Learning about communal societies

I love having conversations about culture with the mentors at Starfish because by learning about other cultures I think you can learn more about your own. I once asked Isatou why there is such a scarce homeless population in the Gambia. Walking through the streets of Milwaukee, San Jose or India I was used to seeing people experiencing homelessness everywhere. Homelessness has become such a daily scene that not seeing homelessness was strange — that says a lot about how much room there is for improvement. Anyways, Isatou started explaining the Gambian culture of taking care of each other. I knew that the Gambian culture was communal but I thought that stopped at saying hello to strangers on the street or paying surprise visits to your friends. I noticed that mothers were less paranoid of where their baby went because they were confident someone would be taking care of them. I heard of young boys moving out of their home to one down the street or across town just because they like the people and the atmosphere of the house. There are not people sitting on the streets of the Gambia because everyone has a home. If you are Gambian, then you have a home. You can go to your neighbors as ask for food if you are hungry. If the money maker of the household loses his job, the family will be taken care of one way or another. Family and friends aren’t just there to give company for celebrations and losses but you live together and you make sure that everyone around you is happy. It is normal for a Gambian to be walking around their neighborhood and greet at least 20 people not including the hoards of kids that are always playing in groups through the streets. The people and their greetings have created such a social atmosphere in the Gambia. I have loved exposing myself to such a different culture and learning more about how different people live across the world, which has helped me understand why different people think and act in different ways.