Mission trips separate us from the cares of our everyday culture and show us the needs of people who are in desperate and hopeless situations. The shock of poverty in developing nations gives all people a deep appreciation of all the material things they possess and change their perspectives. McIntosh students Nora Darling, Emily Miller, Allie Sainsbury, Hunter Sainsbury and Austin Whittle experienced just this feeling when they traveled to Monrovia, Liberia, on a ten-day mission trip over the summer with the Peachtree City United Methodist Church.
After fundraising through a yard sale and receiving donations from family and friends, the group departed June 2 with the goals of distributing donated shoes to the orphans of Bishop’s Village, building a basketball court, holding a dance class for the children, and replacing old mattresses in the cottages of the village.
Although every day was different, a typical day began at 7:30 a.m. with breakfast and water purifying. After a 30 minute bus ride to the orphanage, they unloaded shipments, distributed donations and completed odd jobs. By noon, the children would be released from school and participate in a Vacation Bible School program, playing games and learning dances. Around 7 p.m., dinners of mainly jollof rice, fish, crackers, and Fanta were served, and exhaustion set in around 11 p.m.
As each day passed and the group accomplished each goal, their hearts grew with a desire to provide the orphans with hope and a future. Looking around, they saw danger yet love, poverty yet wealth.
The group accomplished every goal, but they took away more than satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment. Ultimately, the group experienced a change in perspective and grew in maturity. Senior Austin Whittle said, “The trip made me realize that especially in the time around the holidays, we Americans focus too much on what we don’t have as opposed to the Liberians’ focus on what they do have.” Junior Emily Miller said that she gained “independence, a greater global perspective, but mostly meaningful relationships with all the kids at Bishop’s Village.” She said that her time in Africa taught her “to be gracious and humble about any gift [she] receive[s].”
While showing selflessness towards the Liberian children of Bishop’s Village, McIntosh students themselves were shown selflessness from the orphans. Darling stated, “My [eye-opening experience] came soon after when these skinny, rib-bearing darlings insisted that I eat before they did.” She continued, “I had never experienced that kind of selflessness. Their love definitely changed my perspective on everything, but especially on a time like Christmas, which should be about love, but that we have selfishly twisted into ridiculous s materialism. I learned how to truly love from these people, who, in American terms, have nothing, but whom I know really have everything important.”
When Miller thinks back on her time in Liberia, she thinks of priceless gifts like joy, loud laughter, dancing, love, and affection — none of which are material possessions.
Darling, Miller, and Whittle agree that a new, global perspective changes everything; none think of anything as he or she did before the mission trip. Darling stated, “I was not expecting to fall in love with the country and the people like I did. My goal for the week was to help one person, but instead [I] found myself being blessed by adorable hands and gorgeous smiles.” She continued, “I brought back songs, a couple of dust-stained skirts, several letters from my new best friends, and more than a few new handprints on my heart.”
