Reflections

For the last 3 days, we have been without any Internet here in the medical clinic and its been pretty quiet overall.  It is during these quiet times that I find myself most homesick as I think about being here and not at home where I belong.
I have been thinking a lot, with all the turmoil I see on the news; Greece, the Occupy protests, Libya, about the world, life in general and how being here has changed my perspective.   One of the things I will take away from this experience, that I wish I could share with others, is how bad things can really be.  I know plenty of people back home who lament about not being able to afford a vacation, a new/bigger TV, new shoes or the newest iPhone.   I would ask them to take a moment to think about what it might be like not to be able to afford food or shoes for their children, not to have electricity to warm their homes in the cold of winter or clean water to drink.  For the women I know to consider not having the right to go to out of the house alone, not to attend school or have a job, not  speak their mind, what it might be like to have to cover themselves, head to toe with the equivalent of a bed sheet or not to choose their husband.  For the parents I know to think about the anguish they might feel to take their sick baby to the hospital only to be told that there is nothing to be done, because of a bare bones socialized system where the many higher level treatments are only for those with money to either travel abroad or bribe someone.
What I hope is that the images I have seen here will remain burned in my memory, even if faded.   And that when I feel sorry for myself because I want something new, something better I will take a moment to pause and be glad  for what I already have: my education, my constitutional rights, health, food, safety, opportunity; glad to be in America, even with her flaws.  


"It is easy to take liberty for granted, when you have never had it taken from you."