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Hospitality that hurts 
Rizwan Ali's daughter-in-law died in child-birth so he now looks after the new-born boy. Rizwan, 59, has already sold a portion of his land in order to afford the increased burden on his finances of hosting 37 displaced people. He even paid for the truck to rescue them.As a result of sharing everything, Rizwan now fears he and his family may soon face extreme poverty, or even displacement. "I'm exhausted," he says. "We have to play so many roles, host, provider, security, breadwinner." Families taking in hundreds of thousands now face a desperate situation where their hospitality puts their own livelihoods and survival on the brink. Or they have to ask their guests to leave. It will be easier to die than to ask displaced people to leave our homes," says Rizwan. This is the generosity of hosts here in Pakistan. A cultural and deeply rooted code that means you share everything you have with those in need, whoever they are. Says World Vision’s Chris Webster, "I think I had romanticised this [hospitality] ideal before I saw it for myself in Pakistan’s northwest villages. This is hospitality that hurts. It is gritty, sacrificial and hard. It is etched in the faces of those we meet. The root of the word 'compassion' means to 'suffer with'. Pakistan’s hosts are truly suffering with those displaced. They are enduring daily turmoil as their assets are sold at a reduced price. They are giving out of their impoverishment. If we only give of our excess we will not know what it is to suffer with, or to show compassion." For more information |
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