1st day of Khmer New Year

On the first official day of Khmer New Year, the older people in the family bless the younger
ones. This first picture is part of the line of the elderly ones sitting and you younger ones in front, getting ready to receive blessing on the new year from their grandparents, aunts and uncles.
The 2nd picture is the perfumed flower water that the younger members in the family use to bath the older ones. After the blessings are given, then all the younger members of the family pour water over the older ones and "bath" them with perfumed water.
And the last picture is of the actual bathing happening.
Again, Cambodia is very family oriented and everyone watches out for each other.
In the immediate area, everyone is related. Usually upon marriage, the husband moves to the wife's family's
house. If they have the money, they will build a house on their land or nearby; if they don't have the money, the newlyweds move into the bride's parents house. So there are aunts, uncles, cousins everywhere.
In fact, everytime we ate, if anyone went down the road on a moto, bike or walking, they were asked if they had eaten yet and were invited to eat with us. They don't have a lot, but what they do have, they readily share.
Both the older and the younger seemed to really enjoy the blessing/bathing ceremony. We enjoyed being able to watch how they all respond to each other. A little more on Khmer New Years in the next blog. Love, Ronda

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