It was an average evening. I sat in the common room with my friends. We talked. We laughed.
There is a boy named Peace who lives in the spare room of the mission house with his little brother. They live there now because their father passed away and their mother is no where to be found. The two young men come hang out with us if they complete their homework before it gets too late.
This evening, Peace and I ended up in our own conversation about differences between the United States and Lesotho.
Often, in these kinds of discussions, I end up feeling bad about Americans. I realize we are shallow, money hungry, and lonely. But Peace showed me something I had not considered before.
I will try to replicate his comments to the best of my ability:
“Americans pay attention to detail. I’ve seen you guys in here writing poetry or drawing pictures. I see you reading so many books. You find beauty in everything. You take time to look at things like the sky or the mountains. Those things are just normal for us, but you think they are so beautiful. The other day I saw two people watching a lizard on a rock. We, in Lesotho, don’t care about lizards. You also play with the dogs a lot. Dogs are not played with here. They are just animals, but you have so much fun with them. Americans also care for people. Like when someone has a small injury, you go, “Oh No! Lemme see. Let me help you. Here is a bandaid. Are you okay?” Here we just say that it is a small cut and do not care about it. You think the world is beautiful and you love people. It is so weird. How can you care so much?”
I’ve never thought about the oddity of playing with dogs, watching lizards, or sketching a mountain. But I suppose these pleasures are not world wide.
Obviously, not all Americans have such appreciations for life, but many of my friends do. My friends back at home and here on the race find joy in every day experiences.
Even though I am living in a mountain village, surrounded by mountains, I still find myself pointing out the scenery to my teammates.
I laugh when the puppy runs over to play with me, and I wince as I pick up a child who fell from the swing.
I take a deep breath every day when the sun sets, and I love to see the artwork my friends have created.
These are all little things in a person’s life, but I shall no longer take them for granted.
