I did get my shots. And ate my LIVE (?) typhoid pills. And checked to see if all was well with my passport. And I still occasionally startled people with my plans. AND I ordered some "wicking" ["wicking??!? What the hell am I supposed to do with'em, set 'em on fire?] shoes, shirts, and underwear. But still, the trip just didn't feel real.
Then I got the idea to email Jack--Jack Highwood, that is, the guy who runs the Elephant Valley Project. I wanted some ideas of useful things I might be able to bring over with me, things that actually might be of use to the elephants.
I was surprised that he did email back. And I noticed that he had a Skype address! Well, hey, I'm SO experienced with Skype! Why, I think I've had 2, maybe 3, Skype conversations already!
And then I got the idea that maybe Jack and my environmental ethics class could Skype together. I have this great bunch of students at the college, some of whom seem to have a genuine interest in trying to DO something as a result of the dreadful things we've learned. But there's this feeling of helplessness, like "There's nothing one individual person CAN do."
But, it seemed to me, here was Jack, an individual person, and not so very different from my students as far as age and economic status, and he's DOING SOMETHING!
So, it worked. It actually worked. We had a LIVE conversation! Nicolet College's environmental ethics class and Jack, Sen Menoram, Cambodia. And here's proof!
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