Lost on Earth

Jordan brough me a pile of teaching supplies when he visited; mostly phonics and math workbooks made by Disney. In the center of each book is a section with stickers of Disney character that say things like "Good job!" or "You're magical!" or some other such drivel. I cut the stickers out of the books, intending to use them as prizes when we play bingo on Fridays.

Last Friday, I learned something really important about Western moals and Disney porn from those stickers.

I had them all spread out on the table before class and I was busy clipping off the extra paper fom some of them. Two of my 15 year-old boys came to the office to read books. They started talking to me and froze when they saw what was lying on the table. "Stickers!" I told them, "for bingo tonight". No answer, but they continued to stare. Then I noticed that they were staring at a sticker of the little mermaid, smiling coyly from on top of a rock. The aquatic little tramp was wearing nothing but a few seashells on her proudly protruding bosoms - she is very well endowed for someone who is supposedly only 16 years-old. Then I noticed another boy fingering a sticker of minxy Jasmine in a bra and baggy pants, hugging a huge tiger. One of the boys asked if he could keep one. I didn't know what to say.

Do I tell him no? What right do I have to tell him no, I don't exactly know what is "right" or "wrong" according to the society that this little Buddhist grew up in. Then again, the way they were acting around the stickers (giggling and blushing) led me to believe that they were considered "wrong" by the standards they they were raised with. I know that Kham Chuen is in charge of giving them their moral and ethical training according to their own culture, and usually he is quite strict (the girls are not allowed to be alone with the boys, the older girls are not allowed to wear tight, stretchy pants, the boys are not allowed to swim in the river wearing only their underpants etc.) and I wished he was there to tell me what to do.

I offered him a sticker of Dumbo instead, hoping that national pride in the elephant (chang) would bring him to his senses, but no, he wanted Jasmine, so I gave it to him. I wasn't sure what to do.

Later that evening all of the boys wanted stickers of "pretty girl". I gave them Winnie the Pooh instead.