My Adventure and Experience   

  “Welcome back!”

Two words that eventually changed my entire perception of service and purpose.

The man who spoke carried my suitcase into a large building, already overflowing with bags. Our team brought a bountiful amount of luggage this year – over forty duffel bags, all filled with medicine and donations. In fact, my carry-on luggage was so heavy and overpacked, so I had to leave out many of the donations I received. As blessed as we were to make another successful trip to Senegal, I still could not believe I had returned.

The missionary base remained almost unchanged, and there were new faces. Despite missing some people this year, the morale and high spirits were unwavering. I saw a new playground and swing set in the sand. Elana, the pastor’s daughter, had grown up, as well as two pups born last year and their mother.

One of the missing faces was my mother’s. She was the one to bring me to Senegal for the first time, to open my eyes to the world of poverty, to encourage me to live a life of service beyond borders. While both of us are diligent planners, life does not always work in our favor. In the week before the trip, my grandpa had fallen alarmingly ill whilst battling cancer. My mother had to cancel her Senegal trip. While I flew to Senegal, she was flying to China at the same time.

As difficult as it was to see her grief, I so badly wished she could have come on the trip. In March 2023 when I was sixteen, I enjoyed the comfort of her company and guidance on my first trip to Senegal. I was intimidated by the cultural shock and diversity of language – French, Portuguese, Mandarin, English, and Wolof. Combined with the circumstances of being seventeen years old: the impending doom of college decisions, high school graduation, and a credit score, my mother’s sudden absence symbolized a new growth and transformation on my second trip.

 

 

 

For the first few days of the trip, we busied ourselves with organizing medicine and other donations, as well as preparing to set up clinics and catching up with our old friends. We danced, sang, and ate together as we reconnected and recounted our experiences from the past year. My friend Vicky and I toured the African Renaissance Monument – a 170-foot monument in Dakar commemorating Africa’s history and goals for growth and prosperity.

On the fourth and fifth day, we split into smaller teams and traveled to rural areas outside of Dakar to set up our clinics. The nurses and doctors treated patients directly, while youth volunteers did patient intake and triage. The youth also scribed, organized and helped run the pharmacy, and assisted doctors. In the later hours of the day, when we were less busy, we played soccer with the children, gave out candy, sang Gospel songs, shared Bible stories, and printed out pictures for them to keep. By the time we loaded everything back on the bus to leave, we were exhausted yet fulfilled, knowing we made a meaningful difference in the lives in these communities. The children crowded our bus and waved as we pulled away. Their smiles and laughter lingered with me, even to this day, as I write about it all, ten months later. To me, these children are a reflection of my name, a poignant reminder that joy is a choice independent of circumstance. Even in the face of hardships, service and connection have the power to transcend borders and barriers to bring hope.

     

 

On my sixth day, I joined a smaller team of surgeons that partnered with a hospital to perform several OB/GYN surgeries. I shadowed a myomectomy – a surgical procedure that removes non-cancerous tumors from the uterus. The patient was young and hoped to have children, but these tumors made it difficult for her to conceive. To my surprise, she was conscious at the beginning of the surgery, with a small curtain draped below her neck. In America, patients are given general anesthesia and are fully asleep. As the surgeons began their incision, the patient began to cough. I watched with very mixed emotions as her small intestine spills through the incision with every cough. I remember my only thought at that moment was, I sure would not have seen this in America. The anesthesiologist gives her more medicine to stop her from coughing, and the surgeons adapt and continue the procedure. They remove seven fibroid tumors by the end of the day.

Unsurprisingly, I noticed many differences in healthcare operations in Senegal, compared to American hospitals, that I did not see on my first trip. (I had not gone into an actual hospital last year; I only helped at the missionary base and pop-up clinics we set up.) The security in the hospital was comparatively lax; the layout of the hospital was very open and outdoors. There were also cats sleeping all around the hospital – on old beds, machinery, and couches. Outside of the operating room, the environment felt nowhere as “sterile” or clean as in America. And, as I mentioned before, the scarcity of resources led to patients not experiencing the same expectations of care as in a first-world country, such as not using general anesthesia for some surgeries.

            

 

On the last day of the trip, we flew from Dakar back to New York City. I reflected on all the children that I played with, took pictures with, ate with, and sang with. Throughout this trip, I learned that growth begins with uncertainty, at the end of comfort. I realized that returning to Senegal transformed me in a way that, albeit difficult, was a great privilege. I developed a greater gratitude for the fact that I experienced and witnessed hardships that many people at my age do not even know of. My mother’s absence pushed me to take more initiative and set aside some passive undertones that I had the first time I traveled here. I do not regret committing to this cause, and am signed up to return this year, and every year during my time in college.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I hope it inspires you to support our cause or take an interest in finding some way you can invest your life to help change the world as well.

The Role of Youth in Global Change

One theme I noticed in both trips to Senegal is the impact of young people in inspiring and achieving change. Yes, physicians are inarguably the most important volunteers for our trips, but it is important to consider how to empower future generations to solve global issues. In 2015, the United Nations established seventeen global goals to achieve by 2030, intended to holistically improve quality of life around the world. These Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) require innovative thinking and interdisciplinary collaboration. The creativity, adaptability, and passion that young people possess make them powerful catalysts for this change. In the new age of technology, youth are also increasingly connected, even across borders. This global connectivity is a great place for the seeds of awareness and collaboration to take root. Among young people there tends to be a ripple effect in inspiration and taking action.

Our voices, energy, and dedication are essential to building a better future. I strongly encourage any young person still reading this article – thanks, by the way – to find at least one United Nations Sustainable Development Goal that piques their interest and commit several hours a month to finding ways to improve the world through this goal. You don’t have to travel internationally to find places in need, nor do you need an extensive education or resources to begin. Just find an issue that you have a particular interest in – there are plenty of sub-goals under each SDG – and find a productive way you can invest in it. It may seem insignificant, but our collective potential and passion has the power to spark real results. By taking small actions, you are joining part of a global movement towards a safer, healthier, and more just future. Yeah, the challenges in front of us are vast, but the consequence of inaction forever outweighs the impact of effort. The world actually does need your voice, your energy, and your commitment to build a better place to live.

       

 

 

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If you are moved and willing to support our African ministry, you can give your donation by:

-Writing a check to Africa Cries Out and sending it to Jun Xu, MD, 1171 E Putnam Avenue,      Riverside, CT 06878 USA. You will receive a tax-free receipt recognized by the US Internal Revenue Service.

-Zelle: Africacriesout@gmail.com.

-Online credit card donation https://africacriesout.net/ (note that credit card company will charge a handling fee), you will receive a tax-free receipt recognized by the IRS.

 

Our team solemnly declares that 100% of your donation will be used for the people of Africa, and we do not have a penny of administrative fees.

Jun Xu WeChat: jun9174343767

Email: Africacriesout@gmail.com

Public WeChat account: LifeExploring (人生天路)

Webpage: https://africacriesout.net

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Editors in charge: Cao Juanjuan, Zhang Kun

Translator： Wei Peng

English editor: Xi Wang

Editor: Doris Cruz