I always used to say upon returning to the U.S. from a developing country, that it appeared as though they vacuumed the streets and sidewalks. Well I found out this is actually the case! Walking in downtown Minneapolis we saw a sidewalk cleaning machine that was actually vacuuming up leaves, trash and debris. (In Jarabacoa they have a street cleaning crew that works different sections of town early each morning.)
BUSY, BUSY, BUSY
As soon as we returned we jumped on a speeding train and haven't really stopped. This is partly due to our short time in the U.S., but it is also the culture here. Everyone's lives are scheduled and in order to spend time together we have to "get on their calendar." As we hear about our friends and family's lives, we get dizzy hearing the list of activities and commitments they have.
In the Dominican Republic we have a schedule and at times are quite busy, but most of life happens spontaneously and the next item on the list starts whenever the previous item is finished with some breathing room in between. We may have a long to do list for the day, but we don't stress when it gets interrupted by a power outage, or a friend who stops by to talk. Life just flows like a river and we go along for the ride. Sometimes it is a rushing river, sometimes a slow lazy one.
Is one way of life "better" than the other? Probably not. There are benefits and draw backs to each and we learn to live within our culture.
Here are some Yays and Yuks from the kids about the U.S.
Some of the food is yay and some is yuk: Yay for pizza, ice cream, grapes and apples, yuk for canned vegetables and casseroles.
Yay for being spoiled by grandparents, yuk for sleeping in so many different beds as we travel.
Yay for so many parks and grass to play in, yuk for gigantic stores that make you really tired!
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