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| Hanging out at UWI |
After sitting in customs for 2 hours and walking into the
bright, sticky sunshine sans the 3-4 bags of medical equipment we brought, I
knew this trip would be different from the ones before. I returned to Kingston,
Jamaica last week for a third time after taking a couple year hiatus. We were a
team of 10 diverse individuals, of whom I was the only female. Since my
workplace consists of a department of about 40 women and 1 man, I had a feeling
I was in for a little culture shock before we even arrived.
Jamaica is the first of 2 international trips I will be
taking this summer. The second trip is with my church to Guatemala City working
at an orphanage in Sumpango, about an hour outside of the city. As a part of
our training we have been going thru the curriculum When Helping Hurts put out
by the Chalmers Center. I was so grateful to have gone through this training
before the trip to Jamaica as it gave me a new perspective on poverty and
short-term outreach/missions trips.
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| Done with gross motor testing and all smiles |
Poverty affects more than those who are economically or
materially poor. Poverty is about brokenness: broken relationship with God,
with ourselves, and with the environment around us. Those who are materially
poor and materially wealthy manifest that brokenness differently. As a person
living in the top 1% of the world’s wealth, my poverty manifests as trying to
give goods or do things for those living in the 99% as way to give myself worth. I have the
perception that if I do good things, I am doing good. The training really helped
me to understand that this is not the case. This mindset feeds my pride and
self-reliance while undermining the perception those I am helping have of
themselves. If I come and in one day give their children what it takes months
for them to earn, they leave with a sense of shame and helplessness to better
their situation.
The last time I went to Jamaica, I came bearing gifts of
soccer balls and t-shirts, handing them out to every child I met and giving
myself a pat on the back for my good deed. I didn’t think twice about the
message I may have been sending to their parents: I know that you can’t clothe
your children, so don’t worry, I will do it. This was not my intention with
giving those things away, but not everyone sees the intention behind our actions,
only the actions themselves. I wanted this trip to be different but wasn’t sure
how I could make it different. With our bags detained in customs, I had the
opportunity to truly examine my heart and motivation as I struggled to figure
out my purpose on the trip.
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| Our amazing host for the week, Paula, with a child getting his first wheelchair |
I wrestled with my own poverty, brokenness and insecurity. I
realized the perception of my role on this trip was to fit and give away
medical equipment. When that was threatened by customs I floundered a little,
questioning if I was really doing it right. What actually is my purpose on this
trip and am as I fulfilling it? As the week progressed, God spoke to my
brokenness and insecurity, reminding me that while the work we are doing for
the children is important, the relationships we are building matter most. If we
are going to combat poverty around the world, we must be willing to enter into
one another’s poverty. Relationships are the catalyst to developing an
infrastructure that will address material need and combat material poverty. We
must give people the gift of significance, encouraging their worth as
individuals by seeing and listening to their needs, wants, and deepest heart
desires. I can give the children I work with exercises that will improve their
quality of life or a walker that will help them explore their environemnt, but
above that, I want to give them hope of life beyond their physical limitations.
I want them to know that they are seen and heard and important to the world. As
the week progressed, I understood that this is a huge part of my purpose on the
trip and every day. I can’t fix our world’s poverty crisis, but I can impact
the poverty of an individual and encourage healing in their brokenness as they
encourage healing in mine.
Our equipment was eventually released and we were able to
fit kids with the wheelchairs, braces, and walkers that we brought. I enjoyed
my all-male company and it wasn’t as big a culture shock as I anticipated. I
connected with old friends and made new friends that make me smile when I think
of them. I am grateful for the blessings I experienced on this trip and am
excited to see how God will use the things I learned in the adventures that are
to come.
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| Fun team of kids and students learning from one another about PT and what we are able to do together |
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in
humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not
only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. ~ Philippians
2:3-4
