Ankearath Phem
Contact Ankea here: Ankea@retreatyourself.org

I feel that I have been blessed with, among many other things, the gift of natural listening skills and the ability to allow anyone to feel comfortable and at ease. I was born and raised in the Netherlands which I think contributes to a ‘down to earth’ nature and my Cambodian roots lend to a certain spiritual mystique that I feel gives me a very refreshing perspective.

My life has been dedicated to personal and social development, I attained two relevant Masters Degrees in my studies to pursue a career in international development and have had the honor to work with organizations such as: Oxfam Netherlands www.oxfamnovib.nl ; VSO/World Bank Inclusive Education www.vso.org.uk; the Happy Hearts Fund project www.happyheartsfund.org as well as the Mongo Tree Garden www.mangotreegarden.org. This work has brought many rewards working with volunteers, trafficked girls, mistreated children, cultural groups and many others.

While pursuing my career in this work I also got established in meditation which helped me to further develop my ability to listen to and follow my heart. My heart brought me to Cambodia where my parents were born and where I would find my own path to understanding and of course, love and happiness. The three years I spent in Cambodia will remain with me forever, the beauty of the people, land and the realization that these people and the land are also me.

One night, at the end of a work conference in the southern province of Sihanookville, we headed to the beach for a get together, a beach aptly named: Serendipity. Sitting by the fire, feeling very grateful to my heart for bringing so many wonderful things, I was approached by someone I had never met before but I somehow felt incredibly at ease with. We talked for what seemed like an eternity in a language that you only understand if you’ve been there. His name is Caleb; we were married nearly three years later.

When my work in Cambodia felt complete, Caleb and I were married in a beautiful ceremony in Thailand with our close friends and family. We had spent a considerable amount of time discussing what we would like to do next but didn’t know exactly where to start. Hawaii seemed like a good place to me!

We arrived in Hawaii and watched in awe how life opened up to bring us everything we needed to start our new life together. We both have the strong desire to work with people and to inspire them to follow their hearts as we have done. We believe that everyone has unique gifts that when used, bring amazing rewards to everyone involved.