A few days after I got home from Uganda, I was standing in the check-out line at Safeway while simultaneously checking my phone and reading gossip magazine headlines. When I got to my cashier, I said "paper," looked back down at my phone, and then a few minutes later said "thanks," and walked away.
Suddenly I realized that I never would have behaved like that in Uganda. While I was there, I felt acutely aware of my Whiteness, of my privilege, and of my ignorance of their cultural norms, so I made a conscious effort to be deferential and respectful. When I checked out at a store, asked for directions or met someone new, I made eye contact and tried to be as gracious as possible.
As a guest in someone else's country, I have a certain responsibility to be courteous, but it made me wonder why I don't give my own countrymen the same level of respect and engagement. I want to do better at that.
Something else I realized once I returned home was how conscientiously observant I was in Uganda. As we drove along the highway or walked through a neighborhood, I noticed every detail: the structure and pattern of the buildings, the shape and color of the trees, the design and construction of the roads, the smell and presentation of the food, the language and layout of billboards.
My mind rarely wandered because it was so focused on seeing and processing this new environment. I was fully present.
At home, my surroundings are so routine and mundane that I do not notice them anymore -- even though I live in a stunning part of the country. I want to practice using my Uganda eyes; I want to be a tourist in my own life, so that I notice and appreciate the uniqueness and beauty around me.
(Photographs courtesy of trip participant, Kiera McLane)
