Life In America

Phany Sarann was a young girl living in the country of Cambodia, but in 1975 Phany and her family would no longer have control over their lives. The Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge soldiers took over Cambodia causing many peeople to have to leave. Phany's family was one of the many who had to pack up everything and settle in the mountaion close by the Cambodia-Thai borde. After a year the authorities would force Phany's family to move again but this time to a over croweded settlement where many more hardships would come. Khmer Rouge abused Phany and her family in many ways, some of those ways were starvation, death of the father, and Phany's trip to America.

When Phany and her family moved there was no food for them. The soldiers controlled everything along with the food. The auuthorities would tell people what crops to grow and what chickens to raise. To even get food Phany had to work in a rice field where she did not even get any of the rice. In odder for Phany and her family to survive they worked hard in the fields and would eat whatever they could fine. Phany would eat thins like snakes and frogs because she was not given food. At least when Phany lived by the river she could catch fish and her father begain to sell the fish in exchange for medicine, coffe and fruit. Phany's mother even sold her diamod ring to feed her family with

rice.

When Fathers was shot by the soliders,due to being accused of stealing, life was very sad for Pany. As her family wept for days they still worked hard in the fields. Phany's father was the main support for the family and without him things would only get worse. Phany's father was shot when he was swimming acros a river trying to escape the Khmer Rouge. Now her mother would be left to raise four daughters.

Due to Phany's fathers death, her sister al droped out of school in order to support their family. Phany was