in Cambodia, the school of hope

« I love my school, I love my teacher, I love my friends, I love life,” sing in unison the students who are in the courtyard of Happy Chandara primary school. The sun has just come out, it is already stinging the skin and eyes when, at 7:30 a.m., the little girls neatly lined up and dressed in their impeccable uniforms face the director. They observe their four comrades who proudly hoist the Cambodian and French flags while chanting little mantras of love and gratitude. The ritual thus repeated each morning inaugurates a new day of study and learning. “Raising the colors seems a bit serious, but we understood that they require discipline. These little girls, who grow up in families that are often loving but sometimes destroyed by poverty or the alcohol need rules and rituals to structure themselves, but also encouragement and kind words to flourish,” explains Tina Kieffer, while brooding with a protective look…