I feel as though I have truly broken through work and social barriers. I am noticing that my ideas and opinions are being intently listened to at work and I feel very optimistic about the direction things are going. I feel very at ease in my social life. Things are no longer a struggle. I have learned how to dance to the Malian rhythm of life and work. I am loving my home and the families I live with. Even Eddie the donkey and I seem to get along well. I am still challenged, yet blessed, by the fact that my landlord Luc now officially considers me as part of his family. When my parents came it was as the families accepted each other. He even wants to start cattle farming in partnership with my mom. Challenges for his family are now formally challenges for me. Financial burdens are becoming my financial burdens, which makes me uncomfortable. I have a good enough relationship that any problems we can work out together and I am able to set my boundaries and have them respected. For the first time I feel I could stay here and be happy for a long time. Unfortunately I am feeling more and more disconnected from Canada. Maybe part of feeling at ease here has to do with feeling like I am less and less a part of Canada. It is easy to become disconnected from friends who are busy and far away.
I have mingled with the people you only hear about from time to time in Canada. Those who live in a parallel universe far from home. The cousin whose been in Asia for the last 10 years and sends home Christmas cards. Everyone has some long lost friend far away existing in another universe attached only by a little internet cable. There is a whole community of people wandering the earth living in place far the rest of their initial support group and peers.
The arrival of the three new EWB volunteers is good for me. It keeps me closer to my other life in Canada. Gives me people with whom I easily identify and can turn to for support. I think I can be a big help to them as well since I’ve been jumping over the hurdles they are seeing for the first time for a while now.
They also brought the wonderful information that all the sores I’m getting on the inside of my mouth are ulcers. I feel as though I’ve joined some exclusive club of ulcerous people. Apparently I’m deficient in numerous vitamins. So much for my attempts to up my food budget and engage in the increased caloric intake program. This is common for people in Africa. Canadian flour is usually fortified with vitamins from the B complex as well as iron, zinc and beta-carotene. Our salt is iodized. My soy milk is fortified with vitamin B12. These does not happen in Mali. My work is actually working for add vitamins to the flour ground at the mills we support. The World Food Program and UNICEF are working hard to iodize salt in Mali as a lack of iodine, especially when young, can create sickness and insufficient mental development. Every day that I gain more hope for the world I see more obstacles to overcome, even they are technically simple like iodizing salt to help children become fully developed adults. Every day that I become more optimistic I paradoxically become more disappointed. I see so much global potential yet so much apathy. We are merely scratching the surface of human potential. We convince ourselves that what we are doing is good enough. We have the knowledge and resources to turn ill being and poverty into well being and wealth. We don’t follow through on conviction or effort. When we do it is often in a paternal way where we feel “we” are the solution and “they” are the problem. I great man, and new role model of mine, named Robert Chambers says that “we” are the problem and “they” are the solution. We need to release the human potential of the poor so they can become empowered to control their own lives.
I’ve been meaning to write a 37 page blog entry to chastise humanity (especially those in rich countries) for their lack of compassion, solidarity and motivation but I like to stay positive. Maybe I will dangerously permit myself to say that about 1 in 8 people on our planet (800 million) will go to bed hungry tonight and fight all day tomorrow to be well nourished. What are the rest of us doing to support them?
Peace, love and soul
Levi