Janiel distinguishing between wants and needs

 In our first class, Marita talked about something that really wrapped up a lot of the thoughts I was having with regards to the children I’ve been working with for the past three days. She roughly said,  a person with a million dollars may think they will really be happy if they could just have two million. Believing happiness won’t come until ones fortune is doubled. Unfortunately, this is the view of many people. Riding the mini bus taxi to my internship one day, there was a slight disagreement between a passenger (clearly not South African) and the bus conductor, the one responsible for collecting the money. The passenger complained that the six rand bus fare was too expensive; the conductor argued that people from “that side of the world”, meaning westerners, worried and thought too much about money, even when their swimming in piles of it. As someone from “that side of the world” that really stuck with me; satisfaction is unknown to most, merely because of the constant fixation to want more.  

Walking into my internship and being greeted by hands down the happiness children ever, was overpowering after hearing that minor quarrel. Working with children where most live in unstable shacks, unsafe environments and with having to deal with bone deficiencies, fractures, etcetera, makes you reevaluate everything about yourself. These children don’t worry about trying to double a million dollars. Being able to walk again is unquestionably more important.

I myself am guilty of wanting more and more without actually needing. It’s shameful to think about. But on the other hand, I feel as if my journey to South Africa will without a doubt be a major learning experience. I constantly remind myself that I alone cannot fix everything while I am here for the semester. The first week of internships have been completed and I feel blessed, to give and to receive. During this week I was able to be a part of a team that helped mobilize a child and send her home, happy to be walking again. Throughout that time, I was being taught Afrikaans, the language of most of the children. Groeiemôre means good morning! 

It brought me to tears when Wednesday came around and I had to explain to the children that I wouldn’t be back until Monday. Majority feared that I wasn’t coming back at all; when it was time to give my regular goodbye hugs, the children were fearful of letting go. Hugs, followed by questions like, “auntie Janiel, are you sure you’ll be back on Monday?” just about broke my heart. They needed to be reassured that I would be back. Wants are so different than needs, and many of us struggle with finding that distinction. It’s quite sad to be honest.