The Ones You Dont See

While the local people here in the poorer Southern African nations are definitely very poor, they pretty much all seem to be able to smile a lot of the time.  Well that's the way it seems to me as I ride briefly through their world. I am certainly not living "in" their world as I mostly just cruise by on my big motorbike, but I do think I get to see a reasonable spectrum of lifes activities and how the local people behave while doing them... And it seems to me that in amongst the dust and dirt and cooking fire smoke that most of the people spend a good amount of time with smiles on their faces.
And I think a lot of it has to do with a very strong family and community lifestyle as well as plenty of exercise. And for the most part, Ive learned not to "feel sorry" for most of the people just because they don't have all the "opportunities" that I do... That's not to say that I think its at all fair that I am me and they are them, but rather that I have stopped equating material goods with happiness.
My thinking has come around to the state that I believe people are generally happy when they are not suffering from extreme lack of food water shelter and health... Funny, that seems to be what most of the aid organizations have been working for for many decades (I just had to get there my own way in my own time I guess) :)
The only other "need" required for happiness that I see is a functional social environment and no "oppression" from other people. And that tends to fit under the headings of "education" and "political reform" as far as the aid groups go.
So on the whole I agree with the broad outlines of the aid systems.
And here in Malawi Ive been looking at all the people as I ride along and seen that for the most part their "needs" all seem to be filled or at least be well "in progress" so to speak...
But of course I only have a glimpse of their lives, and this morning as I headed back toward the main road after breaking camp I heard the inconsolable wailing of a mother whose small child had died in the night... Malaria... (I stopped and asked what was the cause and that was what I was told)

And it strikes me that of course!, You don't see the sick ones while you ride by on a motorbike... They are at home, bed ridden and dying. Malaria is pretty bad here and many many people die from it every year... The people cant afford to take the daily dose of anti-malarial drugs so they just put up with it... and it kills them, and the early morning lamentation is the only sign of another tragedy.
I tried to talk to a few people about it on occasion but they always seem to go stony-faced and quiet so I let the question pass and move on to other topics.

Yes, not all their needs are met... They still have "the silent oppressor" that wipes the smiles off their faces! :(