Funerals

Before I left for Malawi I gave several talks about MCV. In these talks I normally gave a couple of staggering statistics about Malawi: There are 900,000 people living with HIV/AIDS, and 800,000 orphans. (Keep in mind Malawi has a population of about 12 million). Having been here for almost 3 months, it is easy to see that these statistics are not exaggerated to generate sympathy. Luckily I have not had to attend a funeral for any friends or acquaintances so far. However, I thought I would share some events around MCV that hit a little closer to home than just statistics.

The first week I was here, Sibale and Faith attended 4 funerals.

The nutritional rehabilitation center at MCV (we all call it the nursery) has lost 4 babies since I’ve been here, and another is in the hospital at the moment.

Of the 121 students at Gracious, 46 are sponsored orphans. This does not mean that there are only 46 orphans at the school. I have talked to many non-sponsored students and found out that they have lost a parent. One new student, Abdul, joined late in the term. I asked him why he joined us so late, and he said it was because his father had just died. He almost started to cry; I felt terrible.

The headmaster and principal have attended 3 funerals this term for students’ family members. (One student lost a sister, one a grandparent, and one a parent.) Aminah, who lost her mother this week, was already without her father. She will now have to move in with her uncle.

I do not know the causes of these many deaths, but they are certainly not all from AIDS. There are many killers here (Malaria, TB, heart disease, etc.). Sibale said he believes the life expectancy in Malawi to be 48.