It had been a few weeks since I began my second year in medical school at the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus, and I was already feeling the heat. Fresh school demands and its "routines" weighed on me. I could say little for the rest of my mates, but I was on the road to an academic burnout. I knew I had to deal with it as everyone else did. I just prayed for a break.
At the same time, I began hearing about an upcoming workshop and outreach for university students. It turned out that Hillpoint University Centre, Enugu, where I usually go to study, had partnered with Uhere Study Centre, her counterpart in Nsukka, to organise this leadership workshop and outreach. They called it L.I.F.E. (Leadership, Impact, Friendship, Encounter). The LIFE workshop was arranged as a medical outreach in a local clinic and school outreach/support for the public secondary school in the Iwollo community, several kilometres from Enugu city. For me, I liked the idea because I was going to break free from the heat of medical school for three days. However, I was not certain if a workshop was "the opportunity" I had prayed for.
Days later, I was on the bus that Tuesday evening with others from Hillpoint, headed for Iwollo. "Well, I better be impressed," I thought. The trip was calm and delightful for the most part. The four wheels of our camp bus seemed to glide, even on road bumps. The good air conditioner also helped, I think. The only interceptions were "somebody's two cents" on a number of topics raised on the road trip, which included discussions about the scenery, travel tips, and personal anecdotes that added to the overall enjoyment of the journey. I was getting a good sense of the whole situation. This might just turn out good.
I had hardly taken it all in before we met with a green entrance gate next to a sign post. Its hinges swung open to unveil where I would call home for the next few days. As we drew near the main house, it looked like what belonged in a magazine. Indeed, a sight to cherish. The compound gave one the feeling of being in a park, with the grass neatly trimmed, as if for a ceremony. Iwollo Conference Centre, Ezeagu LGA - the signpost had read. But what were we even here for? Well, it didn't matter much to me. I was forty kilometres away from an impending burnout, far enough from the heat. I was also pleased with what I had seen. The rest would be fine. My next plan was to make the most of this break from life. However, the lessons for this LIFE workshop came rather too soon for me.
That evening, we took a stroll in the compound and were shown the cemetery built in there. We were told about each of the members of Opus Dei who had been buried in it, about their life of service and how this helped them live their vocation happily. At that time, a new idea began to stir up in me. I was also there, not at the graveyard but at this workshop to serve others too.
The next day was prep day. We prepared for the medical outreach. It was to take place the following day at Iwollo Health Centre, the rural outpost of Niger Foundation Hospital in Enugu city. Guided by two medical doctors, Dr Michael and Dr Onyedika, who had accompanied us on the trip to the conference centre, we practised the activities with one another: how to run rapid malaria tests, check blood sugar, measure blood pressure, and carry out basic eye exams. We also simulated the health talks we were going to give to the villagers. Knowledge was shared mutually around the room, some of us with a background in medicine, like me.
By the morning, about fifty villagers were already waiting at the outpost. Once we arrived and started, time slipped away. We listened and diagnosed malaria in children and high blood pressure in adults and heard elders describe their aches in hesitant bits and pieces. We broke down advice into everyday language on topics like personal hygiene, blood pressure management and antenatal care matters. At first, the villagers seemed reserved. Soon enough, they opened up, expressing their curiosity on a range of topics. We did justice to a few and got unstuck by our senior colleagues on some others. For me, it showed we were making a mark.
Working from 10am to 3pm, even though alongside three medical doctors, it was still a tough one. By the end of the day, as one would expect, we were exhausted, having attended to over a hundred patients. There was a deep satisfaction in my tiredness, the same feeling I had standing next to the flowers in the cemetery.
The next day, we were at the Community Secondary School, Aguobu-Iwollo. Here we spoke to senior students about life beyond graduation, urging them to imagine futures not constrained by their environment. They listened as we described the journey through school, and then we listened to them as they shared some of their predicaments too. We had pooled some funds ahead of time to give gifts and offer them some support. Two students had earned a session's scholarship from us. Another one, Joel, with a fine talent, showcased his work, and we offered to buy him a drawing set to nurture the gift.
As a close-out, we decided to put their school field to good use for a soccer match with them. The whistle blew later that evening, and these boys showed such resilience and coordination, unmatched on the pitch. One would not wonder why they won us with an impressive goal gap, one that I can’t mention in writing. Safe to say, winning was not exactly the goal for us. We played with them what felt like the game of our lives to build a lasting connection, and that was what we achieved. Losing this time felt fulfilling, and yet again, I got the same satisfaction.
Our final morning was brief. We took a group photograph and boarded the bus one more time. As the compound receded from my view, I understood that the workshop had offered more than practical training. Amidst the meals, get-togethers and topical debates- from football to faith, life and vocation- we got to understand each other better and were more concerned about knowing the truth than winning arguments.
I like to say that I fell in love with the villagers who kept saying "jisie ike!" (keep it up!) while we carried out tests on them; with the smiles of the school children as they listened to an ex-worn-out medical student encourage them about life; with their tears as they rolled down when we offered gifts; with their skills on the pitch; with the other colleagues I shared the beautiful scenery at the Iwollo Conference Centre with; and with my newly found closeness with Jesus in the blessed sacrament.
The L.I.F.E. workshop was more than a break from life; it was the start of a new one. I learnt that to take a break, in its most fulfilling sense, can be to make out time to serve others. This has given me a new sense of purpose. One that will carry me on through the heat of medical school and beyond.