I read an article a few weeks ago about a couple who live in a Mongolian yurt in Alaska. Seldovia is a town with a population of about 250 people on the Kenai Peninsula. The yurt, what we would call a tent, is made from a high tech-fabric, to combat the cold. However, sometimes it is zero degrees Fahrenheit when they wake up in the morning. That, by the way is minus seventeen Centigrade. They live in a space no larger than 452 square feet with a baby and have no running water and an outside toilet. When they want a bath, they walk or snow-shoe or ski for an hour to get into town. He has a PhD in geology and she a Master’s degree in molecular biology. But they do have broadband Internet access. They have actually chosen to live like this. I am house-sitting and have hot running water and all mod cons, but no broadband, so I am at a friend’s house, using hers. I prefer my choice. As I write this I am distracted. The Grammy awards are on.
There are some spectacular effects, tons of bling, acres of bare skin and a terrific amount of production value. But up to this point, there hasn’t been any song that has a melody. Well not yet. The impromptu concert that George Clooney put together for Haitian relief had such a talented group of people. I don’t know whether you saw it, but we were well represented. Charlize was answering phones, and Dave Matthews sang. I know that even more importantly, a group of dedicated South Africans, with people from all over the globe were pulling people out of the rubble and doing whatever they could in the hell hole that is Port-au-Prince.
Over the course of dinner there was a fair amount of dissent about the way to go forward in Haiti. Billions of dollars in aid have been given to Haiti over the past two decades. What happened to it? It shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic. At the end of last year there were at least a million Haitians working illegally in the Dominican Republic. Even before the earthquake there was very little infrastructure and certainly a dearth of jobs. What had happened to the billions of dollars? It went into the personal piggy bank of the few the greedy and the unscrupulous. This conversation is going on at dinner tables and water coolers and in government offices around the country. Some feel that Haiti should be temporarily assisted by an international organization to help them get back on their feet. Others feel that it is time that Haitians need to develop on their own. In between are those who think that there should be a joint Haitian-International agency to administer some kind of long term rescue. There will be plenty of volunteers to help.
One of the remarkable attributes of American society is that community service or charity work or whatever you wish to call it is very important. Your contribution is part of your school curriculum, it influences you application to the University of your choice, and you are asked about your community involvement at job interviews. It ought to be prominent on your resume. Many young Americans spend time in developing countries in their long school holidays, and some take a longer break before they go to university.
They teach in stricken communities or join the Peace Corps. Going to Haiti, or in fact any other struggling community does give one a completely different perspective, at least that is what my host’s daughter told me this evening. She spent time in South America, and went to help with the disaster in New Orleans after the hurricane. She said that it makes you appreciate the smallest blessings, and that your home here, no matter how small feel s like a palace. I know she didn’t read about the yurt.
