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Tuesday, 7 September 2010Headed home today. Hard to believe my time in Pakistan is over. As I sit here in the airport waiting to board a plane for my journey back home, all I can think about are the people who lost theirs. I've met so many people on this trip, young, old, male, female, rich, poor and they all have one thing in common - they lost everything to the floods. Mother nature doesn't discriminate. But neither does the spirit of survival. Everyone I met, from the four year old boy who lost his father, to the 50 year man who lost his saw mill, to the widow who doesn't know where she will live after the waters recedes, all they want is a chance. A chance to return home, a chance to rebuild their lives, a chance to regain their independence. We are all greatful for assistance when we need it, but the basic human instinct is to make ones own way in this world. The residents of Pakistan are no different. Their will to survive and start over is strong. They have faced many hardships over the last 10 years; the impact of the post 9-11 war in Afghanistan, the devastation of the 2005 earthquake, and now the floods. These people have every reason to throw their hands up in the air and walk away. But instead they dig deep, find the inner strength and continue to move forward one day at a time. When I arrived here and saw the magnitude of the floods I honestly thought 'how will Pakistan ever recover from this.' But the more people I met, the more stories of hope and courage I heard. Pakistan will recover, the same way it always does, one day at a time, one family at a time. Pakistan has a proud history, and although it will take time, probably years, this moment in time will become another chapter in that proud history. The country, and its peope will recover, rebuild, and be better for it. I just know it. |
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