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[2] the legendary first Lao king who came down to establish Muang Swa or Luangprabang

[3] the founder of LanXang kingdom, the precursor of the modern day Laos

[4] the LanXang Vientiane king who rallied Lao people to fight against their Siam overlord

My onetime workplace

Sabaydii,

Here is the continuation of a series 'Coming home' entitled 'My onetime workplace'

Hakphaang,

Kongkeo Saycocie

My onetime workplace

I got a glimpse of

The place I used to work

Finding prospective employees

For the foreign embassies stationing in Laos

Not a few times

I was apprehended by people

Young and old

Male and female

Hoping to work for the western embassies

Be it a driver

A cook a janitor

So on and so forth

One man

Being a little bold

Leaning forward

From his chair across me

And slipped a high value banknote

Into my shirt pocket

Another

Being less dramatic

Just slipped a white envelope

Under my desk

As courteous as I could be

I returned their stuffs

Sometimes directly

And sometimes by mailing them back

Being sure that they need those more than me

One time

A guy I admired

From his days at College de Thakek[1]

Playing soccer for that school

Came to check our his application

I thought of giving him a chance

For at least I knew him

What kind of a man he was

But he didn't come back again

Maybe he left the country

As many people I knew

Already done so

Life in those days

Was life watching a movie

Someone popping out of nowhere one day

Another day around

He wasn't there any more

Everyone just wanted to survive

With whatever way he could conceive of

Be it fleeing the country for a better life

Or bribing his/her way through

For a job well paid enough

Sad to say

The government employee like myself

Got paid far less than a janitor

Working for the western based embassies

The fact that I survived

And could stand on a high moral ground

Only through the checks sent by my family

Then living in the U.S.

Why didn't I join them then?

For whenever I came home

What greeted me was but an emptiness

There was no more

The cry of my little brother

Trying his best to get things in his own way

Mom dad what not?

From the veranda

There wasn't anymore

The sight of my mom knitting

Something for us a little bit warm to wear

All of those absence

Took me hard

Yes only the fanatic like me

Like my other brother

Staying behind

Hoping wishing not much

But a chance to reach our potential

To serve our country

And to walk proudly the way our ancestors did

With an indifferent look at

The place I used to work

I took off

And never to look back again

10.2.03

[1] the junior high school, the highest educational establishment of the whole Khammouane province