A couple of months ago Buckingham Browne and Nichols (BB&N) where my Mom is in the midst of her 22nd year as the Lower School French teacher, got in touch with me about an idea they had. The school administrators proposed the idea of sending me some candy so that I could give it to some needy kids in Malawi. My Mom had been sharing my news and updates from Malawi intermittently throughout the year so many of her colleagues knew what I was up to. And went I went home for Christmas in December I actually gave a talk to about one hundred 6th graders that covered some of my work for Grassroot Soccer in Malawi. So when I heard about BB&N’s desire to help me out in Malawi I instantly signed up to do my part. The kids and teachers that I spent time talking to in January were all fantastic people, and they all shared an interest in learning about Africa so I thought this would be a great fit.
I started having these discussions with my Mom around the end of October, as kids in Cambridge, MA were making there costume preparations for Halloween. Right after we had agreed to do something together, the kids gathered as much candy as they could fit in a big package and sent it off to my address in Malawi. I received the BB&N package around mid-January (ha! 10 weeks for a package! That’s how long it takes in the states as well, right?). As soon as I opened up the package I was really humbled by all the goodies and treats that the American kids had sent to Malawi. In addition to a collection of some of the finest candies that America has to offer, the kids wrote some really sweet cards for the Malawian kids. After talking to some of the GRS peer health evaluators out here, who all work at some local Malawian school, I decided that the best fit for these treats was a local orphanage called OCSR.
A few days after I had decided to give the treats to OCSR I went to donate the goodies with Rachel and the GRS coach who works there, Aaron, by my side. When we arrived at the orphanage there was a whole assembly of seats arranged and all of the kids were waiting impatiently for us. Before we gave them the candy they presented us with a group song and a dance to honor us as special guests. After that we ran a quick GRS activity with them, pressure limbo, a game that highlights the increased risks associated with being a sexually active teenager. Once this activity was finished it came time for me to explain to the kids what Halloween was and then present the goodies to them. Needless to say the kids had almost no idea what I was talking about when it came to Halloween (Costumes? Free candy? White people are nuts!). But when it came time for me to pass the candy around all of the kid’s faces lit up and all of them started smiling uncontrollably. The whole experience for me was really rewarding and I’m doing everything I can to repay BB&N for their kindness and generosity (hint hint, there may be a return package from the Malawian kids coming your way soon!).
Hands down the best highlight of the whole day came at the very end of the meeting when Rachel and I were just about to leave. As we got up to go to the door the kids broke out into a song. The song itself was great and catchy but it became even more powerful when our coach, Aaron, started to translate the words for me. I’ll spare you a word for word account of the song but the chorus of the song basically meant “Thank you for remembering us”. This may not seem like much but it meant an incredible amount to me because I started to think of all the people who have forgotten these unfortunate kids throughout their tough lives. At that moment I learned two things about these kids:
1. 1. How much our visit meant to them and how touched they were by the donations from BB&N.
2. 2. That Halloween was their new favorite holiday!
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