A Frivolous Affair

One feeling that still makes me a little uncomfortable is how frivolous and carefree we acted while interacting with people in such unfortunate circumstances. Throughout the trip, we would be in a village feeding children what could possibly be their only meal for the day, while laughing and making jokes. Not in an inconsiderate way, but we were genuinely enjoying ourselves. The juxtaposition of our enjoyment with their hardship was an interesting dynamic and highlighted the importance of finding joy even in difficult circumstances.

One specific event that affected me the most was after our Mobile Medical Clinic. At the mobile medical clinic, anyone could come and get a checkup from a doctor, be tested for malaria, and receive medicine for any ailments they may have. After the clinic when we were about to head back to the hotel, two nurses and a mom with her baby were on the bus with us. Later, I found out that the baby was sick with pneumonia, and they needed to rush her to the hospital.

This made me pretty upset, not only because this lady needed medical care for her baby, and she only got help because the mobile medical clinic happened to be on that day, but because we were in the back of the bus singing Malawian gospel songs and “If You’re Happy and You Know it Clap Your Hands” in Chichewa. This feeling stuck with me for the rest of the trip.

The next day, we traveled to a private island on Lake Malawi, where we stayed for two days, followed by two days at Liwonde National Park (for a safari). I couldn’t help but think to myself why we get to enjoy all these luxuries while many of the people that we interact with endure hardships on a daily basis. Some of the kids in the villages must walk nine miles to school every single day while I’m irritated because our bus rides were always bumpy. It also made me uncomfortable to think about how much each of us were gaining from the trip. We were getting new perspectives on life that made us more appreciative for the luxuries that we have. I finally made it to Africa and experienced African culture. All of us can write about how amazing and transformative volunteering was on our resumes and applications. I couldn’t help but feel guilty that we gained all these things while helping these people only for a few days then going back to our normal lives.

I couldn’t help any of these problems so I decided to stop thinking about them so often but it made me realize how fortunate I am. Your quality of life is heavily dependent on the luck of your birth, and these experiences made me far more appreciative of everything that’s at my disposal.