(12/20/97 Baltimore AFRO-American Newspaper)
by Congressman Elijah E. Cummings
"Nothing helps us build our perspective more than developing compassion for others. Compassion is a sympathetic feeling. It involves the willingness to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, to take the focus off yourself and to imagine what it’s like to be in someone else’s predicament, and simultaneously, to feel love for that person. It’s the recognition that other people’s problems, their pain and frustrations, are every bit as real as our own -- often far worse. In recognizing this fact and trying to offer some assistance, we open our own hearts and greatly enhance our sense of gratitude." Dr. Richard Carlson, Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff.
Three weeks ago on a hot Sunday night, I sat on the front pew of a packed church in the heart of a small and developing African country called Zambia. This nation is some 5,000 miles from Baltimore. I had gone there on the invitation of John Hopkins University to see first hand the devastation AIDS has had on this country of approximately 9.2 million people. At least one fourth of Zambia’s citizens are suffering from this dreadful disease. In the United States more and more people are talking about living with AIDS. In Zambia, where simple medication such as malaria pills, anesthesia for dental services, and aspirin are in very short supply (and in many instances, non-existent) they seem to only speak of dying with AIDS. It is estimated that at least 650,000 children are orphans due to this disease, and that by the year 2000 the number will conservatively increase to one million.
So on that Sunday night, I listened as children spoke about how they missed their parents, choirs sang of finding some reason to have hope, and others prayed for their loved ones who were ill.
This trip was a life altering event. I wish that people living in this country could see the poverty that I saw in Zambia. I have no doubt that it would help us to appreciate all the wonderful freedoms, opportunities and conveniences that we are blessed to experience each day.
As I walked through the villages of Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, I witnessed miles and miles of little homes which were usually no bigger than a typical Baltimore row house living room. It was not unusual to see six to ten people living in this limited space. There was no plumbing, and if the village residents were lucky, they had one common tap where thousands of people acquired water to take care of their basic needs. While I was there, one of the newspapers carried a story about how some villages did not have any clean water for five (5) days because the country had run out of chemicals used to purify the water.
In talking to high ranking members of the government, I learned that there were no schools in Zambia where education was truly free. As a result of this, millions of children were not attending any school. You see the average income is less than $350.00 per year.
Perhaps one of the most moving moments of my visit came during the half time of a father and son soccer game when about 25 plain balloons were released. As soon as the balloons were released, approximately 1,000 children ran in an effort to catch them as if they were worth a million dollars each. It made me realize that these youngsters wanted the very simple things in life. As they ran, there was no fighting, trampling, or pushing. No one fell down or fussed. However, as the balloons sailed above the wall of the makeshift stadium, I did see a few children shed tears. They could see the balloons escaping their reach just as many of them had seen their mothers, fathers, and relatives painfully and slowly slip out of their lives.
As I sat watching these youngsters, I could not help but think about the Northern High School incident of just a few weeks ago when some youngsters disobeyed their principal’s request that they return to their classrooms, and were suspended. I wish these students could have met the nine-year-old girl named Lassana, who said to me " Congressman, we the children are begging for our futures. Many of our parents are dead. Some of us have AIDS. Most of us have no school to attend. We just want to grow up and have a future. Will you help us? You are our brother."
As I told her that I would do everything in my power to help her and other children of Zambia, I realized that she was begging for the opportunities that many of us take for granted, and of which we often refuse to take advantage.
Perhaps the most painful moments in my entire trip took place when I hugged Lassana and said good-bye. She looked at me and asked, " How do I know you will help us? How do I know that I will see you again?" I looked into her sad eyes and said, "I promise that I will return, and when I do, I shall find you. When I do find you, I know that you will tell me that things in your great country are much better than when I left." She then turned to me and smiled. As I was about to get into the car to leave, she came running and touched my back and said, "When you return, and if you don’t find me, will you look for me in heaven?" I did not want to answer, but I could see that she was demanding an answer. I responded by saying, "I will find you!"
During this Holiday Season, let us be grateful for our health, love ones and all the wonderful opportunities that God has provided. Concentrating on what we don’t have brings frustration and pain. Just as important, it will cause us to fail to cultivate our blessings and uplift the lives and spirits of those who love us. Happy Holiday to you and yours.
-The Honorable Elijah E. Cummings represents the 7th Congressional District of Maryland in the United States House of Representatives.