Parasites

Often times when staying in another country, especially a developing or third world country, one will become very sick from the water or the food. And, one may even acquire a parasite...it's not that bad, think of it as a gift from your host country. Well, one night, actually our first Saturday in Calcutta I became quite sick...I traced my meals back and realized that I began feeling sick after eating a chicken dish at our hotel. Now, almost everyone had chicken while we were there and it was not my first go at the chicken dish but that did not matter. For some reason that specific piece of chicken did not mesh well with the inner workings of my body. Now, I tell you all this to get to this picture of something we passed every morning on our way to work at Prem Dan.



I show you this not so that you can think about how disgusting it is or how unclean other countries are but so that 1.) you can realize how it is possible for us to get parasites in other countries and 2.) to give you a glimpse of the way of life on the streets of Calcutta. There is nothing wrong with it in Calcutta, they don't get sick from it, just us wimpy-stomached foreigners do. In fact, if we were to bring them to the US and showed them our meat factories (or whatever they are called) they would see an enormous waste of money and time. I bring this up because so often we look at the way others do something and immediately want to fix it and show them the correct way to do it. However, it is only the correct way in our eyes. This method has worked for them for many decades and for us to think that we have all the answers is ignorant and arrogant and is the reason why so many countries around the world despise the US. And, let me just add that when people from other countries travel here to the US they often get sick from our food and water too...it is simply what your body has grown up on and what it is use to...so come on now...let's get off our high horses...we don't have all the answers :-)