It’s daytime and for now you’re safe with us.

We want nothing from you other than

to have you hear that you are precious and

more valuable than you believe. Please trust

this to be true. I know the cruel unjust

nights you must spend to send money home can

obscure this truth as fast as the nameless man

who uses you to feed his aimless lust.

And he is like the plastic Christmas tree

in the corner, its lime-green candy sheen

shines awkwardly, a patchwork of crowded

swirl-bunches of thin film sheets mounted

into a mound as unlike a fragrant noble fir

as he is from the young prince you deserve.

I have just returned from Cambodia where a team of us from our church had the privilege of reaching out to "entertainment workers" in Phnom Penh's red light district, hoping to be messengers of dignity and hope in the degrading and inhumane world of consumer sex. Young women are forced into this line of work due to a combination of factors: extreme poverty, family expectations, cultural acceptance, limited economic options. Many are lured by false pretenses. Many are trafficked and held against their will. We were inspired by visionary organizations such as Precious Women, Daughters of Cambodia, and Hagar working with these women to provide income alternatives, education, counseling, trauma care, and community support.