Money, money, money...

Money makes the world go around - or so it seems.

These past couple of weeks this statement has been my main challenge.  The stories I've heard, the pleas for support, they all pull at my heart-strings and yet I cannot solve all the problems that I am faced with.  If I had the ability to give money to everyone who asked me for it, I would in a heartbeat, but this would not solve anything.  One of the reasons I came out here with VSO particularly was because of their vision - to EXCHANGE skills and knowledge to promote sustainability.

Every time a 'hand-out' is given, there is always expectation that more will come and so people simply wait.  My students are so used to being 'spoon-fed' information that when I have asked them to discuss situations and develop their own ideas, I have often been met with blank faces.  It is the same with people and their desire to move out of the poverty cycle - they know where they want to be but do not know how to get there and believe that someone giving them money will solve everything.  A plaster on a wound does not necessarily heal and can sometimes do more damage.

A student came to me yesterday and told me her story.  It was heartbreaking.  Her reason for sharing her story with me was to ask me to help her with her school fees.  She has two more years of study at the TTC, each term costing roughly £60.  Without education she is told that she has no hope of earning to support her siblings.  I wanted to tell her that I would help - but if I helped one, I would have to help all.  I admired her courage and determination to find means to complete her schooling but all I could offer her was prayer.  (My heart is becoming hardened - even if she is able to complete her schooling, there is no guarantee that she will find a job!)

People are trapped here.  A colleague of mine only completed half of his degree because he had to find means to support his family.  He was fortunate enough to be granted a scholarship but gave it up to earn money to allow his siblings to go to school.  He has been a teacher for the past five years but earns a fraction of what other teachers earn who completed their degree.  He is trapped in this cycle because he cannot afford to return to university to complete his degree as he must continue to provide for his family.  Even if he was given a scholarship to return to university, he would not be able to support himself AND his family during the 2 years that he has left.  Yet if he were to complete his degree, the £60 extra per month that he would receive as a 'qualified' teacher would make a HUGE difference to his life.  It all goes back to money.

So, I am left feeling helpless.  My only means to support these people are my prayers - and in all honesty, I am not sure my faith is enough at times - I wish it were.