By Kalea Moore

Back at school, we have a saying that “connections make meaning,” but I think this trip has showed me a different interpretation of what connections really make.

Here, connections are about the way people treat each other.  We saw throughout the trip a real culture of hospitality.  But, we also got to think about the opposite.  When we went to check in for our flight to return home, the plane we were supposed to take had a part that needed to be replaced.  After waiting in line for 5 hours at the airport, we were sent to a hotel back in Dakar.  It was a very nice place.  Where we were stuck for 48 hours…

While at the fancy hotel, we saw some examples of Senegalese hospitality but we also some people behaving in ways we hadn’t seen the entire time.  We saw people putting themselves first and getting angry.  We saw people pushing and yelling at each other – Americans and Europeans who seemed focus on themselves rather than on the group.  Even in line for the buffet, people were getting violent when they thought someone else might be cutting.  It seemed like people didn’t even believe there was going to be enough food.  That was the first time where I felt a sense that there might not be enough.

Back in Niognani, a place where people don’t have a lot of resources, we ate until we were literally bursting.  And meals felt like a community event rather than a transaction.  It felt like people were supporting each other through food and coming together around big bowls.  Even though it’s a hard place to farm, there was ample food and neighbors came to share and to help.  The buffet line at the fancy hotel was such a stark contrast.

I also saw that people can make mistakes here.  Even Kecouta’s story – which involved making the mistake of having an affair but then owning up to it and working to make it possible to add a second wife to his family.  I saw that people can face their own issues and problems and still be accepted.  Because everything happens through community, mistakes and successes are properly reflected.  That makes me reflect on how I treat even myself.  Am I being that forgiving to myself and the people around me?  Am I making space for people to learn and grow.  Are we as a school and a community?  Here, it’s obvious that people can tackle big problems and find ways of moving forward even when mistakes are made.

These vantages we have gotten have really helped me understand big ideas.  But the entire trip, where connections were the main experience, also helped me really slow down.  I learned to take people for who they really are and to trust that together we have enough.  Rather than judging, I tried to understand and to notice the ways that people here contribute even from a young age.  That helped me have the opportunity to really see people for who they are.  With Kecouta and his 11 kids and 2 wives, I saw a living example of being able to provide even for a huge number of people.  I thought back to the families at home that struggle to survive with even one or two kids.  The strength of the community around him is what I think lets Kecouta thrive.  Everywhere we went, he had friends and was waving his big hands at smiling people.  That kind of wealth is really different from what I saw in the fancy hotel where people were paying a hundred dollars for a meal.

I plan to return to the US with the goal of being less independent and more trusting.  I need to remember that other people can help me through my life.  I don’t need to isolate myself to be successful, I need to connect myself.  In the end, connections are what allow us to be human.  And, being human is a process of reflecting.