Create Your Own External Purpose In Life

50 Years ago today, I was in Elementary School somewhere in the heart of Africa. The school was old, visibly in need of some kind of renovation. Teachers, parents and local leaders were doing their best to help the kids prepare their future.

My dream, like many other kids, was to study hard, move to High School and University, get a well paying job and become the greatest of the greatest.

I made it all the way to University, but 95% of the village’s kids did not make it. They were condemned to go back to their families and help their parents grow food from a tiny land if they had a chance to have one. Others were seen in their dirty clothes, torn in different places, spending the entire day caring for the cattle.

Susan was a young, beautiful lady, who didn’t make it to High School. She was intelligent, confident and hard working lady. She had the same dream of escaping the hardship of  life in the village but her name did not appear on the list of those who were selected to continue their studies. Until now, I can see her speaking French and English fluently while other kids were just expressing themselves in their mother language because foreign languages were too difficult for them.

Susan attempted to re-do the last year of the Primary School but the Principal refused the idea. He did not give any valid reason to Susan and Susan, as a poor girl from a poor village in the middle of nowhere, did not know what to do next.

She returned to her parents who encouraged her to get married to a man she did not even love. Susan got married young. She accepted the hard labor of traditional farming and the unbearable abuse of her husband.

From High School where I was staying for three to four months, I would come back to the village for vacation and get a chance to walk around. Even though we were in the same class in Elementary School, this time, Susan was uncomfortable talking to me. She felt so inferior despite the fact that I was close to my people. She was always running away from me and from all the kids who made it to high school.Susan self-esteem was lost for good.

50 years have past and I keep thinking about all the kids in Susan situation. What if there was a way to help those kids pursue their dreams in their field of expertise? In the classroom or outside when we had a conversation about our future careers, one would say:” when I grow up , I want to be a singer.” Another one would say, “I want to be a lawyer.” The reality is those kids don’t make it because they are forced to excel in subjects they don’t even like. If they fail the test in those subjects, they lose everything.

What if there was a system to keep young ladies, the most vulnerable of the society, out of harm’s way? For example, Susan was very good at Languages. We would help her pursue her studies in languages from Elementary School to High School to University until she get a decent job. Once she has landed a job, then she would make a commitment to “pay it forward”. She would have the freedom to help one poor person of her choice pursue her dreams and so on.

Makelightyourburden intend to visit Elementary Schools, find kids like Susan and start helping them every step of the way. The selection criteria would  take into consideration the child’s economic situation. As we grow big, we can take more kids in different places.

Imagine the impact, the ripple effect of such project. Makelightyourburden is planning to assist African poor kids make their dreams come true. If you like the idea, please like us on Facebook, comment and share this idea.

A life that is lived for others is a life worth living.

Isidore Goodfellow