Thanksgiving season is upon us again, and we should all be grateful we’ve made another year as well as we have. The comments below are shared with an effort to share how other people view our American lifestyle (the one to which we are so accustomed, and take advantage of without thinking). Here are a few quotes I found in an article by Stacy Johnson in ‘Money Talks News’: Quora recently asked” What facts about the United States do foreigners not believe until they come to America?” What followed was a compilation of things that make our country unique, provided by those who experienced it when they or their relatives came to the United States for the first time. 1.) Our priorities are different - “At least until the 1980s in Guyana, dog food was not a thing that existed. Dogs got table scraps and mostly were outside. They are surprised by how in America, people actually avoid feeding their dog “people food.” “Biased media: Political bias, economic bias, geographic bias, etc. Clear misuse of freedom of speech. If all I hear is inaccurate news, my perception of the world will be grossly inaccurate. How hard is it to realize this?” 2.) We have some weird rules - “Coming from India, I found it amazing the way traffic behaved without any intervention from traffic policemen. Just everyone follows the rules.” 3.) We’re both friendly and trusting - “The niceness of strangers. Nicest people in the world, even in New York which is supposed to be one of the rudest cities in the world.” “Every cashier will greet you with “How are you today? You find everything okay?” with a smile, and you’re quite thrown off the first few times.” “There is no culture of philanthropy in Russia and many view American philanthropy either as a waste of money or as some intricate plot to get some additional benefits.” 4.) Family life is different - “Many Americans would rather stay in a hotel, or at least the Americans we know. Guyanese people (or at least my family) think it’s strange that you would pay money when you have relatives to stay with, even if you can afford it.” “Many children, even in well to do families, work in fast food, car washes and do a lot of other things to get money and it is not an embarrassment.” “The children here are allowed to do whatever they want, without corporal punishment, and are largely disrespectful to their elders. In Philippines, there were four generations of one family living under the same roof — sometimes the same bed. Here, children leave home and put their parents in nursing homes.” 5.) We have it pretty darn good - “I’ve noticed that most Americans roughly have the same standard of living. Everybody has access to ample food, everybody shops at the same supermarkets, malls, stores, etc. I’ve seen plumbers, construction workers and janitors driving their own sedans, which was quite difficult for me to digest at first since I came from a country where construction workers and plumbers lived hand to mouth.” “I don’t think there’s any such thing as a car seat in India. And parents carry their children mostly, most people can’t afford strollers here.” “How well elderly live, even those on SSI and Medicaid. How many services are available to them.” “My Russian in-laws were shocked when they found out that we get packages left on our doorstep and no one steals them. They were also shocked by buffets. My father-in-law told everyone back in Moscow, “No, really! You just pay to enter!” “The typical supermarket has at least a hundred varieties of frozen pizza, 50 brands of trail mix, etc. I was just astounded by the different kinds of products available even at small gas station convenience stores.” “The cashier gave me an empty cup when I ordered soda. The concept of virtually unlimited soda refills was alien to me, and I thought there was a catch to it, but apparently not.” “Why individual houses are so large? We always get into discussion that house is not just a shelter, but also a manifestation of one’s financial achievements.” “My garbage disposal eats better than most of the children in the world.” If these real comments, given by real people, do not give us reason to look at ourselves and our circumstance and call ourselves blessed beyond what we deserve, I don’t know what will. HAPPY THANKSGIVING WEEK, EVERYONE! May this one be a good one to remember!
Posted on: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 22:58:20 +0000
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