[Reverse] Culture Shock

Reverse Culture Shock- a term used to describe the feelings (of surprise, disorientation, confusion, etc.) experienced when an individual returns to his/her home country

So I’ve officially spent 90 days in Haiti! Since I don’t have a visa, I have to leave the country every 90 days.  I decided to return home to spend a few days with my family and friends. Here are some of the things I experienced that caught me off guard- some of them are reverse culture shock... others are just funny.

     The airport in Fort Lauderdale had carpet. I don’t remember the last time I saw carpet.

      There was a wide variety of salad selections in Ft. Lauderdale… and I knew I could eat every single piece of that salad without worrying about the aftermath it could cause.

      People were speaking English… and they weren’t all white. I could actually hear and understand about 5 different conversations around me. I’m used to tuning everything out because I can’t make sense of it all. This time it was like information overload.

      There was a WATER FOUNTAIN in the airport. Cold. Purified. WATER. A non-stop supply of it. After staring at it for about a minute or two, I went up to it, pressed the button, and drank it until I was not longer thirsty. Then I held the button down and just watched the water shoot out. I didn't even care that I was wasting water… it was great!

      The weather was really stinkin cold in Atlanta. Like heavy jacket cold. I hasn’t even gotten light jacket cold in Haiti at night. Definitely wasn’t prepared for that.

      See, the power goes off in Haiti often. We’re fortunate enough to have an inverter so we can keep power for a pretty long time after city power has shut off. However, if the water runs out and we don’t pump more water when city power is on, then when city power shuts off we will have no water to bath with, cook with, or use to wash dishes. There’s no telling when city power will come on again. We’ve gone at least two days without having water. But, in America, the power stays on ALL THE TIME! I could shower with hot water ALL THE TIME! In fact, I took a 45 minute shower at 2 a.m. because I could. People don’t understand how blessed they are. We have a reliable source of energy! Oh, it’s so great.

      You can’t punch for “blan” (white people) in the US…. Because they’re everywhere. I punched my brother when he was driving and he was kind of insulted, very taken aback, and looked at me like I was out of my mind. Sorry, Mo. It won't happen again ;) 

      Not every black person speaks Creole. In fact, hardly any of them do. I had to watch myself because it’s instinct to automatically switch to Creole when talking to a black person, especially at the airport and restaurants. 

     You can drive above 30 mph. You can drive without hitting potholes. You don’t have to worry about motos weaving in and out of traffic or cars randomly stopping in the middle of an unofficial lane. The roads were smooth and clean. We drove fast…. So fast. Sixty miles per hour felt a little too fast.

      So on Sunday, I walked in late to my church. The lights were dimmed and the worship band was playing. I walked into the auditorium to see 2,500 people with their hands in the air, singing and praising God. I almost had a panic attack. First, to see 2,500 people in one place was just overwhelming. Second, to have a body of believers that large is rare. Third, to see all of those people praising God was one of the most breath-taking sights. Our God is big. Words can’t even describe how big.

       I went to brush my teeth and couldn’t find any purified water. I was starting to freak out- I didn’t have a car, nobody was out on the town to bring me water, I needed to brush my teeth but couldn’t find any water…. It's terrible, that feeling you have when you can’t get something you need and your breath stinks, too. Then I saw my little brother walk past me and just stick his toothbrush under the faucet. “Oh yeah, I’m in the States, I can do that,” is exactly what I thought. We brushed our teeth together and it was a great bonding experience. 

       Wal-Mart, baby. Everything under one roof. Pure genius.