Faraway Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR’s international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.
It was my fifth day on a boat in the Mediterranean Sea with doctors from the humanitarian group Without Borders, Report on their attempts to rescue migrants stranded at sea. We left a year ago from the Italian port of Civitavecchia, and in the 10 days on board their ship, the Geo Barents, they saved 258 lives.
These migrants – some entire families, a teenage girl traveling alone, many young men, a mother with her three young children – had begun their journey in Libya, paying smugglers thousands of dollars for the chance to reach Europe. A shot in the dark.
For the Geo Barents rescuers, this work was exhausting, traumatic – and inspiring. They could be at sea for months. The best respite was on the boat’s helipad. The spot served as a jogging track and a place for yoga and meditation. There would be several staff members at once running around in the afternoon.
One evening, the rescuers and I watched these dolphins swim alongside the ship. Their jumps and games in the foamy water made our hearts soar. It reminded me that even in this sometimes cruel world, life and beauty persist.
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