The last third of the book, after Tabitha is murdered, exemplifies hope in both Achak's past and present life. By the end of the book, the author's tone also infers that Achak has adapted to change; He has accepted his misfortunes and is ready to move on, but he will not forget his past or the lessons it has taught him. Throughout the these pages of What is the What, hope is demonstrated in all characters. Pg 492, "Tabitha would talk only about the United States, about Seattle, about what she would find there.....Oh, she would laugh, the kaleidoscopic possibilities!" Pg 487; Maria, "I told her what I knew: that girls were invited to apply.....When I told her this, a light came to her eyes, for a moment, before flickering out." Pg 535; Achak, "Whatever I do, however I find a way to live, I will tell these stories." There is hope when Ms. Gladys lets the refugees act in a large city, when the possibility of leaving Kakuma is presented, when Achak hears of his parents' survival and even when Achak speaks to the boy who stole his cell phone. Achak loses people who mean the world to him time and time again, and he receives each blow with a strong will and faith in his god.
There were many joyful and painful moments in What is the What, and I find myself noticing a bit more of all the luxuries in my world. Many parts of the book were touching, such as the passages where people showed Achak love and comforted him as a wandering child, but perhaps the most touching was the part where he was able to comfort someone else. Towards the end of the book, a group of men from Sudan are bracing themselves for departure the next day. The youngest boy appears to be frightened, and Achak lets him know that they are a team and will no longer be ignored. "But we're no longer rain, I said,- we're no longer seeds. We're men. Now we can stand and decide. This is our first chance to choose our own unknown. I'm so proud of everything we've done, my brothers, and if we're fortunate enough to fly and land again in a new place, we must continue. As impossible as it sounds, we must keep walking. And yes, there has been suffering, but now there will be grace. There has been pain but now there will be serenity. No one has been tried as we have been tried, and now this is our reward, whether it be heaven or something less than that". If I ever go through hardships even 5% of the difficulty of Achak's in my life, I hope that I will have someone who can comfort with words like these, and a group of people as resilient as them to carry me along.
You are definetly right Geena, our promblems seem incredilby miniscule and easy to them. While reading your second paragraph, I was thinking about all the hardships that the boys experienced and I wondered what is life like as a refugee in Sudan now?
ReplyDeleteThere hasn't been much a change than in the book. There was a situation in the book where the boys were staying in a village and saw a truck full of food coming towards the town. Dut was greeting the truck with excitement and then saw all the people coming with the truck. He was told by the officials bringing food and water in the truck that Dut and his boys would have to leave. There wasn't enough food to share with Dut and his boys. Not much has changed. Right now in Sudan, refugees in Maban County and all across the Upper Nile state. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency "UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told journalists in Geneva that refugees in camps in Maban County last received food in February and might only be able to access partial food rations this month. 'Recent cases of severe malnutrition among children have us particularly worried at the risks of prolonged disruption,' he said." It is a dry season at the moment, so it is even harder for refugees to get food because they cannot grow it. " in recent weeks, there had been several cases of severe malnutrition among very young children in the refugee camps, which is symptomatic of protein deficiency that can be caused by illness. 'Food shortages could, moreover, lead to conflict between refugees and host communities foraging for wild fruits and vegetables. Already, we have seen tensions over grazing lands and open water sources,' Edwards said." As the rainy season starts, refugees are more succeptable to water-borne diseases and Malaria. Many Lost Boys in the book died of Malaria as well. More refugees travel to other countries and begin to limit that community's resources as well. " Pressures on local communities are also rising with the influx, and help is needed for them too." Many children arrive in very poor condition from malnutrition, diharreah, Malaria, and respiratory infections. They require even more rescources, and as more children like this enter communities it puts a strain on the community's resources. "Since fighting erupted in mid-December between government troops and rival forces more than 204,000 people have fled to Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya. With continuing insecurity and growing food shortages inside South Sudan, UNHCR expects the number of South Sudanese refugees across the region to reach 340,000 by the end of the year." The UN currently seeks $371 million USD to go towards helping these refugees. Also, one can also make a donation to refugees here: http://donate.unhcr.org/?_ga=1.98189151.1199097569.1395811059. I just made one!
If you want to specifically donate to refugees of South Sudan, here is a link:http://donate.unhcr.org/sudan
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