Culture Shock? Not yet...

I have had a couple of people ask me whether or not I have experienced culture shock yet upon my return home. As far as I know and understand, I haven't had any symptoms of culture shock. I think there are a couple of reasons for this. For one thing, I was not truly and fully immersed in a different culture while in Kenya. I had many glimpses of and interactions with the Kenyan culture, but I was housed at Mwamba, a safe place for foreigners, and a place where the staff and other volunteers are used to having people of different cultures around. I worked with Westerners for the most part, or at least reported to Westerners, so didn't have to switch my working style to meet the Kenyan pace. For certain, I could see the cultural differences between myself and the other Kenyan volunteers, but it was not something that I really had the deal with. It was still okay (or maybe just understandable) for me to offend other Kenyans, because they understood I was new there and Kenyans are too kind to point out my indiscretions.

Priscilla, me, and Mathias

Also, I was only there for three months. According to Wikipedia, the "honeymoon" stage of visiting a foreign country, or the stage when everything is still new and exciting, lasts about three months. So I didn't have a real opportunity to become frustrated with the different culture, I was too busy enjoying it. Benjo, who had been there for much longer, was often frustrated by how things function and how hard it was for him to get work done efficiently. I have to say it is nice to be back on roads that have rules and in a place where (for the most part) the police force can be trusted.

But there are things we Westerners can learn from places like Kenya. For instance, I am pretty disgusted to be reminded how Americans and most other Western countries focus so much on material things, and material things that don't matter. We need new cars, the biggest television, the smallest computers, and the exciting video games. Sure, people in Kenya may want those things, too, but here it seems to be the focus of most people's lives. Keeping up with the Jones's. We need to be more focused on our relationships and on our health, and I am not leaving myself out of these criticisms. I hope to remind myself about the other culture I experienced, what they valued, and to use that to make my life more meaningful.

Even being thankful every day for clean water would be a good first step.