While other people may not think of me as rich, I consider myself rich beyond my wildest imaginations.

Hopelessness. Hunger. Fear. Desperation. Sadness. Well, I can go on about the different human emotions I saw in the eyes of people when I visited my country. In developed country like United States and some European countries, people tend to describe poverty as not having the means to get the comforts that the society have to offer, or to struggle to obtain and maintain some human needs. In United States, we tend to describe poverty as not living in the best neighborhoods, eating fast foods instead of dining in three star restaurants, driving a late model used car, using soup kitchens and governmental programs, shopping at a second hand store, and not having enough money to pay for some luxuries such as cell phones and cable. I even read somewhere that poverty is caused by laziness or inability to manage ones resources well.

I bitterly laugh at these descriptions. We should define poverty in a developing country versus poverty in a developed country. When I think of the blessings and the benefits we enjoy in developed countries, I hang my head in shame. One man's meat is another man's poison is the best adage to describe this issue.

In third world countries, people work in tedious jobs from sundown to sunset. Some of these people are college graduates. In these corrupt and so called democratic countries, monies go into the pocket of greedy leaders and corporations. These college graduates end up making less than $200.00 a month. Families forced to sell their daughters to brothels so that the members of the family will survive. Mothers are forced into prostitution, and fathers who became armed robbers or petty thieves.

There are no food stamps or soup kitchens. They will do so many jobs just to provide a meal for their loved ones. Some live in crowded housing, in the fields, under bridges, and make-shift or run down shacks. They eat things that we will not feed to our pets. Transportation is walking through dangerous paths and roads on their bare feet or tattered shoes. Clothes are sometimes hand-me-downs, sacks or even rags from old sacks. Most desperate parents will commit heinous crimes just to provide a meal for their children and elderly parents. There is no Medicare. Health-care is non extant. If you do not have money, you will die from simple curable illnesses. There is no Medicaid or emergency rooms. The so-called "greasy" fast foods will be considered a feast. In some cases, electricity or clean running water are not guaranteed.

So my definition of poverty is not the norm. After every visit to my country I no longer complain about some of the things we consider as signs of poverty. I enjoy my three year old car. I actually stopped complaining about gaining too much weight. I enjoy paying co-payments when I see my family doctor or dentist. I thank God for giving me a good job to pay for a mortgage, car notes, my cell phones, and yes, occasional trips to a fast food joint.

Learn more about this author, Chinazo Echezona-Johnson.
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