SHARING STORIES

Ly Van Addadipo was a Buddhist monk
He lived to his ninetieth year
He died in January 2008
after surviving the Khymer Rouge
He wrote in his notebook-
O! Maha Mount Dangrek(Oh Mighty Mount Dangrek)
about the mountainous plateau between Cambodia and Thailand
that refugees were forced to climb to escape the Khmer Rouge
He wrote of forced labor camps,starvation,infant executions
He wrote of his dreams of escaping to America
1.7 million people died of starvation,disease,and executions
Most were forced to work 14 hours a day on farms and public projects
Ly Van wrote poems describing what he and his generation went through
Now they will be posthumously published
Photos of Khmer camps and Thai refugee camps accompanying
Truth always comes out(even in a poem-
14 cities in America will be blessed to share this one
From Lowell,through Chicago,Philadelphia,St.Paul to Long Beach
text and photos will be supplemented with Cambodian music
The horrors are bones buried,but remembering is the task
of monks and poets and all of us
That is why we share stories like this with each of us
Alive enough to know the difference!
REMEMBER THE REMEMBRANCE READING@AIPF Th April 15 3.30-5.30 Ruta Maya