Canadian Privilege

Nepal

Garbage lines the streets and the air is thick with pollution.  Children play in grubby clothes and wild dogs wander in search of food.  Aside from tourist hotels, very few locations show any signs of beautification and almost every vehicle seems second, if not third hand.  The water that does trickle down the river reeks of sewage and garbage. 

In the Kathmandu Valley and the more southern region of Birtamod, this is the only life they know.  Pedestrians constantly try to outmaneuver vehicles while attempting to cross the street (they don't have many working streetlights due to constant power outages).  The air is dirty and many people wear face masks to improve breathing.  Potholes and eroding shoulders make roads a challenge to navigate.

Many who complete an education in Nepal will have to leave the country to find work due to the extremely high unemployment rate.  The line up at the Passport office in Kathmandu (the only one for the country) starts early in the morning and those who can afford the fees sit out in the hot sun waiting for their turn.

The rural accommodations are basic according to Canadian standards, though you're assured they are some of the best in the area.  Hot water for showers in Birtamod is non-existent and drinking water comes only from a plastic bottle (easily discarded & added to the growing mounds in the streets).  Being fair-haired and pale skinned, you're stared at, pointed at, photographed and touched without your permission. 

And then there's life in Canada...
I don't live in a fancy house or have the highest income (though it's about average for the country).  I don't drive a brand-new car or wear designer fashions, and yet compared to many Nepali people, I'm rich beyond their dreams.

I may get seasonal allergies, but the air I breathe is pure in comparison to theirs.  I have only to turn on the tap for a hot shower or hot water to wash my dishes.  There is beauty all around me and the streets look pristine comparatively.  I live near the largest natural supply of fresh water in the world and I can drink the tap water without fear of illness.

Power outages are a result of storms, wind, or ice and occur so rarely that the event is often reported on the daily news.  Education is a right, not a privilege and while the unemployment rate for young people in our country is at an all-time high, there are jobs.

The size of my apartment is almost 2x as big as the Habitat house we just built for a family of 6+, and I live on my own.  I am protected from all the elements and don't go to sleep wondering if I will wake up to wet mud floors.  If I get sick, my province has a health plan.  I have the option of having medical/life insurance either through my employer or an independent company.  No such thing exists in Nepal.  If you get sick, you need to afford care at either the government or private facilities.  The cost of simple antibiotics may be more than a day's pay.

My passport is accepted in numerous countries and no one questions whether or not I should be entitled to one when I apply.  Given the multicultural community in Toronto, no one stares or stares.  Unsolicited touching is considered incredibly impolite and may even be considered a form of assault. 

Coming Home
In my experience, one of the biggest challenges that comes with a Habitat for Humanity build in a developing country is coming home.  I see the hardships of others who will never know the easy life I come home to.  I get to escape the pollution, sickness, and harsh reality of the average Nepali....they never do. 

Seeing and experiencing this can be challenging in a way other than feeling guilt & being grateful for what I do have.  It's hard to explain to others who haven't been there and I also find myself frustrated when my friends in Canada complain about things that seem, to me, to be trivial.  It feels like I'm stuck in the Hunger Games series and after having experienced a bit of the hardships of the districts, I now find myself in the Capitol surrounded by excess. 

I know this feeling will pass, as it did after my first trip to Zambia.  I crave the relief of guilt as much as I dread it.  I don't want to forget that others experience daily hardships while I live in comparative richness. 

Canadian Privilege.   Despite the country's economic battles and the existence of poverty & strife, life here is still better than many other places on this earth.  How lucky was I to be born here & live in this country?!  I hope I never forget to appreciate its wealth and beauty.