Springtime has arrived, which means that many of you will soon find yourselves humming along to the sweet tunes of the ice cream truck as you scrounge for your pennies and dash out the door to indulge in a pre-dinner orange push-up.
As I mentioned in a previous blog, it's not the ice cream trucks here that belt out music-box versions of 90s pop-music hits, but the water trucks. (Namely because there are no ice cream trucks in Haiti.) Though I've been told they have a small repertoire, the only song I've ever hear the trucks play is Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On."
But not anymore, my friends.
The past few days, the over-played theme of Titanic has been strangely absent. What has taken its place? The song from Napoleon Dynamite.
To be completely honest, I'm not actually sure what song they're playing. But it reminds me of the song from ND, which makes me think of the movie and smile, so I'm going to let myself continue thinking that's what they're playing.
I have to say, this is a welcome change.
-L
(And you thought this was going to be a soul-searching post!)
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Friday, May 16, 2008
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
On being rich (and continuing with MCC)
This past Sunday afternoon, I met up with a couple of friends down on Champs de Mars (Haiti's equivalent of the National Mall) to engage in one of my favorite past-times: people watching. After a while, one of my friends turned to me and asked, "Have you eaten yet today?" I hadn't, nor had either of my friends, so they decided it would be a good idea to go buy some fried spaghetti. I told them to go ahead without me. Looking concerned, they offered that if it was a problem of money, they would simply buy a bit extra and we could share. I thanked them but refused, explaining that I didn't feel like eating just then.
The conversation that ensued basically went like this:
Part of the awkwardness of working with MCC is that you end up spending time with the "have-nots." And just when I start to feel sorry for myself for having chosen to volunteer with MCC, rather than the UN (UN volunteers receive $3,000/month), conversations like this occur.
MCC doesn't give its workers a lot of money, but it does give us enough to eat each day. Granted, with the rise of world food prices, our meals may increasingly consist of rice & beans or popcorn, but even that is more than many Haitians can afford. Life would probably be a bit easier if I spent my Sunday afternoons in the upper class suburbs, rather than sitting Champs de Mars. I probably wouldn't be so painfully aware of my riches. But, then, what would be the point of being in Haiti with MCC?
-L
The conversation that ensued basically went like this:
Friends: That's crazy. You have money. You're hungry. But you're not going to eat?
Lindsay: Yeah, I'll get around to eating later.
Friends: That's crazy. If you don't have money, it's understandable that you skip a day or two of eating. But if you have money, you eat.
Lindsay: But I've never had a day in my life when I didn't have money for food.
(Awkward silence)
Part of the awkwardness of working with MCC is that you end up spending time with the "have-nots." And just when I start to feel sorry for myself for having chosen to volunteer with MCC, rather than the UN (UN volunteers receive $3,000/month), conversations like this occur.
MCC doesn't give its workers a lot of money, but it does give us enough to eat each day. Granted, with the rise of world food prices, our meals may increasingly consist of rice & beans or popcorn, but even that is more than many Haitians can afford. Life would probably be a bit easier if I spent my Sunday afternoons in the upper class suburbs, rather than sitting Champs de Mars. I probably wouldn't be so painfully aware of my riches. But, then, what would be the point of being in Haiti with MCC?
-L
On being poor (and continuing with MCC)
A good friend once said: all I want is to be able to afford a bagel and coffee once a month.
I wish I could say that I share that sentiment. But really, I'm not so good at being poor. It's not a particularly enjoyable state to live in. I tend to feel grumpy when friends drive to restaurants to indulge in wonderful middle eastern food, and I sit at home on a Friday night eating rice & beans for the 18th time that week because I have neither money to pay for a restaurant nor transportation to get there. In my previous, salaried life, I dealt with this situation as any good American would: I whipped out my credit card and ordered-in sushi while updating my resume to find a better-paying job.
But, for better or for worse, I have chosen to eliminate such options for a time. A couple of weeks ago, I sent MCC an email that said something along the lines of, "I'm feeling a bit apprehensive...but I'll stay with MCC Haiti for an additional year."
Shortly after, I started having dreams of hoping into Calvin (my royal blue Honda Civic) and dashing off to Dave & Busters (an adult Chuck-E-Cheese, complete with skeeball). That dream doesn't even make sense. I hate Dave & Busters. (My only time there, I was forced to give a speech and play pool with my company's entirely male sales department.) I'm pretty sure, though, that the dreams are my subconscious way of admitting that I'm not terribly keen on the idea of remaining poor for another year.
I can't entirely explain why I made this decision. In the day to day, Haiti isn't a particularly fun country to live in. But it didn't feel like the right time to say that I'm leaving.
So, for the next year I will continue the process of learning to give up a salary, learning to give up luxuries, learning to give up options.
-L
I wish I could say that I share that sentiment. But really, I'm not so good at being poor. It's not a particularly enjoyable state to live in. I tend to feel grumpy when friends drive to restaurants to indulge in wonderful middle eastern food, and I sit at home on a Friday night eating rice & beans for the 18th time that week because I have neither money to pay for a restaurant nor transportation to get there. In my previous, salaried life, I dealt with this situation as any good American would: I whipped out my credit card and ordered-in sushi while updating my resume to find a better-paying job.
But, for better or for worse, I have chosen to eliminate such options for a time. A couple of weeks ago, I sent MCC an email that said something along the lines of, "I'm feeling a bit apprehensive...but I'll stay with MCC Haiti for an additional year."
Shortly after, I started having dreams of hoping into Calvin (my royal blue Honda Civic) and dashing off to Dave & Busters (an adult Chuck-E-Cheese, complete with skeeball). That dream doesn't even make sense. I hate Dave & Busters. (My only time there, I was forced to give a speech and play pool with my company's entirely male sales department.) I'm pretty sure, though, that the dreams are my subconscious way of admitting that I'm not terribly keen on the idea of remaining poor for another year.
I can't entirely explain why I made this decision. In the day to day, Haiti isn't a particularly fun country to live in. But it didn't feel like the right time to say that I'm leaving.
So, for the next year I will continue the process of learning to give up a salary, learning to give up luxuries, learning to give up options.
-L
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)