This is the fourth blog-post from Esther Tot who received the ESOMAR Foundation Scholarship to study at the English based Bachelor Degree program in International Business at the National University of Management (NUM) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Wohooo!!!!!! It’s the end of marketing class! Loads of assignments and self-discipline are over. At the same time there is also a year4 graduation party so our last and final assignment of the marketing class was to organize a party which is for all IBBA-er and especially for year4 students who are likely to graduate at the end of this year.

As an IBBA year1 or freshman year or as my marketing lecturer likes to call us the “baby prawn”, because we are the youngest among all the other classes at university, on August 12^th, 2017 all year1 held the task of organising one big event as we called it “IBBA Gala”. We divided into teams: the morning team planned and organized the activities of the event and we, the afternoon class, were tasked with contacting and finding sponsors for our event and we finally did a very good job! Our lecturer was proud of us as year1 students.

The activities and program had some fun features: female students in year1 had to dress like a man and male students had to dress as a girls and there were also some fashion shows as guy dressed as girl and girls dress as guy, as well as singing, and teachers and student awards.

As for me being in year1 and holding this kind of big event is something I will be proud of myself for the next few years because it is a real learning experience and I felt I was in a real world as a business woman and marketer.

I have successfully contacted the sponsor from Hot&Cold Café and my class successfully contacted BreadTalk, Major Cineplex, BOPEA, CAM Paint, and Domino’s Pizza (you can see the company’s logo on our backdrop).

This was the hardest year because it was my first year at university and next year I believe it will be better than this because I will learn to adapt to the university life from this year experience.

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The school break is reaching its end and I must admit that I am a bit afraid of returning to school. However, this is the final stretch and I am ready for the victory!

I have recently found myself getting closer to God and enjoying the company of people who share the same love I have for him. I grew up in a Catholic church, which means all I know is Catholic. However, recently I have started attending my friend’s church. I really enjoy their messages as well as the songs they sing. I have had many say I seem confused because, I immerse myself into different religious cultures. It is almost as though there is no sense of direction or stability in how I choose to praise God. I say it does not have to make sense. It is about my relationship with him and nothing else.

The scholarship awarded to Nicolin was sponsored by SSI and in collaboration with SAMRA.

This is the third blog-post from Esther Tot who received the ESOMAR Foundation Scholarship to study at the English based Bachelor Degree program in International Business at the National University of Management (NUM) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

A dreadful accident happened to me in 2011! It upsets me so much to talks about this but this is life and we can’t stop it. On August 30^th, 2011 my right eye got hit by a knife. It was scary and dreadfully painful! It all happened while I was cooking my own food because my mom was busy working till late that evening. I spend most of my time alone cooking and doing laundry and that time I was just about 14 years old and I was chopping a chicken leg with a small and very sharp knife. The knife broke into half and the broken and sharp piece flew up and poke my eyeball and it dropped back very fast. I thought that the chicken hit my eye but when I tried to wash it with water it didn’t go away, the sight was still blurred and I was so frightened when I looked down on the ground and saw a broken piece of the knife laying there on the floor! At that moment I knew what really hit my eyeball and when I touched the eyeball it felt soft like the balloon running out of air. I was so scared, I didn’t even have a phone.

At that time I lived with the neighbors. When they were going out they always locked the gate. I had to stand there and wait for people to pass. I gave them the key and asked them to unlock the door for me. I ran out to borrow the neighbor’s phone to call my mom. She hurried home and took me to Ogdoung hospital. We didn’t have money, my mom couldn’t even afford the 500 riels to park the bike. It was the saddest moment of our life because I had to do an eye surgery or else I would get blind forever. I could hear my mom crying and begging the doctor to please help me, that I was her only child and we were poor and the doctor said he couldn’t do a free surgery, he could only offer a discount. I cried and the nurse told me not to cry because the tears could hurt the eyeball. I tried hard not to cry but I still cried and in my heart I prayed God to help me and I memorized the memory verse of Jeremiah 29:11-12 “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you,  plans to give you hope and future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you”. This verse calmed my heart. Later I heard my mom call her boss and the church pastor and a moment later they came and had  a private talk with my mom. Suddenly the doctor called me to the surgery room and did the surgery on my eye.  I could feel all the needle, knife and scissor movements on my eyeball and I kept on praying and memorizing that verse from the Bible. The surgery was successful. They covered my right eye for about one month and I could use only my left eye. Sadly the doctor said that a mistake was made by his training nurse. She forgot to cut out the dead cell and there was still water in my eyeball.

My eye has not been functioning well until now. I have to undergo a 2^nd surgery but I don’t have money. I had once asked the doctor how much it would cost to change my lens so I can see clearly again. He said it would be about $5000 dollars which I could never raise but I really want to see normally from both eyes.

Till now no one at school knows that I can see with only one eye and it always hurt when I try to look at something which is too bright or stare at the books or letters too long. My eyeball starts to hurt and I get headache. But I never want to quit my study. No one at school knows I am disabled but I never want to call myself this way. I end up bearing this pain and this pain is what persuaded me to study hard because I want a better job so I can give my mom a better life. I also want to save money to change my lens because I really want to see normally again.

My motto for pain is that, “There are 2 types of pains, the pain that changes you for good and the pain that changes you for bad and it is your choice to choose which pain you want to take.”

At last, I just want to tell everyone who struggles through any types of pain to not giving up and keep on living and changing the world, don’t let the world change your smile but let your smile change the world.

Partners & Sponsors

We are always on the lookout for partners and sponsors. If you are an organisation looking to understand more on how you can support us, please find more information here or contact:  info@esomarfoundation.org

This is the 12th blogpost from Nicolin Mamuya, the first ESOMAR Foundation scholarship in South Africa. It’s school break now. Time for an internship!

I have completed my exams and I must admit that they weren’t as bad as I had feared. I have passed all my modules, which means a celebration is in order. The school break goes on for more than a month so I had decided to keep myself busy by looking for an internship.

Fortunately, I was instantly offered a job and I now work for a property firm not too far from where I live. I will be managing the firm’s social media pages as well as handle all the admin involved in the buying and selling of property. This definitely gives me insight on the processes and possible paperwork that goes into buying property. Buying rental property proves to be a great long-term investment that I will hopefully venture into in the future.

It is June 16 and South Africa is celebrating 41 years since brave students marched against being taught in Afrikaans (the language spoken by the white people). Most of us celebrate this day by wearing school uniform and others have a gathering with friends and family to have a great time. I do believe that those students set the tone for the youth that came after them.

South Africa’s youth is very powerful and united. The students know how to fight for what they believe in. The marches for the university fees to fall and against women abuse exemplify the power they possess. Happy June 16!

The scholarship awarded to Nicolin was sponsored by SSI and in collaboration with SAMRA.