In a straw roof hut one beautiful Monday morning you can hear the rhythmic clapping in unison with angelic voices. The music suddenly stops and what you hear next are the wishes and gratitude expressed to God through prayer.
Hugo stands to introduce some of the vocational students who are eager to teach us about what they do in their community. We learned about how the students are motivated. Some do it to support their families and others do it so they aren’t just standing idle. One of the girls that presented had started a business in order to care for a child whose parents died and who she adopted into her care. The care and passion that was in that hut overwhelmed us with empathy and love for the students.
Our hosts had asked us to co-present (US & Malawian leaders together) on several different topics this week: mental health, mindset change, and entrepreneurship. Today, Tina and Angela presented on mental health. In Malawi, mental health is not something often talked about, so it was important for us to be sensitive while discussing some of the issues that the students have faced or are facing. We touched on topics such as mental illness and suicide, and how its impact on the youth is no different from the US or any other part of the world. Every hour or so we would play a game in order to give our minds a little break. During one of the breaks, Emerson and I refined our cha-cha slide and Emerson taught us all the Macarena. By the end of the day we had felt closer than ever with the students, and as we left our hearts were reminded that Malawi is truly the Warm Heart of Africa.