The Difference Between Here and There: Starving for Hope

Working full time in an America ER again has brought to light a glaring difference from my work in Haiti last year. I was actually surprised at some of the things I've seen in the US that I thought were mainly in the third-world-- this fall, there's been scabies, lice, and even a case of malaria (that patient was from India and had recently moved to the US-- no worries, no outbreak of malaria that I know of in SC! :). I saw a few things in Haiti that surprised me, like type 2 diabetes. But by far the most prominent difference is the number of suicidal patients that I've seen. Haiti= 0. US= 4-5 per ER shift.
In Haiti, I knew several stories of attempted homicide in our small town-- usually from vindictive wives or family feuds. The method of choice tended to be poison from the jilted spouses or machetes for settling family vendettas. But I never saw a patient who was suicidal. Never.
In the US, sadly, I know of several stories in our small town of people who have committed suicide, and I see these patients with their eyes full of despair daily in my line of work. Yet, I do not personally know of anyone who has been murdered. Not one.
What is the difference?
In a country where people struggle daily to eek out a living and provide food for their families, does the very struggle to survive give people in Haiti purpose and hope? Does it give them a will to live? Is it the fact that they have family and loved ones to provide for that urges them to keep living daily? With such high infant mortality rates and low life expectancy, has death become such an accepted part of their life view that they savor their short time on earth while it lasts? Is there a stronger sense of faith and belief that there is more to life than what is seen that makes life worth living?
I don't know, but I wonder. Perhaps those issues are what drive well-fed, well-educated Americans to contemplate suicide.
Do many Americans lack purpose and hope? As we as a society get further away from manual labor to survive (growing our own food because we have to, or our income directly linked to what produce we can see in an outdoor market), I wonder if we tend to feel like our job is less vital, both to society in general and our family in particular. Do we feel less fulfilled in our paper-pushing jobs?
Is lack of strong family ties a factor? Perhaps in our increasingly isolated society, we have lost the strong sense of family (all 9 family members under one roof) that Haitians have. As we log more hours on facebook, twitter, and in front of the TV, have we lost our sense of flesh and blood community and connection?
Have we lost our view of God as a nation? Does the commonly accepted view that when we die we just disappear and cease from our struggles lure people to just end it all?
I dunno. I know that I don't have all the answers or understand all the reasons for homicide or suicide. But I do know that there is Hope. There is Love. There is Purpose and Life.
I believe the God of the universe created all things and has a purpose for each life. He has a Reason for creating each life and placing each one in his unique sphere of influence, both for work and in a family. I think that living in community, with your family and in a local Body of Christ (the church), fills the need for connecting that is in each of us. I believe that there is more to life than this one that we see. There is eternity after the end of this life, and it can be spent in ceaseless union with God through His Son's sacrifice on the cross. And because Jesus Christ rose from the dead and lives today, He is Life and can fill each of our days with Life.
Mother Teresa once said that there is more hunger for love and appreciate in this world than for bread. Please think of those you come across today-- the man who bags your groceries, the lady at your bank, your coworker at the desk next to you-- and consider their need for purpose and appreciation. Would your smile maybe share some hope with them? Could your compliment remind them that they are appreciated? Would it maybe open the door to share the love of Christ with them or lead to opportunities to talk about purpose? Could it maybe make a difference in their lives? Could we collectively decrease the suicide rate in the US?
I saw a lot of hunger in Haiti, and I knew many people who only eat once or twice a day. I think hunger is just as prevalent in the US, only in a much different form. Please consider sharing Love and Hope with the people that you see today; you may not know who is starving today.