Participant Blog: A Spoonful of Sugar
The day we went to the dump opened my eyes a bit more to what some of our world has to go through. They work for less than a dollar a day to support themselves, support their families. They can’t ‘call in sick’ because their lives depend on this little work that they have. They can’t get any other work because they are not even considered as existing human beings. Starving dogs roam looking for any left over food, abused because they are the competition to survival.
A little boy was sitting on the top of a hill with the ‘Heffe’ (who, may I add, was wearing a ‘make poverty history’ bracelet as he helped us pump possibly the only fresh water that they’ve gotten in a long time). The little boy’s parents were working hard in the dump, collecting anything of value. He sat there so silent, no words, no emotion showing on the outside. He wouldn’t look around or anything. Just sat in silence, so tiny and innocent. We gave a cup of water to the little boy and he drank it so slowly, like it was precious and he had to savour it. He kept it up to his lips, not letting go of it, taking tiny sips. He finished it after a long time. We asked what was wrong through the translator, the translator asked him but he couldn’t even speak. He asked people around him and they said he was really sick. I sat down and rubbed and tickled his back. Love is one of the most important necessities to survival. I put him on my lap because he was sitting on the dump grounds all day…every day. We gave him another cup of water and then Christal asked if any of us had something sweet. I went to my knapsack because I remembered that I had a fruit bar in there. I quietly snuck him little pieces of the sugary fruit bar and he ate it so gratefully, so peacefully, still hardly moving. But just ten minutes later, he started moving more and he smiled at me about five times. He had a beautiful smile, beautiful eyes and all he needed was sugar. All they need is sugar. something in their blood, in their tummy and they can’t get it because many people only see that they have their own money, their own home, their own sugar.
~Katrina Niederer
*All participants are given the opportunity to blog so many views are represented. These views do not necessarily reflect the views of LiveDifferent (formerly Absolute) Leadership Development. If you are a Hero Holiday participant that would like to share your experience please email your story (and picture, if possible) to blog@heroholiday.com