LearnServe Zambia 2016, Day 1: A Walk and a Wake-up Call

Saturday, June 25 – Today was very thought-provoking. It isn’t everyday that you see a man, with eyes full of desperation, try to sell what little bit of property he owns to feed his family at a market for tourist. Or, a 22-year old man who devotes his days, teaching youth about safe sex in an environment where condoms are not common. As I walked through M’Tendere with my group and Zambian guide, Japhet, he showed me something I took well for granted; opportunity. Or rather, lack of it.

The Kwacha, Zambian currency, is 10 to a single U.S. dollar. So as we observe the lifestyle of the people of the village, it was very discomforting to watch families scrape by with the little money they have. To put an image in your mind; imagine taking one dollar, laying it down, and burning it. You just burned 3 onions, 5 pieces of dried fish, and 2 pieces of steak. As you burn this meal, think about what you could get with that dollar. Pocket change is a luxury in Zambia.

It feels weird going to an extremely impoverished area then going on a bus (another luxury), to a shopping centre not very different from Giant or Safeway. I learned that money and the opportunities I have, even if it seems like little to the average American, is a lot to the average Zambian. Words cannot describe the difference between the impoverished here and the impoverished back home. Maybe is because we’re Americans. I liked it, experience, I mean. Today was a good wakeup call.

Signing out,

-Ayinde O., E L Haynes Public Charter School