Ecuador is eye-opening, and not always in a good way. At the beginning of my trip I found myself turning away from sights I saw that made me uncomfortable. Throughout my trip I have been making an effort to actually see that discomfort. To see it in the world and see it in me. What is it that makes me uncomfortable?
I have been traveling the last little bit with Aliye and Adam, and we have been joking at our first world problems. We only have twenties and nobody in town can break a twenty. BOTH of my pairs of shoes got stolen. I felt annoyed to resort to sewing my friends old flip-flops back together with dental floss, but felt chagrin at the idea of buying some flowery, pink, plastic sandals that they were selling in the small town. I reflect back to my journal and realize how much of my past months pages worth of feelings and ideas are completely self-centered. `I am tired of moving around so much and living out of my backpack` `I am tired of eating so much rice and beans.` `I couldn´t sleep well last night, my pillow was too giant and there was no fan.´ (My journal also consists of drawings, daily deliberations on how the male species act, and the occassional To-Do list which usually the only checked off items are napping, yoga and lunch).
It has made me think a lot. I am tired, but so what? Today I got the opportunity to see a country and a culture. I walked around in the hot sun as a choice. I was not the man selling coconuts at $0.50 a piece, nor was I the little girl that had to stay home from school so she could sell apples on the bus. Rice and beans do get old, but if I had not been treated to some food poisoning a time or two I am sure I would have gained ten pounds down here. I am not even close to starving, any time I am hungry I can eat. My biggest monetary concern is not whether I have enough to feed myself but if the restaraunt with be able to break my twenty dollar bill.
First world problems can be a pain in the ass, but I hope they also provoke you to think and reflect. And maybe one time don´t worry about breaking that twenty but leave it for the kid who is trying to surf on a log because he cannot buy a surfboard. Or the family who is feeding you a full meal for $2 because that ensures that they can buy enough rice to last their family another week. Give them some first world problems to worry about.