As we have gone around to seven different months now while on this journey, I am in awe at the talents and abilities that each country possesses.
Most people in third world countries seem to learn a new skill or talent, and this month it seems as if I have seen them all now. In Malawi, some men near our hostel make things with their hands and sell it to the tourists that come to their area, or thu go across the border to Tanzania, Kenya, or Botswana and sell their work.
One of the men, named Nelson, was talking to us one day, while we were sharing the gospel and he brought up a good point.
Many of the tourists that come to this area blow them off, but more that that, they disrespect them by not treating them like a person in general. I must say- I do this a lot wherever I go. I don’t make small talk. I don’t smile at them. I walk away very quickly, and I don’t give them information about myself.
Nelson genuinely said that he feels hurt by that. It was then that it clicked- these men that are selling things make a living this way. Most have not finished school and a large part of that is due to not having the finances to go to school. As tourists there are a lot of us who just want to go about our day, but don’t take the time to treat them as people even.
That’s where I was at in the beginning of the month. I wanted to get by unnoticed and kind of ignore them as I have been exhausted by people trying to sell me things, and then I realized- they are people too and they want to have personal interactions as it makes their day go by faster and they feel noticed. By no means is it everyone’s responsibility to make them feel seen, loved, or noticed, but I do think that a smile goes a long way.
This point of view has forever changed the way that I interact with the vendors and I valued his perspective- in fact I was thankful that he shared this information with me and said so in way that was confident. It opened up my eyes to see them the way that the Lord does, and that was exactly the perspective shift that I needed! They have been an awesome group of guys that my team and I have been able to build relationship with! 🙂
