Sunday, February 19, 2017

Perspective

I used to think the worst sound and sight in the world was my alarm clock, rudely waking me up blinking the hour to leave my warm and comfortable bed. What would follow was the beeping and constant stop and go of Boston traffic. As I sit here in my hammock, with a little over four months left in Guyana, my perspective has changed greatly. Traffic is just a minor nuisance in the grand scheme of life. What I know I will always remember as the worst sound and sight to me, after my experience in Guyana, is the emphatic anguished screams and starving practically dead eyes of the animals here. I hear this sound pretty regularly, from the comfort of my hammock or bed, animals getting hit by speeding drivers too busy to slow down. Riding my bike to school or walking the streets of New Amsterdam, I see dogs with ribs sticking out, covered in ticks and mites so bad their backs are like leather. It stops me in my tracks and makes me cringe. Some dog trying to get a scrap of food, getting pelted by a rock or kicked. Some cat getting it's tail pulled. Seeing the body of a puppy, undoubtedly following its mom across the road. I empathize with this poor animal and my heart breaks a little inside whenever I see or hear their plight. An alarm clock has nothing on this.

The obvious difference between persons who value pets and those that don't is not values and morals... it is economics. It is also important to recognize and note that it is not Guyana alone that struggles with animal care; I saw it in Chile when I studied abroad and in Mexico on vacation. I have heard other Peace Corps Volunteers at other posts, or friends who have traveled outside of the United States, lament about the plight of animals in said developing country. It is not that persons in developing worlds are apathetic to the struggles of animals, it is that they can't afford to be empathetic. I see the disparity in economic distribution even within Guyana. The very fact that the grocery shops in the Capitol and in the major towns carry cat and dog food, shows me that there is a vast discrepancy in financial situations between the major towns and country areas in Guyana. There are even several pet stores in the Capitol that sell “foofoo” pet clothes and toys, that makes me wonder... where are the animal lovers in Guyana that are buying these things? Clearly, they have a customer base in the Capitol, so these people do exist. These people can afford it as most of the economic activity is centralized around the Capitol and major towns in Guyana. 

I live in a country area and must travel into the nearest major town to purchase my animals' food. When I travel home, the taxi drivers always give me funny looks as I lug out the bag of dog and cat food, calling out to my dog or cat to let them know I am home. Walking my dog on a leash around my neighborhood causes a commotion and is such a foreign concept to persons, I often hear as I walk by, “crazy white lady.” Traveling with my pets to take them to the vet in the Capitol, I have received my fair share of questions and comments. I am constantly explaining to taxi drivers and travelers that my dog is a pet, not a random stray. She will not bite you and she has all of her vaccinations (although I often clarify for safety sake [as everyone seems to know where the “white girl” lives], she won't bite you now, but if you come in my yard she will bite your head off). Never had I had to explain why I was walking my dog Freckles (RIP my little furry friend) in my neighborhood back home.

When I told some members of my community about spaying my pets to avoid overpopulating my home and neighborhood with animals I couldn't take care of, they looked at me puzzled. The response I got was, “anyone would be glad to have a puppy or kitten like mine- why would I do that?” My response naturally was, there are so many starving, neglected and abused animals here, if anyone wants one all they need to do is pick one out of the hundreds digging through trash piles. Perplexed, they shake their heads saying, no, people would want a dog like yours. What they don't realize, is that Bora and Phoenix were once street animals, covered in fleas and ticks, starving and begging. There is nothing special about them that makes them different from the next street dog or cat; it is how I treated them that made them different in the end. It made them playful and goofy because they didn't have to devote time to finding food and begging. My cat loves to snuggle and sleeps in my bed every night because it is her home. They both come when I call their names or yell out “breakfast” to my cat because I am their pack leader. Their coats gleam because they are vaccinated and bathed. They don't look like typical Guyanese stray animals because their bodies haven't been decimated by parasites, numerous pregnancies, or starvation. They are loved and cared for, so this is why they are who they are today.

Conversations always seem to lead to the same place when I talk about my animals. I am asked if I am taking my animals home. I uncomfortably say, “yes.” It is uncomfortable because I can see the wheels turning in their head, undoubtedly thinking, “Oh wow! These animals get to go to America and get their “visa” and I can't even afford to leave my region.” It is always a humbling conversation that makes me reflect on the circumstances of my life. Had I been born in a developing country, where would I be? Who would I be? Would I be judging this crazy white lady who spends precious money on her animals and lets them sleep in her house at night because she doesn't want them to be lonely?

It can only be my American background from a family that cherishes its pets that makes me care here in Guyana. Let me rephrase that, it is my economic background as an American that has afforded me the opportunity to allow me to care. When I see a stray, I see what could have been. If only someone gave him or her a bath, fed it some food (regularly), taught it to do tricks, gave it a kiss on the nose, vowed to protect it from life on the streets. But that is not the reality here in Guyana, or in the majority of the world for that matter. It can never be the reality until the human condition improves. I struggled for a long time, and still struggle to understand. But given the economic situation of most Guyanese (or citizens of the world outside North America and parts of Europe), who must often times struggle to put a hot meal on the table for their children... how can they be pressed to feed an extra mouth? It is a struggle to survive and a thieving cat or dog is taking away from the family survival. I am certainly not justifying animal abuse or neglect... absolutely not. Just because you live in poverty does not give you a free pass to be cruel.

Part of living and integrating into another culture is to understand where another person is coming from. One must understand their values, their education, their opportunities (or lack thereof), and their beliefs. All of these factors led them to be who they came to be today. Change can only happen when one understands why something is the way it is. It is so easy to sit on your pedestal and condemn without taking the time to verify facts or motivations.  I can understand how people choose their family over a dog or cat. I don't like it, but I must recognize that were I in the same situation, I am certain I would choose feeding and clothing my child over a dog. I don't have a quick fix answer to change or improve what is happening to animals in developing countries; I wish I did. Until things change in the developing world and poverty is eradicated, this is how it will continue to be because family always comes first.

I know Guyanese are a loving, vibrant people with the capacity to love animals. I have seen them interact with my cat and dog, at first a little shy, but then growing to adore them like I do. My students eagerly ask about my cat Bora or dog Phoenix, or the kittens I rescued over the school vacation. When I tell them that my animals were once “homeless” like the puppies and kittens on the street, I get incredulous looks of disbelief. Time and again, I tell them that they can find an animal on the street and take steps to make it like mine... but the chance that they will actually do this is virtually zero. These kids don't need to worry about providing for a family yet. They don't worry about work or buying groceries or soap... but their parents do. It is why I found a litter of cats strayed on the side of the road. Everyone saw them, knew where they came from and who dumped them in the ditch. They heard their hungry screams the day and night they were abandoned until I picked them up. The simple fact was, no one could take them in- not out of indifference, but because their priorities were to their families. One could easily judge this person without understanding their motivations. But we are all human; I can't imagine the torment the person went through as they abandoned those kittens to their fate, knowing full well that separating them from their mother would mean death for these kittens. Perhaps they drove them to the next village to spare their children from having to witness sweet little balls of fur shriveling to nothing, suffering and starving. Perhaps they did it out of fear that their children would learn too young that life is unfair and there is so much pain and suffering in the world for those in poverty. Until these parents are able to not worry daily about feeding or providing for their families, they will continue to hear the cries of these animals and be able to do nothing.

Being an American in Guyana with this situation is definitely a challenge. My eldest brother, Peter, when discussing a situation that affected our family that I wanted to change, told me before I left for Peace Corps two years ago, that I needed to recognize that there are some things that are completely out of my control and I can only do so much. Applying this theory to Guyana: what was I going to do when I got to here? Feed every child, adopt every animal, change every school system? It is simply not possible. All a person can do is what they can do. Perhaps knowing me, he recognized that I am an overly empathetic person and would struggle with what I would see or hear not only here, but in life, and this led him to utter those words of wisdom to me.

His advice has guided me over the last two years. What can I do? The simple answer is, just because I can't save all the animals or feed all the kids here, doesn't mean I should give up and do nothing. While I can't provide for these kids financially, I can certainly love all of the kids I come across in my community. I can show them kindness, support and that I care about them and their future. I can give them my time and listen to them when they want to talk to me. I can give them a hug and bright smile (even if I am struggling myself that day) in the morning when they run towards me as I walk down the walkway at school. As to the animals, with my two pets I can lead by example, showing that there is another way. When I see kids pelting a cow or dog I can tell them that animals have feelings. I can set food outside my gate when I have leftovers. I can bathe and cuddle the puppies that wander into my yard when I have the resources. I can answer the questions of persons asking me why I treat these animals like I do. It isn't much, but it is one act of love towards these puppies and dogs than they knew previously. Unfortunately, volunteers have adopted animals that succumb to the elements, natural and man made, here in Guyana. When offering my condolences to another volunteer after the loss of her cat, she said to me, “you know what though... I gave that cat a better two years than she ever would have known had I not picked her up and taken her home. I loved that cat and she knew it.” At the end of the day, we all have limited resources and can only do so much, but our actions are what will make a difference. Our actions are always priceless.

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