was attached to his black bellman's uniform.
He was wiry, stood about 5-foot-6 and possessed the quick, efficient moves of a cat. His dark hair showed a hint of gray, although he was blessed with Asian ancestry that made guessing his age a complete crap shoot.
I figured he was a few years beyond 50. He told me he was 62 - including 18 years as a proud American.
"It's a miracle I'm even here," he said.
More on that in a second.
Today is Independence Day. Most working people have the day off. If they are smart, they will mark America's birthday by doing whatever they choose - going to the beach, cooking out, watching fireworks or just chilling. That's exactly what free people should be able to do when they're not clocking in.
It's called pursuing happiness.
I'm not sure what Sar will be doing today. But I wouldn't be surprised if he's working one of his two jobs, lugging suitcases and ferrying strangers from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m.
That's because he's got a family to support.
His second family. He lost his first family - and everything else - in the killing fields of Cambodia.
What started as chit-chat on a 15-minute shuttle ride ended with the realization that Sar may be the embodiment of America's hopes and dreams.
Here's part of his story.
Sar (I apologize for not getting his full name) was born in Cambodia, a Southeast Asian country cursed by regional conflict and wretched leadership for much of the 20th century. By far the worst was dictator Pol Pot. Between 1975 and 1979, he created a communist nightmare that was responsible for nearly 3 million deaths. Most died from illness, malnutrition or being worked to death.
Much of my knowledge of Pol Pot's twisted regime came from the 1984 Oscar-winning movie "The Killing Fields." In it, a New York Times reporter who's covering the war in Vietnam is befriended by his Cambodian translator, who in turn is captured by the brutal Khmer Rouge. It plunged the country back into the Stone Age by punishing anyone with brains, money or culture
Sar said he was among those targeted. He said he was sent to a re-education camp - a polite label for a compound built for brainwashing and torture - near the Thai border.
"It was 100 times worse than the movie," he said. To this date, he said, he still doesn't know what happened to his wife and two children, who were his first family. "It hurts me so much that I can't even cry about it," he said.
Sar was lucky. He survived Pol Pot and filed papers so he could enter this country legally. He said the process took about five years. He said his second wife, who's also Cambodian, have a child. She's in college.
"I work all the time and never take a vacation," Sar said. "But I'm not complaining about it. Why should I complain? America is the best country in the world. I eat lunch every day with people who came to this country from India, France and Italy. They came here with no money. Now, they have clothes and nice cars and jobs. And they still complain. I tell them if they don't like it here, they should go home."
Spoken like a man with experience.
I had more questions - like what was his full name and what happened to him in the camp. But Sar was on his employer's clock.
He said he had work to do.
Spoken like a man who doesn't take chances with anything - perhaps because he knows what it feels like to lose everything, and how tough it is to gain something back.
So yes, he's a miracle man. And if you believe in second chances and the power of freedom, America is a miracle country.
Tom Barton is the editorial page editor of the Savannah Morning News. His e-mail address is tom.barton@savannahnow.com.
8 comments:
White people want to see Asians as a model minority-- someone who doesn't cause trouble and willing to take abuse. When a Khmer guy works a bellboy, janitor, or some other menial job, he is seen as some sort of hero-- a model minority for "those lazy blacks" to follow. When a Khmer guy becomes educated and compete for the white man's job, the white people are suddenly threatened by him.
This guy is just looking down at Cambodians. He's praising this Sar guy because he is willing to eat white people's shit.
I agree with you both. The writer is from Georgia, one of the most racist states in America.
So, he's basically saying "Good Boy!" to this Khmer bellboy guy and some Khmer people dumb enough to think he's praising them.
What happened to Lon Not "good Boy", Hmong people, Khmer Krom, Montagnars? Who sacrified their lives to save American lives from communists? later the white men run away lead to 1.7 millions killing.
How did you guy get to be so sharped?
From one little article, all five commentators inferred and drew the same conclusion...the article is very patronizing...?
The brief acquaintance between Mr. Tom Barton and Mr. Sar on American Independence Day is by chance one in a million! Please let be fair to Mr. Tom Barton! He never said anything else beside calling Mr. Sar a "miracle man" and what is so racist about that? Yes! I know that racism is alive and well in America but racism can make you strong or it can make you weak! Life is war and you have to prove who you are over all the negative perception to gain respect! I have to prove myself all the time in the nature of my job and I know! You know there are good people and there are bad people all over the world!
Why not look at the brighter side on this special occasion of American Independence Day and yes there is something to be proud of on American Independence Day because there many, many, and many American soldiers who had sacrificed their life and blood just to have you and me to have free speech on this internet on American Independence Day!
Mr. Tom Barton said America is a miracle country and Mr.Sar said if you don't like it here and why not go back home and I wholeheartedly agree with both of them! Now it is time for me to go to my backyard and light up my firecrackers and enjoy the American freedom! ahahahahahhahah
Yes, if you don't like it here, why not go back home...
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