It's all about perspective
Every day I am surprised or caught off guard by things I never thought about because it's the "norm" in America. I may be in a situation where how I react or respond to something seems strange or even inappropriate to everyone around me, while at the same time the reactions of others seem "weird" to me. So basically, a day in the life of a PCV in Rwanda!
A few weeks ago I was chatting with some of the women at the health center who come in for their babies weight checkups and they started asking me a bit about America. This one woman asked me if American mothers carry their babies on their back. I told her that in general they didn't, they used strollers. Because strollers are unheard of here (maybe in the city but definitely not in the villages) I showed them a photo of it on my phone. The women proceeded to say the kinyarwandan equivalent of "Omg!"and laugh at the photos of babies in strollers. It was interesting to see their reactions and expectations about differences between Rwanda and America. They were surprised to hear that women don't wear igitenge in America and that there were farms there as well.
When I've talked to some Rwandans about America they often have the impression that everyone is rich and no one is poor. I've had many coworkers ask me if there is poverty in America and when I explain that there is, they don't believe me. I know I'm not that only PCV that gets slightly agitated when they encounter this response, but in reality it's a very logical reaction. When you put the American perspective of poverty here, oftentimes it's of a different caliber. You can be poor in America but still have running water, a car, and electricity. But at the same time you could not have any of those things. In Rwanda, there are a lot people who don't have any of those things aren't considered to be poor, because they're common resources people lack here. On the other hand the richest people in America are the ones who are publicized internationally, so they'll be the ones people overseas will hear about and reference when America comes up.
Another difference I argue with my roommates about everyday is drinking water while eating meals. My roommates (a nutritionist and nurses) tell me everyday that it's bad health for me to drink water before or during meals! They always try to make me wait until after I'm finished eating to drink water. They say I drink too much water, meanwhile back in America I was told the opposite. This is just one of other health related differences that exist between Rwandan and American culture, but is a very strange one to me at that! I've just decided to embrace their looks of slight disappointment whenever they see me chugging water!
Last week I was working (hanging out is more of a correct term for that day lol) at the nutrition center when I see a young girl come in with a baby on her back. After greeting her I asked her a few questions and found out that she was 12 years old and had to miss school that morning to bring her baby brother in for his weight checkup, because her mother was too sick to come. They live in the next sector over, so she had about an hour walk to the health center. I spent the rest of the afternoon chatting with her and playing tic tac toe, as she was waiting for the community kitchen meal to be ready. At some point she told me she needed soap to wash clothes but didn't have any money. At this point I knew that if I gave her the money for soap she would always ask me for money, so I decided to go to the store with her and buy her the soap. I saw her again this week, and she asked me to buy lotion for her and her siblings because her mom didn't have the money to get it. Her skin was very dry and I couldn't say no so I went with her to the store to buy it. As I was about to say goodbye she asked me for more money. I told her that I couldn't give her money but could help her out sometimes. Although I still feel a bad about not giving her that money one of the difficulties PCVs and foreigners in general have is whether or not we should give money to people, directly buy them the things they need, or avoid it in general. It's definitely a hard thing to balance, but I think for me it's a lot harder saying no to a child especially in those circumstances.
In other news, I'm just about 1 month into site, and all is going well with settling in and working at the health center! I've officially started my research project, got a kinyarwanda tutor (who also knows French, and Swahili!) and have managed to convince the youths of my village that I do in fact have basketball skills! I also celebrated my 23rd birthday this week, which consisted of brochettes, fried plantains, fanta, and beer thanks to my roommates!
Until next time,
Vanessa
Photos from this week:
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