What is normal?
Well that very much depends on an accident of birth & how lucky you are. Here very little is recognisable as normal to Western eyes. Dreadful dirt roads & dust is normal. Trying to cultivate food in earth, which is only once removed from sand, is normal. Very basic, small, mud brick housing with reed or tin roofs, which accommodates many people is normal. Scratching an existence & earning a pittance is normal. Having big families, so most of the population is very young, is normal. Not having a job is normal. Lack of choice is normal. I could go on, but I'm sure I don't need to.
However what is also normal is a general happy disposition & much laughter. An almost universal entrepreneurial spirit is necessary to survive. As is unbelievable stoicism & patience - a willingness to tolerate a life most of us couldn't. People believe in helping each other. Not just their immediate family, but huge extended families. If a relative, however distant, or unknown, turns up & asks for help, it is your duty to provide it - they are " your blood".
I have huge admiration for Malawians. I also find some of the cultural differences in work practices deeply frustrating, both to achieving what I set out to do working here, but also to the prospect of the country lifting itself out of poverty.
Normal needs to be challenged & become less normal. People need to have rights, to good education & health care for example. Politicians need to get off their backsides & stop filling their coffers at the expense of the people they are supposed to serve. NGOs need to consider carefully whether they are really helping. Vast amounts of money is wasted or " diverted".
This is a really interesting experience. I am meeting some really interesting people & having truly mind expanding conversations with almost everyone I meet, both old & young.
I doubt I will be the same person when I return.
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