i call it a lesson learned

So I wasn’t sure how to talk about this in my blog, or if I was even going to talk about it at all, but some time has passed now and I thought it may be constructive to reflect on it.

Last weekend a group of international students went over to our professor’s place for a housewarming party and afterwards some of went to a nightclub that was down the road. As we left the club, the girls filled up all the cabs and so a friend of mine and I started walking home. As we approached a gate on the edge of campus we were mugged by four local men, who stole a digital camera, cell phone and cash from each of us.

They had used violence to subdue us, and as we stood up after they let us go, I noticed that my friend was bleeding from the neck. He wasn’t sure if he had seen a knife, but they had certainly used some sort of weapon to keep his resistance to a minimum. The cut was small, and the bleeding had stopped, so when we got back to campus we parted ways.

Upon inspection, I had avoided any noticeable injury, so I went to bed. I was awakened the next morning by administrators from the international office and they took me to file a police report. I learned that my friend had been taken to the hospital the night before to receive HIV prophylaxis. When the skin is broken in such an attack in a place where the HIV rate is high, it is standard to give drugs to prevent the contraction of the disease.

I had never been mugged previously, and I spent the following few days ruminating on the experience. My gut instinct was wishing I could have fought back more. Even the police officer who toke my report asked me why I didn’t just beat them up because he thought I looked fit. They had attacked me from behind, however, and I never got a chance to do more than struggle from the ground. Now I realize, though, that it was wise not to fight back because they had weapons they were willing to use and I could have lost more than just my camera and phone had a weapon been drawn.

When I found myself stressed about losing the camera and phone, a wise person provided comfort and counsel: “I hope what they took from you makes their lives better and I’m grateful they didn’t hurt you.” It was the frame of mind I had needed all along. If you really think about it, those material things don’t matter so much. In the long run, what does a cell phone or some cash really contribute to life? Certainly their worth is temporary, even superficial. That which truly adds meaning to life comes from much deeper sources, and this experience has renewed my appreciation for this other kind of richness.

The boy I was with that night is still on an antiretroviral regimen, and the side effects have rendered him sick and tired. I ask that your thoughts be with him as he recovers and I will provide an update on his status when I can.

I can only hope that this account can prompt safety and awareness in others if they find themselves in a similar situation, and if someone is or becomes a victim of such an attack, may my reflections lend an ounce of comfort as he or she recovers.