HOF128: Yorp Sok

During her slow footed departure from Cambodia, Yorp Sok experienced contractions while deep in the jungle. She feared for her safety as she listened to the sounds of wild cats nearby. It was late in the night when she begged for her unborn child to arrive at sunrise. By then, she hoped that her husband would return with help. The child was born during the night. Yorp had “crossed the big river,” a Cambodian term describing a difficult childbirth.

Her husband returned empty-handed. The couple was lost in the wilderness but as if by divine intervention, a kaleidoscope of butterflies appeared. They followed the butterflies towards the Thai border, and shortly after they were transported to the Khao-I-Dang camp on the Thai-Cambodian border, a step toward their new life.