Kindness and hope, while two very different sentiments, are very much inter-related. One simply cannot exist without the other. In difficult times, it is the kindness that we show, which makes us hope for and believe in a better future. It makes us believe in humanity and in each other, and sometimes, that is all it takes to make the world a better place.
Olivia Arnold, a journalism student at Northeaster University, felt the same sentiment while reporting from Chios, a refugee camp in Greece. Refugees are a growing concern for everyone across the globe. They may be victims of natural disasters, or of war-torn countries. While sharing a dialogue with these refugees, Arnold realised that even though these people don’t have much for themselves, they were willing to offer whatever they have to others, out of kindness.
These people are mostly from war-torn countries and those circumstances are more than enough to make anyone harsh and selfish. But people in the refugee camps have escaped those disasters and are just looking for a place to stay peacefully. They all have suffering in their baggage, and are just looking for a place to live away from all the destruction and war-fair that they have witnessed in their life.
Greece is acting as a gateway for these refugees into the European countries. It is a country already crippled by debt and is facing extreme economic meltdown. It also happens to be a country rich in culture and history. However, the refugee crisis, in the midst of everything, is turning into a humanitarian emergency. Most of the countries have shut their doors to the refugees and, as a result, the situation in the refugee camps is becoming direr. These camps are running on low amount of resources and have to cater to a large population of refugees.
Despite everything, from their homes destroyed by the war to no secure future, these people in the camps are living as a community and are helping each other survive. These people have gone through similar circumstances and understand each other’s pain, and are there for each other, helping each other through this. That is kindness. They choose to believe that there is something better waiting for them in their future, and that is hope.
Anushka Singh
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