Play for Happiness

Would you agree that “All work and no play” is detrimental to not only our work, but more importantly to our happiness?

“Work Hard Play Hard “- It’s a bit cliché and we all get the ‘work hard’ part but I think we at PeopleStories have found new and positive twist of the ‘play hard’ part. 

Yes, there are fantastic bars in Siem Reap to play hard but the cocktail tastes so much better if you really earned it.  We place great value in playing and have ensured that every single member of our family- from the children we help to the volunteers who help us- get a chance to play!


Let me share with you a few stories.
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​Game for life

Part of the education curriculum we plan for the Cambodian children includes sports programs. We teach children how to play soccer, we invigorate them with dance classes, and we also hold Talent Game Shows for them to show off their athletic skills. They absolutely relish the opportunity to play and their energy and passion is infectious!

Des Cossio and Jaxon, a mother and son duo from Australia, had volunteered their time and effort in rural Siem Reap in this summer. Jaxon is actually our youngest volunteer and had told us that while thinking of where to go for his summer holidays, he decided to choose to volunteer with PeopleStories because to him, it was “just as fun, but more meaningful.”
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Coincidentally, Jaxon is a huge football enthusiast. He helped us coach a few football classes and gave us pointers on the different ways of coaching the younger Cambodian students (Grade 2) as opposed to the older students (Grade 6).

​With the similar spirit, Jim McPherson brought joy, dreams and hopes to students by sharing his love of football in rural Siem Reap earlier.  

As Jim said, "Football is my passion. I have been trying to play the game for over 50 years. The game has given me so much over the years…taken me to so many places and introduced me to so many friends for life. However , never in a million years could I have imagined myself as part of team coaching the beautiful game to 120 boys and girls - between the ages of 8 and 12 – at a school in Cambodia. Now that truly is living the dream!..." 

Read Jim's full story here.

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​An instant mood lift
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A very visible and almost instantaneous effect that we have witnessed as a result of the exposure to playful activities is a change in mood.

Students who were unmotivated are now raising their hands in class. Volunteers who tired easily became part time sports coaches. As one of our volunteers summed it up, being more active actually helped her destress. The more she played with the children in the sun, the more the tension in her life was diffused.
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Most importantly, through playing, a stronger rapport is built between the people in our communities. Our teachers, volunteers, students and their parents have the opportunity to socialise and interact more with one another. This creates a culture of sharing and strengthens trust amongst one another. When we have trust, it is much easier to work together towards a common goal- helping these children gain a better and brighter future.

The future is playful

The importance of play and sports cannot be overstated. We will beef up our sports curriculum in the schools including specialised sports for girls. We recently introduced Netball to the students who have never heard of the game. They thoroughly enjoyed it and that is all the validation we need to keep doing what we do.
 
 
My Happiness Journey

This blog is the part 3 of my sharing as “Currency of Happiness”, which expresses what happiness means to me, especially when I am in Cambodia.  

I don’t believe there is an exact formula to happiness because personal perspective plays a vital role in determining what happiness means to us individually. It is more or less like a currency which works in one country but perhaps not in another.  Some currencies are worth a little bit more than others but there is beauty and happiness in every single one. 
There you have it, my take on “Currency of Happiness” in Cambodia!

Follow me if you like it. Let me know what your Currency of Happiness is. I’d love to hear from you!  

The success of our plan to play, like everything else we do to help these children, lies on the hands of our donors, sponsors and volunteers. 

If you would like to be a part of our playful future, please write to us at [email protected] 
​or make a contribution athttps://chuffed.org/project/schoolforlife2018-19. 


​On behalf of the children of Siem Reap, thank you.​

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