The Human Experience

We must rapidly begin the shift from a "thing-oriented" society to a "person-oriented" society. -Martin Luther King Jr.

I have seen poverty and struggle... but tonight, I had a changing experience.  The way I view the world and the way I view all of humanity has been completely altered.  Praise the LORD.

I went to Lincoln, Nebraska with 11 other Creighton students to see a new independent film/documentary called "The Human Experience."  This was probably one of the best decisions I have made in a long time.  I heard about it through Facebook (yeah, I know) about 6 months ago.  I was initially pretty interested, but never looked into knowing more.  My friend Katie told me that a kid named Cam, who I just knew as an acquaintance, had extra tickets to see this and wanted to know if she knew anyone that might be interested.  She gave him my name, and yeah... that's basically how I got to go.  I knew from just watching the trailer that it was going to be good.  It surpassed 'good' by a LONGGGG shot.

The film begins introducing two brothers that came from a difficult home when they were young.  Now, and in their twenties, these brothers live together in the St. Francis House in Brooklyn, NY.  The St. Francis House is a home to adolescents that have experienced abuse, financial problems, drug or alcohol addictions, or to those who just need a place to call home.  These brothers do not have a family beyond the walls of the house.  The younger brother, Jeff, struggles with the brokenness of society and throughout this movie is trying to discover the answer to so many people's questions: What is my purpose? What is the meaning of life? What is the purpose of the human being?  WHO AM I?

The brothers decide to experience three different cultures of people that modern day society, this "thing-oriented" society, would normally shun and think of as sub-human.

EXPERIENCE I: Living on the New York City streets with the homeless.

EXPERIENCE II: Working with the "lost children" of Peru, kids who have been orphaned and are disabled by birth or by abuse.

EXPERIENCE III:  Working in a leper colony in Ghana, Africa.

On the first experience, the boys thought they would step into their own backyards, literally, and immerse themselves among the community of people that so many try to ignore.  They dropped everything in order to better understand the struggle of a homeless person.  They only had the clothes on their back, they slept in cardboard boxes they found by dumpsters, they begged for food and money, but most importantly, they befriended and built relationships with those that begged with them,  with those who stood next to them in the soup kitchen line, and with those that slept next to them.  There were definitely a couple interviews that stood out in my mind.  One man told the pair that he should probably be dead in the long scheme of things.  With all the things he has done, he should be dead, but because he isn't that makes him have faith more and more each morning he wakes up.  He told them that God has a plan for him and that God is going to use him and he knows it, because otherwise, he wouldn't be living anymore.  The second interview that sticks out to me was with an older woman.  She was telling the brothers about the first time she was on the streets.  She remembered that it was just her and 3 or 4 dogs on the street.  When people passed and saw the dogs, they were quick to call the humane society or their friends, desperate to find safe homes for the animals so they would not freeze to death.  She, however, was ignored and left alone.  There is something so unsettling about this image.  People saved dogs instead of another human being.  Our world is so broken.  She told the boys to remember the important things in life, like family and friends, because in the long run, they are the ones that will save you.  The last night of their experiment on the streets, they were eating in a soup kitchen with a handful of others.  They were being thanked by all the other homeless people for "having balls" and taking a chance just to experience what life is like from the other side.  

For the second experience, the two brothers joined a group called "Surf for a Cure."  This group of surfers travel around the world in search for the best waves.  Wherever they surf, they give back to the community using their gifts and strength.  This is a testimony to just how God wants us to use our gifts, our health, and strength.  On this occasion, the group and the brothers traveled to Peru.  After surfing the waves, the boys began working in a local children's clinic.  The clinic was filled with orphaned children that were disabled due to abuse or natural-born diseases or disabilities.  They played with them and worked on occupational therapy techniques hoping to build their muscles up and work with their disabilities.  These kids, although facing terrible circumstances, were some of the happiest children I had ever seen.  One boy had one leg, and that was it.  He didn't have any arms and was missing his other leg, but he was smiling almost the entire time.  These children face more pain and struggle I think I have experienced my entire life, and I am four times their age... The real world is scary.  Not only did they experience a more difficult lifestyle, but they were happier than me.  The kids were in pain and most could not even walk, yet they giggled and loved and were so full of life.  Funny how that works out.  The guys described these children as true role models on how to act and feel in this world.  You may be in pain and struggling, but embrace those around you and love life.  You are not dead, so take full advantage of the resources you do have.  

The third experience took place in Ghana, Africa.  The two brothers and two other boys they lived with all traveled together so that they could speak with HIV victims and also lepers in a colony outside the city.  The boys spent a significant amount of time in the city working with people.  One of the boys told a story of how his mother died of HIV/Aids.  He was scared and upset at how little time he had with her, so now, he was going to talk to others that were infected and hear their story.  Those interviewed were a mother of a baby who had Aids, and both a young  man and woman both infected with HIV.  It was extremely emotional hearing the individuals talk about their struggles with the actual disease and how to deal with the pain of a loved one who had it.  One of the guys asked the young woman, knowing you have this infection, what do you want your kids to know?  What advice do you want to give them?  She told them that she wanted them to have faith in God.  He is constant, true and strong, and he will guide them.  Everything happens for a reason and he did not want them to be scared or fearful, because God is there for them.  Have faith and be strong.  Someone who suffers so much has so much faith.  I wish I was more like that.  When I struggle, I know I should look to the LORD but it is so tempting to run away from it all.  The boys after this, traveled to a leper colony.  One of the boys said, "I didn't even know there were leper colonies in Africa.  The first thing I think of is the Aids epidemic, not leprosy."  These leper colonies are filled with men, women, and children who are basically decaying and being eaten alive by this bacteria.   They had blisters over their bodies, they were missing hands and feet, some were blind, and their skin looked like it was basically falling off of them.  The boys sat down with the community and laughed and told stories.  They were all together bonding, despite the difficulty of seeing these infected people as the same as the American boys.  One man in the community addressed this issue right away.  He thanked them for coming to the colony and sharing the experience with them.  He told them he loved them and that is a human emotion.  He saw them all as the same, human and human.  They are all humans interacting with one another.  The guys were not building relationships with lepers, but with other human beings that also saw the power of community and relationships.  

We are all human.  Why, then, do we treat others as if they are not?  Just because someone doesn't live in your same community, or doesn't have as much money than you, or is a different religion or race, we should not treat them as if they do not deserve the same love and attention that we give to our own friends and family.  Who am I?  I am a human in search for humanity.  I am a human waiting for communities to love and care.  I am waiting for change.  I am waiting for the "thing-oriented" society I live in to change into a "person-oriented" community.  I need to be a part of creating this change.  We may all be waiting for something to happen and for something to change... but how long can we procrastinate?  How long can we just 'hope'?  We need to show that hope can happen with the help of all people.  I think we need to have more hope in humanity.