Reflections - Maria Kells

First impressions of Bangladesh were of a shale-grey sky; dense, hazy, burnt air; shanties and lean-tos and closet-sized shop-sheds crouching against walls; dust and horn pumping roads covered by a teaming swarm of dented, over-loaded, creatively wheeled vehicles somehow squeezing and oozing their way forward; and people. People everywhere! Imagine walking out of the exit of the SCG at match-end, there were that many people….everywhere. It was over-whelming and one’s feelings of individuality and pathetic “specialness” began quickly to fade on seeing such a mass of humanity. I felt demoted to a mere prop on “the stage”. Then a young Bangladeshi noticed me! The look on this beautiful child’s face was…..shock! His mouth gaped and then this blank stare froze his features. I smiled, waved, put on my most-friendliest face but there was absolutely no reaction. Self descriptions such as “an expensive but unusual prop” then entered my mind!        

This vacant reaction usually greeted us whenever we stepped into the enterprising, vivacious life on the streets of Bangladesh. In the hospitals where we worked though, all barriers disintegrated and the Bangladeshi people opened themselves to us. There was touching, hugging, laughing, questioning, body-talking, crying, comforting, loving and always, so many, many smiles. The huge array of emotions from grief and pain to unbridled joy illuminated the faces that surrounded us.  I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to hold hands with the team and with so many people in Bangladesh through the Aussie Bangla Smile Project and even though my mind is still trying to find a place for me on that elusive stage, my heart blushes with my memories.

Maria Kells