Today, as I was walking out of my neighborhood Kroger, a man asked if I had a phone that he could borrow. My initial reaction was one of mixed skepticism and borderline scorn. Why didn't he have his own phone? Why was he asking to borrow mine? The individualism with which I've been raised really came out in that moment. But as I handed this man my phone, I remembered the young men in Delhi who lent me, an obvious American tourist, their phone.
The man who asked to borrow mine could have done nothing with it other than make a phone call. So why was I so skeptical when he asked to borrow my phone?
This experience is just one reason why I'm glad to have moved here. It is only through having experiences unlike those I've had most of my life that I can begin to grow and see beyond my privileged upbringing. I can challenge my assumptions and my initial reactions so that I can dig deeper into the realities of life.
The man who asked to borrow mine could have done nothing with it other than make a phone call. So why was I so skeptical when he asked to borrow my phone?
This experience is just one reason why I'm glad to have moved here. It is only through having experiences unlike those I've had most of my life that I can begin to grow and see beyond my privileged upbringing. I can challenge my assumptions and my initial reactions so that I can dig deeper into the realities of life.
1 comment:
I am proud of you!
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