Americans Walk Fast (and do other ridiculous things)

I’ve been hanging out with a bunch of Americans, and I miss Tanzania. The only times you would hear "God Bless you" so many times in a day from Americans is if you were having a sneezing fit. I miss the interesting habits like keeping guinea pigs as garbage disposals and pigeons as decorations for the house. And the way everyone holds up their fingers and says “this many” instead of voicing the number of eggs he wants or wives he has. I miss the kids wondering over the weird material growing on my head (nothing gross, just my hair), and counting my toes to make sure I had the same number as them.

I may have taught them how to make a solar purifier, but they taught me the fine art of carrying things on my head. I may have shown them how to make a simple compost, but they taught me the importance of the kanga... it’s a skirt, now it’s a shawl, now it’s a diaper, now it’s a backpack!

And Americans walk fast. They don’t pick their noses in public. They don't greet everyone they meet, spending an hour inquiring about the health of each family member. You can’t judge someone’s gender based on whether they’re wearing pants or skirts. They don’t intersperse a lot of noises in their speech, and they tend to look at you funny if you do.

I’m a stranger to my own culture. But it’s ok. I just have to learn to walk all over again.