One Body
The plane landed, the door opened, and the crowd applauded, I looked at my mom and said “why are they applauding at me”. I was excited, I though I was famous. Little did I know it was cultural for the crowd to clap when the plane reached land. It was a sign of graciousness towards the pilot and his safe landing. Everyone was happy to see their loved one. There was lots of hugs, kisses and overjoy. My mom spotted my family members who were going to be supporting us through this transition. I was only 8 years old when I had to undergo a major change. I knew nothing about this strange place that was to become our new culture, the culture in which I had to adapt.
A Different Environment
Born in Ponce, Puerto Rico and only knowing one custom and one language would make it difficult to adjust. My mom moved here to Pennsylvania looking for a better future for us. She would count on other family members whom would drive her around in search of a job. That became challenging since she could not speak the English language, for we spoke Spanish. This caused her to experience culture shock and stress. Tasks like filling out forms, taking us for a walk was challenging because if we got lost and could not find our way back to the house, we would have to ask for directions, but we could speak the language. We as kids didn’t seem to care at the time because to us it was just a different environment. We could not understand the stress my mom was feeling and the culture shock she living.
What is Culture Shock?
Culture Shock is a sense of confusion and uncertainty sometimes with feelings of anxiety that may affect people exposed to an alien culture or environment without adequate preparation. There were times when I would see my mom cry. She would find herself feeling alone,confused, struggling and doubting herself for the decisions she made. She knew that it would be a major change but staying in Puerto Rico, our outcome could be difficult as far as economical, health and even proper education . There were a substantial amount of lack of in the small island. Poverty was a major issue.The Island is beautiful but people struggle to survive.There is not enough assistance in order to strive. The struggle was real.There would be times when the water companies would control the amount of water being used and people would have to wait till a certain time when they would turn it back on. People would use the rivers as back up when this would happen to take baths. Those that lived there and knew the routine would boil water before this happened in order to cook and feed their families.When it came to visiting hospitals and clinics or emergency room, people would have to wake up early, take a number,and wait until they were called, if the doctor’s work hours were till 5 o’clock in the afternoon, then he would go home and you will have to come back the next day, wasting just about a whole day. When it came down to education there was not enough money for teachers to educate students properly, but those that loved to teach would do it with a passion and felt a satisfaction, which made it sufficient enough.
Culture
My mom eventually was able to get employ and move us into an apartment. We would get accustomed to the socialization and civilization of the state. We had to adapt by changing something about the way we once lived in order to find a stable ground. We had to adapt to a different culture. What is culture? Culture is the sum total of ways of living built up by a group of human beings and transmitted from one generation to another. It shapes our behavior and structures our perception of the world. Culture exists to assist a group of people to adapt to their environment and perpetuate themselves (Genesis 1:28). Each group would need to develop the best survival means suited to their resources and environment. They would need to develop common values, methods, tools, and carefully cooperate together to continue to exist. One must respect the other cultural norms, not forgetting our own and not using any judgement. At the long haul, I was able to adapt to the environment. I now consider myself to be of this state with background believes, norms and principles of a beautiful island in distress. Coming to Pennsylvania did not make me forget about my culture or the beautiful island that struggles with major issues, such as poverty, but yet works together to survive.
Poverty
Poverty is a major struggle in Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rican government has been continuously spending more money than it collects in taxes, in part because it is not required to create a budget like the states do since it is a territory, and also due to a translating error. The error was in the 1952 constitution with a phrase that said “recursos totales” that could be translated into total revenue or total resources, and it was interpreted as total resources. This allowed the territory to have a huge range of options when it came to issuing debt to fund activities, putting it into deeper debt. Another down fault that takes the island into poverty is credit vultures. A vulture fund is a hedge fund that buys the debt of a struggling company, or in this case, an entire country, to make a profit. The companies buy the debt for a fraction of the cost and then make sure that they get paid back the original value of the debt plus interest. These vultures make it difficult for Puerto Rico to get out of the economical endeavors.
In addition, to the economic circumstances that has brought Puerto Rico into the these major struggles, there is hurricane Maria. Hurricane Maria devastated the island bringing the crisis of poverty to whole different level. The 2017 storm had left families, and more than a million others on this US territory, without electricity or running water for what would become months, sowing despair, uncertainty, illness and contributing to deaths. Between that day — September 20, 2017 — and the end of the year, there were 82 deaths labeled suicides by forensics experts, according to Puerto Rico’s Commission on Suicide Prevention, which is more than the 47 suicides during the same dates the previous year.
Biblical thought
God has created us all equal. He puts no boundaries over what He created. Genesis 1:27 says, So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. He made no exceptions. But man has grouped individuals according to their cultures, creating a separation. 1 Corinthians 12:12–30 also tells us, For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body Jews or Greeks, slaves or free and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. …We are all one nation. Revelation 7:9–10 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”There is so much division in the world. We have to remember that we are children of God. Leviticus 25:35“If your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you, you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a sojourner, and he shall live with you. We were grateful of the support we got in order to find our better future. When others come from a different land not everyone comes with the mentally to do wrong or steal from others. We need to understand the circumstances around that persons decision which are difficult one, respecting one another.We must stop putting our needs before others.Their people and countries that are going through the same circumstances as Puerto Rico.When we read the Bible we are looking for directions and instructions concerning the issues of life.The word of God is not silent on the issue of poverty, but rather addresses the issue head on. The Old Testament teaches us that if people shut the ears to the cries of the poor, God will shut His ears when those people call on Him (Proverbs 21:13). For the island of Puerto Rico and other places who struggle Social Structure it creates a set of circumstances that forces some people to live in a state of poverty. These people make adjustments in their world view, lifestyles, and psychological outlook; in short, their culture is to cope with poverty. This culture is passed on to their children. My mom wanted better for us.
References:
https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/Geography/adjust.html
Grunlan A. Stephen & Milton Reimer. Christian Perspectives on Schology. Zondervan, 1982.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/17/health/sutter-maria-generation-children-puerto-rico/index.html
