Hope in Hell by Dan Bortolotti is a compilation of interviews and stories from field volunteers in the most respected Human Aid organization in the world: Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Some of the most extravagant stories take place in Africa, where MSF focuses a large portion of its efforts. What I was able to relate to the most is the aspect of international volunteerism; encompassing the cultural dive a volunteer takes and the mental processes one experiences abroad.
“Nigeria is about corruption elevated to a national pastime…unimaginably vast oceans of poverty, crime and suffering dotted with islands of obscene luxury and wealth for the fortunate few…” For me, “Mexico” could very easily be substituted for “Nigeria “here. The mis-distribution of wealth is sickening in many third world countries, and unfortunately, it is tightly bound to the cultural ropes that bind the country down. One never has to really experience the true poverty in Mexico because of these luxurious zones found everywhere especially in the touristy districts but I took a step outside of this to learn the way the country was run in the areas not blatantly displayed to foreigners.
Mexican parents work extremely hard to make the horribly unjust wages they do and they often work between 9-12 hours a day. Therefore there is a large need for after-school programs for their kids until they get home. I volunteered to help run an English program with a local church in a highly impoverished neighborhood. What I saw in this neighborhood shocked me and often sent me home pensive and depressed. The lessons these children had to learn at the very flourishing of their cognitive abilities, I was only realizing at the age of 19. Bartolotti writes about the field volunteers saying “After the first mission has opened their eyes, sticking their heads in the sand is no longer an option.” I relate to this statement because sitting in my dorm room freshman year I could very easily avoid any thought or mention of those suffering in these areas , in fact I even ventured to call myself poor at times, but after working in that two-room school house, I surely could never return to the blissful ignorance of the year before.
Another aspect of the MSF travels which compare to those of studying abroad are the bonds that are made. One doctor describes it saying, “You get to know a person far better, in a short time. You might have friends for years and never really know them, because you’ve never seen them under the stress of these situations.” Since there was no one from my school, or even my state that was going abroad with me, I really had to open up to make friends when I arrived. The international students served as an amazing basis of friendship because most of us were in the same situation, in a place we had never been, with a language we didn’t really know and with a culture we didn’t understand. I made friendships with these new people that triumphed over those friendships I had at home. When we let go of our comfort zones and realized that we were somewhere where we cannot possibly “know” everything; we also let go of all the things that we “knew” about ourselves and were open to doing things we “knew” we didn’t.
While my volunteer experiences may pale in comparison to what these humanitarian aid workers do, I found many statements which struck me personally in Barlotolli’s writing. He found a way to encompass all the life altering emotions one goes through abroad and in the act of volunteering. Perhaps the most personally enlightening and summating statement was,” I’m not doing it for them- I mean, I am, but I go there because it feels right for me, not because I think I’m helping the world.” My volunteering was exactly this and I am sure that I will continue doing such things in the future because Mexico has opened my eyes to my own interests and passions.
Volunteering abroad