A Real Beauty To Be Found

By Sam R. Volunteer in Senegal

Two months ago, I arrived at the airport here in Dakar, Senegal. I had previously heard stories of other missionaries being welcomed with big signs or parties and I had honestly hoped that such would not be the case. Thanks be to God, I was met by a tall French guy and a Ukrainian girl who were clearly already tired from waiting for me in the Senegalese heat. It was good, a simple welcome.

In fact, such simplicity is probably the greatest gift I’ve been given here. The simplicity of which I speak is not that of tangible things or material goods. Multiple times throughout the day, I find myself stopping to look around. I am overwhelmed by the simplicity of the moment.

Just a few days ago, Tanguy, a French missionary, and I wanted to meet our neighbors who live down the street in an apartment building. None of us knew knew who lived there, so we set off. The entrance to the building was hidden behind an auto repair shop and the building was in pretty rough shape. Upon arriving to the third floor of the building, I saw a group of men and women sitting in the dark hallway smoking and eating watermelon. My first thought was that it did not look inviting. However, as we had set out to do, we approached and greeted them. Before even asking our names, we were both handed massive chunks of watermelon and given a place to sit. For over an hour I came to know these people in my broken Wolof and French. I am amazed by the simplicity of this moment. There is real beauty to be found here.