240412, Just thinking...

Still just trying to come to terms with this crazy different world I’m living in.  All the things we take for granted, that other people never have in their life, possibly not even know about or can only dream about. 

I can have a luke-warm shower every morning in the cold and even though I wish the water was warm, I really can’t complain.  At least I don’t have to walk up a hill to fetch a pail of water and make a fire to cook it on if I want hot water. 

I’m kind of taken aback every time when someone comes to me and asks for something, like some of my clothes or my shoes.  I’m just like, no, sorry, I wear these shoes!  I don’t have money to buy myself new shoes every month!  And yet they don’t think it strange to expect me to give it to them. 

And when I visit their houses and see just how little they have, I can better understand why. When the people come to visit me, they think I am rich and can’t believe I stay here alone.  They reckon I have a very big house for one person.  I live in a caravan!!! 

This morning I had to try and explain the concept of ‘luxuries’ to one of my students.  Like, the things we have because we want it, not because we need it.  Most things we as Westerners have are luxuries, whereas these guys have nothing like it.  Sure, they might buy a packet of the cheapest chips on the market now and then, or a 20c sweet, but you’re never going to see them buy a chocolate or perhaps something like Milo, which I definitely crave when it gets cold over here.

Right now I’m thinking about all the stuff that I have, camera, djembe, pois, laptop, ipod, guitar.  Having all these things make me rich in the eyes of the people around me.  They see me with some of my things and reckon, hey this 'umlungu' (white person) has so many new things, she must be very rich.  But what they don’t realize is that all these things are actually pretty old and I got it years back, when I especially saved money for it, and now some of these things are outdated (yet still working) but still looks new (to the untrained eye).  While I bought it second hand maybe 5-10 years ago.  They don’t understand that I actually look after my things so that they still look new after many years.  That seems to be a foreign concept around here.  Anyway.  Just thinking.