Survival in the Killing Fields Quotes

“I told the others which trees to chop, where to get the mud, even though I was not the official leader. My father used to say, ‘Thing like a boss, not like a worker.’ He meant that it is better to use your brain and be active than to be sullen and passive, as most workers are. I worked harder than anyone in the crew because it kept my mind sharp and because it kept me from thinking about other things.”
― Haing Ngor, Survival in the Killing Fields

“What was left of me was a core – a heart that still beat in my chest, a mouth that breathed, eyes that stung from the smoke and the sun. And a brain that prayed.”
― Haing Ngor, Survival in the Killing Fields