Monk

I took this photo of this young monk named Tall at the Bakong Temple – one of the oldest temples in the Angkor Wat complex. At the time, he was 21, and he told me he needed to be a monk until he was 27. His religious studies were how he got his education. The oldest of four kids, he longed to be a teacher, but was afraid he didn’t know enough.

To earn cash, he often worked for donations as a tour guide for English-speaking visitors like myself. And when he had open time, he’d sit closely to a one-room school built beside the temple to listen into the lessons – hoping one day he’d be the teacher.