From what I know, we tend to search for homes. Home as a place or as a human being. It was a sudden feeling right after my arrival that Malawi will be somehow really special to me and when leaving I knew, that this place on the other side of the world feels more like home than any other before.
I spent five weeks in the Missionary Community of St. Paul the Apostle in Benga Parish in Malawi.
As I can get anxious very easily, it sometimes makes me feel that I have already met enough people and I become scared of meeting new ones. In Malawi, I have met so many. Some of them were just passing by. To me, more than an ordinary people they represented an impression of joy, love, openness. The strength – of the voice, body and mind. The devoutness – to God, to their jobs, to what fulfils them. But some of them became really important to me and they had an impact on me in the most positive way and I am forever grateful for meeting them.
The moments in Malawi, when we were finding ourselves on the same place in the same time on the same path, were too short and regardless of this we were still able to surrender parts of ourselves and take something from one another. It’s not about languages, nations, amount of money or race. It’s not even the mentality, or habits, however different they are. It’s the laughter, joy and openness what connect us. The willingness to help each other but never look down on somebody who has less than you do, as the wealth can’t always be seen. The ability to accept ourselves the way we are. Get over our walls and differences, our own hypocrisy and habits and search deeper. Not to compare and always start changing ourselves before others. And most importantly – not to be afraid of being human, because that’s what we are after all.
My experience may have changed everything I’ve known up to now. The point of view, priorities, the way of considering what really matters and what’s important. It made me doubt myself as well as my goals in life. Eventually made me find myself in a better place, with realisation that everything takes time, that as we can influence our lives we can never change what is supposed to happen as well. Although we can find ourselves on a place not really suitable at the moment or accomplishing tasks that don’t seem fulfilling enough, it’s happening for some reason. And what really matters is to do it with joy and love, which can be always find around or in ourselves, doesn’t really matter where you are. You are here and now, it’s time to be present and grateful. And that’s definitely what I am while thinking of my experience – infinitely grateful. The place, community and people, the joy, calmness and openness, all this together. And one beautiful country, Malawi, which once you’ve visited, it’s too hard not to coming back. And definitely impossible to forget.
Marie Mlatečková (Volunteer)
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