by Alga

Created on: October 14, 2008

It was cold, gloomy and the sidewalks were covered with snow. You could hardly see people walking, but in supermarkets' parking lot, shopping carts where scattered everywhere and people were getting in and out of their cars bundled in heavy clothing.

I had the audacity to walk around and familiarize myself with the new environment which I was in, tried to learn and cram every new details into my head, but my wish did not go as planned so, I returned home frustrated and stressed.

I turned on the TV in sort of getting some entertainment, navigated through all the channels but nothing caught my attention, as I had no clues of the culture, nothing seemed to sink in so, I turned it off.

I opened my living room window in hopes of watching something interesting, but what I was viewing was alot of snow heaped on the side walks, cars lined up to cross, and traffic lights turning red, yellow and green. Once again, that did not cheer up my soul, so I slammed the window shut, and headed to my kitchen table.

Then I picked up the phone receiver with the intention of calling my aunt. Before I dialed the number, I debated with myself whether to call her or not. What I was wishing to happen was to have a friend come over to my place and drink our so-called traditional coffee boiled in a clay pot (jebena), and chit chat, but this damn phone receiver wouldn't provide me with such kind of entertainment, so I put it down. I dragged myself to my bedroom and slept depressed.

I was born and raised in a warm country, Eritrea where people dressed in fine clothing and walk freely, and a place where "it takes a village to raise a child" - a child would be taken care of or disciplined not only by parents but by any adult in the neighborhood as well, so blessed to grow up bathed with love and attention of parents and community as a whole.

My childhood was full of fun. I remember, trying to make a beehive by making holes in a small tin, and filling it with bees which I captured from our back yard garden. I used to get stung by bees and my face and fingers got swollen, but I never paid attention to the pain as I was having fun. Playing marbles, capturing birds and climbing trees were also my favorite activities.

In my entire life, my entertainment was based on interacting with friends and nature rather than watching TV or playing video games and that nurtured my capacity to internalize love, courage and diligence.

I was always fascinated by how our cultural backgrounds, social values and environment

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>