Pay It Forward

If I’ve learned one thing on this internship, it has been compassion and kindness.

It still boggles my mind is that, who I now refer to as my Mombasa mama, has welcomed a complete stranger into her home for 8 months and continues to look out for my well-being.  She has introduced me to amazing people who are now good friends and she has shown nothing but selflessness in getting me adjusted to Mombasa life.

I was recently very sick and even hospitalized.  While the staff could have learned a thing or two about bedside manner, I was shocked when not only my entire office came by to see how I was, but also members of the board, and friends and neighbours.  It was an overwhelming experience for me, and I wondered how many colleagues, neighbours, and friends would visit me in the hospital back in Canada if I were only admitted for a day or two.

The care and concern for someone they had only met four months ago was baffling to me.  They sat and waited for word from the doctor, they yelled at nurses and hospital staff, they brought flowers and food, they brought their kind words.

All I know how to repay them for these acts of kindness is to pay it forward, and spread the word to others to do the same.   In our society we’re too locked into our own personal lives that we barely know our neighbours. And we usually don’t like hanging around our co-workers once the work day has ended. 

I know I will come home with a renewed sense of compassion for the people around me – even if they are strangers.