Today I was at the baby house, and Chat (the house dad) was giving the little boys hair cuts. Min Min sat still and was so great. Noan Wai, also endured it pretty well. And then it was lil' 2 year old Nai Nai's turn. He sat in the chair and instantly started crying and reached out for me. This was the first time he's ever reached for me, and I guess his fear of the buzzing clippers was greater than his fear of farang (white people) (Remember he's lived in a prison his whole life, and hasn't ever seen the outside world). I sat and held him while he got his haircut and he clung to me and cried like his heart was breaking, his face pressed up against mine, with his tears running down my own cheek. By the end of the haircut we were both covered in hair and tears. I'm sad he cried, but loved holding him.
It reminded me of when I lived in the village and we had a pet monkey, Ling Ling, oh I miss her! She knew I was her friend and ally when others shooed her away. (I am not really a pet person, but when it came to this monkey, I was in love). So she would come up and cling to me, the only problem was, the dirt and fleas, so we decided to give Ling Ling a bath. She was terrified of water and clung to me tightly at the sight of it. So we decided the only way to give her a bath, was to give me one too. So we began pouring buckets of water over her, and all down me, and soaping her up with shampoo. I swear she was going to break my skin she was clutching me so tightly. But I think, that was the moment I bonded with her so tightly.
