The other day, my sister asked me if I could wash off her daughter's bottom after she was done sitting on her potty trainer (which is hilarious that they use, because no one uses a toilet!). I looked at her and said, no. She expected me to take my hand with water and scoop poop off of her child's behind! What she doesn't know is that I don't even touch my own poop. I use toilet paper and will continue to use this amazing product during my time here. That is just one of the things I refuse to give up.
Another thing that is customary here is to eat out of the same dishes. I usually get my own dish because they serve me a fork, but sometimes there is toh to eat and toh is eaten with one's hands and you dip the toh in a sauce. Luckily for me though, they give me my own sauce- dipping bowl. But, sometimes they ask me to come eat food out of the same bowl with them and out of my own cultural upbringing and health consciousness, I am extremely cautious. I'm much more of a clean freak here out of fear of getting sick, again. However, sharing out of the same bowl means a lot here, it creates a bond between the group. It is also customary to ask visitors to come and eat with you. In American culture, you usually only share dishes with family members and close friends. If someone is unfamiliar to you, it is a subconscious thought that that person is dirty. You don't know their background, so you don't know what kind of germs they have, but as you get to know them and learn their habits you may or may not trust to eat with them. That does not exist here and I find that is problematic, for me, especially when people do not regularly wash their hands with soap. I hope to work together with my uncle and homologue to help ameliorate this situation. Soap isn't expensive, so it's not an issue of cost, it's an issue of behavior change.
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