![\"bvong_pix_laos_375_of_374.jpg\"](\"http:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/09\/bvong_pix_laos_375_of_374.jpg\")
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"She was 12 years old when the missile was launched into the cave that killed 374 of her fellow villagers.\u00a0 She had been living there for two years, and could remember how the airplanes made the landscape barren and treeless.\u00a0 On the night before the missile struck inside the cave, she ran out to visit and check up on her aunt.\u00a0 Her mother wanted her to return with a chicken, so that they could have it for dinner.\u00a0 It was that simple act of getting food that saved her from dying with the rest of her family in Tum Pui Cave.<\/p>\n
When we asked her if she knew who bombed her when she was just a young girl, she had the same pleasant personality, not knowing not caring.\u00a0 When we asked her if she knew today, who bombed her and killed her family, she had the same pleasant personality, not knowing nor caring.\u00a0 When we asked her if she’d like to know who bombed her and killed her family, I could see her demeanor change just a bit, from that carefree grandmother to that 12 year old girl hiding in the ditches, and she said yes…she’d like to know who made her lose her mother and little sister.<\/p>\n
Maybe it was just her kind nature, or maybe the walls had been built up so much, but even when she expressed her anger, to me she was still pleasant and forgiving like anyone’s grandmother.\u00a0 Even after all this she feels she’s lucky, to have been number 375 of 374, to have been able to go on and have 7 kids of her own.<\/p>\n
To be honest, I feel guilty for unearthing these painful memories for her.\u00a0 Maybe it was best she’d remained just a simple grandmother to her family.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
She was 12 years old when the missile was launched into the cave that killed 374 of her fellow villagers.\u00a0 She had been living there for two years, and could remember how the airplanes made the landscape barren and treeless.\u00a0 On the night before the missile struck inside the cave, she ran out to visit […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11339,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[4,59,7,260],"tags":[58,287,62],"class_list":{"0":"post-1078","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-lao-culture","8":"category-laos-trip","9":"category-photos","10":"category-writing","11":"tag-laos","12":"tag-photos","13":"tag-xieng-khouang","15":"post-with-thumbnail","16":"post-with-thumbnail-large"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pelE0-ho","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1076,"url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/tham-pui-cave\/","url_meta":{"origin":1078,"position":0},"title":"Tham Pui Cave","author":"Boon.Vong","date":"August 24, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"The Xieng Khouang area is so pretty, with rolling hills and cool weather.\u00a0 Even in August, the mornings are cool and so vastly different from the swamp like weather in Vientiane.\u00a0 It was a slight struggle though, climbing up the steps on the small mountain that housed Tham Pui cave,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Lao Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Lao Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/category\/lao-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00015.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1242,"url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/lathsene-village-schoolkids\/","url_meta":{"origin":1078,"position":1},"title":"Lathsene Village Schoolkids","author":"Boon.Vong","date":"October 23, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"From our trip to Laos.\u00a0 The preschool location was in Xieng Khouang Province, one of the most bombed areas in Laos, and one of the poorest.\u00a0 The region also has the sad honor of being first in bombie farming accidents.\u00a0 Lathsene village lacked running water and even electricity, but the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Lao Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Lao Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/category\/lao-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/0005.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1026,"url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/traveling-through-laos-with-friends\/","url_meta":{"origin":1078,"position":2},"title":"Traveling through Laos with Friends","author":"Boon.Vong","date":"September 2, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Here are the people that I traveled through Laos with.\u00a0 All amazing and kind hearted people with some connection and empathy towards\u00a0Laos and\u00a0its people. (Please excuse my\u00a0silly bios) :) 1] FB Writer, Interviewer, Cookie Thief, Author of \u201cVoices from the Plain of Jars,\u201d helped to expose the secret war in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Lao Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Lao Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/category\/lao-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/09\/bvong_pix_laos_team.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1046,"url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/reunion\/","url_meta":{"origin":1078,"position":3},"title":"Reunion","author":"Boon.Vong","date":"August 19, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"It was a long day, but it ended nicely, with dinner at the hotel.\u00a0 FB asked me to translate for him while he caught up with his best friend, Mr. BL, a man whom he met back in the late 60's, when\u00a0FB was an educational advisor for the U.S.\u00a0 He\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Lao Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Lao Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/category\/lao-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00028.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1064,"url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/bounmi-and-toumi\/","url_meta":{"origin":1078,"position":4},"title":"Bounmi and Toumi","author":"Boon.Vong","date":"August 23, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"At the Consortium, we met Bounmi and Toumi.\u00a0 They were volunteers helping educate others on the dangers of UXO's.\u00a0 Xieng Khouang province in Laos ranks second behind Savannakhet province in terms of contamination, but first in casualties, as well as having the dubious honor of having some of the poorest\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Lao Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Lao Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/category\/lao-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00020.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1097,"url":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/poverty\/","url_meta":{"origin":1078,"position":5},"title":"Poverty","author":"Boon.Vong","date":"August 27, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"A tad bit sunny and warm, but in the shade there's this lovely breeze coming in from the mountains and hills of Xieng Khouang. Dozing off sitting outside, listening to the sounds of chicks and the mother hen, pecking around the airport. Hi-tech and modern, this is not. There's a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Lao Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Lao Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/category\/lao-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/0006.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"medium":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"vantage-thumbnail-no-sidebar":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"vantage-slide":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"vantage-carousel":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014-272x182.jpg",272,182,true],"vantage-grid-loop":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014-290x272.jpg",290,272,true],"yarpp-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014-120x120.jpg",120,120,true],"sow-carousel-default":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014-272x182.jpg",272,182,true],"sow-blog-portfolio":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"sow-blog-grid":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false],"sow-blog-alternate":["https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/00014.jpg",290,290,false]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"Boon.Vong","author_link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/author\/admin\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"Lao Culture<\/a> Laos Trip<\/a> Photos<\/a> Writing<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"She was 12 years old when the missile was launched into the cave that killed 374 of her fellow villagers.\u00a0 She had been living there for two years, and could remember how the airplanes made the landscape barren and treeless.\u00a0 On the night before the missile struck inside the cave, she ran out to visit…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1078"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1078\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}