Hola amigos! Here I am again trying to catch up on these blog posts! To begin, I have a little story for you all from last week!
Here goes!
Everyday I wake up and go downstairs to eat breakfast. Most often I eat by myself because by the time I wake up my host family members are out doing other things...so as I walked into the kitchen I was surprised to find a woman ironing clothes right next to the table. I had never met her before but recalled seeing her outside sweeping the doorsteps once. We made eye contact but she didn't say anything.
I proceeded to get my breakfast until I just had to break the silence. I said, "Me llamo Brittany" and she broke out in a huge smile as she introduced herself. She asked where I'm from, and when I replied that I'm from the USA, I noticed a look of excitement on her face.
Here's a summary of our conversation...but keep in mind that this was all in Spanish!
She said, "Everyone from the US is rich, no?"
I immediately felt uncomfortable... "There are poor people and there are rich people, and the amount of money people have depends on where they live."
"But the US is such a strong, rich country, right?"
"Yes, there are many fortunate people in the US."
"I'm from Romania. I came here 8 years ago. You're the first person I've ever met from the US. This is so exciting for me! Do you have any kids?"
"Haha no, I'm only 20, but I have a little brother and sister. Do you have any kids?"
"Yes! Oh let me get my phone!" She then proceeds to show me pictures of her 3 adorable children who are all under the age of 6.
"How cute!"
"Ah, I'm so sorry! I shouldn't be bothering you. You're trying to eat your breakfast so you can go to class!"
"Oh no, it's okay! I have plenty of time before class."
"I'm just so excited to be talking to an American!"
"I'm really happy to talk to you too!"
Then abruptly..."So do people not like Obama because of his color?"
"I don't have any friends who tell me that they don't like Obama because of his color. I think most people respect the President regardless. There are some people who are racist in the US of course, but I do not have friends or family who mistreat others because of their race."
"Oh yes, there are people who are racist all over the world!"
"Yes, so do you work here in the house?"
"Yes, I've been working for Chario and her mother for years now. I am here Monday through Friday from 9:30am-2pm. What do your parents do?" (Just to clarify, Chario is the name of my host mom and Chario's mother lives in the apartment below)
"My mom cleans houses too and my dad works at a business."
"I bet your mom is really young, right? Like in her 30s?"
"No, my mom is 45."
"Oh really?! I'm 46."
**Somebody shouts from the apartment below--it is Chario's mom asking the Romanian woman to help her with something...
She shouts to Chario's mom, "I'm sorry! I'm talking to the chica from America! I'll be right there!" Then she turns in my direction again and says it was a pleasure to meet me. I tell her that we will see each other again sometime soon and she gives me a warm hug and kisses me on both cheeks as I walk out the door.
After our conversation, I really began to think. To start, I am fairly sure this Romanian woman helps Chario's mother most days, and just so happened to be ironing clothes in the kitchen this one time. From what I can tell, Chario manages the household on her own as far as cooking every meal, cleaning each room, doing the laundry, etc. What I find very different is that Chario cleans my bathroom, cleans my room, and even makes my bed for me every week. She also helps me with my laundry. I would never expect my real mom to do these things for me. Sometimes it makes me uncomfortable because I feel as though I should be taking care of these things myself, but Chario cleans her 24 year-old son's room every week as well. The cultural difference fascinates me, but for now I will simply be grateful for her help! I only have 2 more weeks of this! Haha!
Beyond that, I was so proud of myself for having this conversation entirely in Spanish! Especially in the morning...I am not much of a morning person...
But overall, this conversation triggered some self-reflection. Here I am studying abroad in Spain for 6 weeks...obviously a very fortunate young woman. As I discuss the USA with a Romanian woman who is not as well off as I, I feel very overprivileged. She is simply so excited to talk to me, a citizen of the USA, the most prosperous country in the world. I have never seen someone so excited to talk to an American...especially because I have heard about the "ugly American" stereotype...but this Romanian woman was just so impressed by me and my country!
Moreover, by studying in another country I feel as though I now have so much more insight as to how people view America. Each and every day I am reminded how lucky I am to be an American, but often find myself feeling uncomfortable at the same time. I sometimes don't like telling people I'm from the USA for fear of judgment. I've always been in the majority group, but here in Spain I am a minority. My skin is unbelieavably white (still workin' on that tan), my eyes are blue, my hair is light brown, I have freckles all over my face, I don't dress like the Spaniards...there are so many signs that I am a foreigner. I will never know what people are thinking when they look at me...and it simply makes me uncomfortable. Sure I have met MANY very nice, helpful people here in Spain...but now when I return to the US, I will be even more open-minded about foreigners. While stereotypes are prevalent and it's easy to judge based on first glance and nationality, I have a new appreciation for those who have the courage to leave their country.
To wrap up, I feel as though an experience like this allows me to self-reflect and to examine my own culture...and while there may be some things about Spain I like more than America...and while there may be some things about America that I like more than Spain...at the end of the day I am a fortunate American woman simply doing my best to remain open to new people, new ideas, new cultures, and new experiences. With that, adiós for now!
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