 Sarah Reinking Journeys to Africa
June 29, 2009
Sarah Reinking is a sophomore-to-be midfielder on the Billiken women's soccer team who earned a place on the Atlantic 10 Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll last year. The following is a first-person account of her journey to Malawi. On Dec. 26, I found myself embarking on a 15-hour plane ride to Malawi, Africa. I was about to spend 16 days in a country I never dreamed I would visit. I don't think the reality of what I was about to experience hit me yet. It wasn't until I was riding in a Land Rover and zooming past countless people walking along the road -- barefoot and carrying everything you could imagine on their heads: straw mats, mangoes, huge planks of wood -- that it sunk in that I was in Africa. My brother, Jason, was spending a year in Malawi to work for Project Peanut Butter. He was running clinics for children suffering from malnutrition, giving out a peanut-based product called chiponde, a ready-to-use therapeutic food. I had come to Malawi to assist Jason. On the day of our first clinic -- held outdoors under a tree -- I had no idea what to expect. As the mothers and their children gathered from miles around, two nurses who travel with Jason led the group in songs that teach lessons about nutrition. The nurses then recorded each child's weight. Jason measured the child's height and looked for health problems associated with malnutrition. I recorded the height of each child and used a chart to determine the degree of malnutrition. The mothers received a two-week stipend of chiponde. After seeing everyone, I noticed a crowd of kids and heard them whispering "Azungu! Azungu!" -- the Chichewa word for white person. I got out the soccer ball we brought to every site, and I soon found myself playing with about 10 boys. Although I was unable to communicate with them, we laughed and had a lot of fun.
At every clinic, there were a few children who immediately needed to climb into the back of our Land Rover and go to the hospital. During my first clinic experience, one child was extremely sick and needed to be tested for HIV, and another, Jason suspected, had malaria. When we arrived at the hospital, I was asked to hold one of the smallest babies I have ever held in my life. I looked down, and I could tell that he was struggling to breathe. I was immediately filled with compassion. He was no more than 1 year old and about to be tested for HIV. It was then I realized the real devastation in this country. Many children -- some infants -- are infected with a disease that will eventually kill them. At the same time, they are starving because they aren't able to get proper nutrition. That first clinic was characteristic of my entire trip. We saw about 75 children that day -- which I thought was a large group -- but we later saw as many as 150 children. The crowds were the same everywhere we went. Most of all, I was amazed by the mothers. They were some of the most selfless and humble people I have ever met. Despite their struggles -- which most of us could not even imagine -- these women are strong and without complaints. I just finished my freshman year at SLU. My major is physical therapy, and I play soccer for the women's team. Being a student-athlete is very demanding. Days are jam-packed and leave little or no time to relax. At first, learning to juggle school and soccer was difficult. I stressed out and got worked up over little things. And when it came to soccer, I did not play like I knew I could. I was way too nervous and forgot how much I loved the game. That frame of mind is now long gone. My trip to Malawi helped me realize how privileged I am. I am earning a top-notch physical therapy education, and, at the same time, I am part of a team and playing the game I love. When I'm struggling to keep up with my classes, fighting to keep my eyes open during a late night at the library, or nervous about a fitness test or an upcoming game, I remember something Jason told me in Malawi. He said: "When you're running, run for everyone who is unable to run, and you'll find yourself less focused on how tired your legs are and how hard you're breathing, and more focused on how amazing it is that your body is able to do what it's doing. And when you're on that soccer field, play the game for the kids here in Africa who will never get the opportunity you have. If you imagine you're on a field in Malawi playing with all the kids here, you'll find yourself much happier, playing the best you can and loving this amazing game." This fall, when I take to the soccer field, I will run for those children. Truly, how could I not? |
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