Conversely, Guatemalans will ask how much your left shoe cost you without a second of hesitation. Living in such a money-obsessed, impoverished community has been difficult and bitter, and at the increased exposure to the question "How much?", I find myself fretting for my personal financial future.[...]
Posts Tagged ‘poverty’
Pennyless
Pets are not people, not more worthy of life than humans. I distinctly remember experiencing reverse culture shock to an extreme when I came home for a quick vacation during my teaching stint in Honduras. Fresh off the plane, I went to one of my brother’s lacrosse games. I overheard person aft[...]
If I Won the Lottery Tomorrow: Why Everyone Should Volunteer
I think it should be mandatory for every university degree to include a volunteer component, whether locally or internationally. Why? I have recently returned to my home in Canada after eight months of working at a Costa Rican microfinance organization. Most of my friends have university degrees and[...]
“Let yourself be defined by your actions”
Cajón del Maipo, Chile: no internet access, no phone service, no distractions of city life. Every class of VE Global volunteers gets to go on a weekend jornada, or day trip, to this quaint little ranch in the mountainside outside the city that is rented out by an adorable and generous hippie co[...]
Everybody Say Lúcuma: A Follow-Up to “Buying a New Jacket While Surrounded by Poverty”
In response to my post “Buying a New Jacket While Surrounded by Poverty,” I received a number of insightful comments, both privately and through La Vida, on the question of how much personal spending is reasonable to help the underprivileged, and whether this should increase when working closely[...]
Two Questions I Don’t Like to Answer
Every once in a while somebody here in Solentiname will ask me if I believe in God. This has become my second least favorite question to answer. My very least favorite question, however, is how much my digital SLR camera costs. After I realized that my camera alone (excluding my lenses) cost as much[...]
Volunteer Spotlight: An Intimate Look at Villa 31 in Buenos Aires
Emily Anne Epstein is a photographer and writer who, after spending a year working in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is currently based in NYC. Her interest in the lives of those around her has led her to seek out work with Habitat for Humanity, Americorps, and other non-governmental organizations to supp[...]
5 Surprises About International Volunteering: #5 – We’re All Connected
Over the last several weeks, we’ve been writing about the things that we didn’t quite expect as international volunteers: disorganized organizations, language non-barriers and living with less. This week, we’re getting into the biggie – the most profound “surpriseR[...]
Help Keep the World Amazing: Blog Action Day 2009
Rather than saving all of our dreams for “later in life” or for “the right time,” we’ve reorganized our world so that we can be living a life that aligns with what’s most important to us. As we talk about a lot, we’re most interested in seeing the world, exp[...]
