When BBK got back from the states and right before I left,
she gave me a copy of the book “Kisses from Katie.” It was a very inspiring
auto-biography about a young woman (my same age in fact) who has given up her
fairly affluent and privileged life in the USA to live in Uganda. Her story gives
you that “warm, fuzzy feeling” inside, encourages one to see that compassion
and generosity still exist in the world. In many respects I feel that Katie and
I are living somewhat parallel lives, but her testimony challenges me. I have
given up a many luxuries and opportunities to be here; however she has given up
more I have. I work at the orphanage 24/7; however she works harder than I do.
Reading this book has encouraged me to take more initiative, to never settle for
good enough but to constantly strive for more.
I finished reading the book during an 8 hour layover in
Zurich, and so as I was preparing my imminent was anticipating similar
reactions to returning to USA as Katie had felt each time she went back to the states.
Yet, I did not experience the intensity of culture shock or the longing to go
back to Africa or any of the feelings that Katie relayed in her book. There
were only two specific instances while I was in the States that I encountered
“reverse culture shock”. The first time was the morning after I arrived back in
Vancouver, and we drove up to a Dutch Bros to get some coffee. Our order was
taken be a typical bubbly, bleach-blonde barista, who accosted us with caffeine-induced
enthusiasm. To say that I was blown away might have been an understatement; it
was however a superb reintroduction to the American customer-service standards,
which are nonexistent in the Tanzanian lackadaisical society. The other moment
of “culture shock” that sticks out in my mind was a shopping trip to Winco with
my mom. I was going down the produce aisle, and was astounded at how large the
food was! It might sound silly, but I was surprised the most at how big red
onions. In TZ, we usually have onions just a little larger than a ping-pong
ball, and our green peppers are not even half the size of the ones I saw in the
grocery store. I suppose I had forgotten that most of the food we purchase in
America is grown with the aid of chemicals and often is GMO.
It’s so fascinating how living in a different country, especially one
that is third world, will change a person. Growing up, I never thought much
about purchasing organic foods, and I never intended on having a garden of my
own. But now nearly everything I consume is organic from the market or its fresh
potatoes, corn, cabbage, and carrots that we harvest from our farm and garden.
It’s definitely made an impact on my perspective of the food I eat. Another way
in which I’ve changed that I had not fully realized until when I went back to
the USA, was that I am so much more relaxed than I used to be. One year ago, I
was incessantly tethered to my smart-phone. It was my lifeline; my connection
to everything and everyone for professional and personal contacts. My Droid
provided constant access to email, texting, pictures, and of course Facebook. Coming
back to the States from my life in Tanzania in which I use my antiquated Nokia phone
approximately once or twice per day, presented a huge reality check. I realized
that in my previous life I was consistently rushing around, attempting to
manage my hectic work schedule, with my demanding personal life. On a daily
basis, I would schedule some sort of activity into every hour, which would
leave me persistently rushing around attempting to make it on time. This caused
me to be in a perpetual state of stress. I was simply high-strung. At the time,
I didn’t mind it, and in fact I believed that I needed the pressure in order to
perform as I was an avid procrastinator. However, during my visit back home this
past month, I realized that I have chilled out - a lot! I am no longer stressed
out or wound up. I suppose that “Tanzanian Time” has had a profound impact on
me, and I like it. Each day is so much more enjoyable when I don’t have to run
and rush around, instead I can literally take the time to smell the roses and
relish every moment, no matter what I am doing.
