Lost Boys

There exists in Africa a concept of the lost. I first heard it called this in Obamas book Dreams From My Father, though it is a concept most have seen under other names or contexts. It refers to those individuals who have had the opportunity to travel to the developed world, mostly to attend university, and end up staying. Africa is much too far for the occasional visit, less in physical distance than in the distance referred to when we say “worlds away.” You are forced to choose. I suspect that its not that they purposefully forgot about their roots, never tried to come back, but more that, upon returning, they were welcomed with both open arms and outstretched hands. Expectations, many PCVs understand, can easily envelop and consume you. Obama also talks about racially mixed individuals as belonging to two worlds and thus, ultimately, none. Maybe its similar to that- you will always be identified with the other. When people talk about lost individuals, its usually with a mix of envy and disdain. Its funny- you hear about Indians and Chinese who are educated in the US and, increasingly, return to their native country to practice the profession for which they have been educated in a US university. Their return is often discussed negatively in the press, as though they have taken from some finite pot of knowledge and stolen away with it, ripping us off. But it is just these people who can be the most effective investment in development: they understand the people and the system, and have the education and skills that a great many don’t. I think one “returner” is probably worth thousands in development aid.

It is rare to meet returners in a rural setting. The career opportunities, the foreign development workers (as well as the running water and supermarkets) are only in the cities. I recently met a family of returners who started an NGO here that creates community gardens to supplement diets and incomes. The mechanics of it may not interest you, so I wont go into detail, but its closed cycle process is a thing of beauty. Though they don’t turn anyone down who wants to help out, it is intended for women and youth- women because income generation is crucial to both the gender equality movement here and the precarious situations of women, especially those who don’t bear sons and are thus not entitled to any of their husbands property, and youth in order to both educate the next generation in healthy lifestyles and to “keep kids off the street.” (I use street lightly.) They are a bizarre family for Benin. They dismiss criticisms of the small number of wives and children they have as ignorance, a hard feat considering that many still consider the number of wives you have determines the weight your word carries, the respect you command. Perhaps most inspiringly, they don’t take credit for any of it. They attribute their gender and social equity views to their grandfather, and their environmental and health work to the Peace Corps volunteer they housed 20 years ago, who kept a small garden on their property. These people embody Kennedys message of ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for you country.

Note to readers: I do know the appropriate use of apostrophes and the two forms of its. I just cant find the apostrophe on this God forsaken keyboard.