You don't know what you are missing...

The saying of you don't know what you are missing until you don't have it comes to mind when thinking about privledges.

I was fairly prepared to go without big things, but it really is the little things that you take for granted. Modern conviences that we have in the States we take advantages of and when we don't have them we are unsure how to handle it.

I think the first realization that we were in a 3rd world country was during our first weekend, when the power went out! Now I have been in situations where the power went out, but those were generally extreme cases such as weather or accident involved. For the people of Belize they acted like it was no big things and went about their day. In the States, a power outage would cause maintence workers to get moving immediately, yet here in Belize there seemed to be no rush to resolve the issues. In later weeks when I would wake up in the middle of the night sweating because the power went off in the middle of the night, or having to teach with no AC I was reminded of how privledged we are in the States to have electricity at the ready. When I am lesson planning, it is so easy to google a subject for ideas or information. When I had to lesson plan with use of the internet, I found I had to really use my brain and get creative.

I can remember how fustrated many of us would get over the limited internet use. But at least I had the internet. So many locals barely have enough money for electricity let alone internet. I am so use to going anywhere in the States, including McDonalds and having Wifi, I had a hard time dealing with the limited amount of places one could go for internet access.

Living on the Island, as well as Belize in general, is very expensive. Due to having to import many of what find conviences, many items are at least double the price they would be here in the States. This makes buying things, such as a laptop, difficult. I have already had 3 laptops in ten years. Yet people such as my partnership teacher in Belize could really use a laptop yet can't afford to get one. A laptop would aid her so much in her teaching, yet the chances of her being able to get a laptop in Belize is very slim. When I decided I needed a new laptop, I took my latest pay check, went to the Best Buy and came home with my new purchase a few hours later.

Having constant access to water is another privledge we have here. During our week of no water, I took to appreciating having enough water to brush my teeth let alone take a shower. During my stay inland, there was no hot water. I had to fill a bucket with water, then add boiling water to it in order to have a warm bath. I then had to use a bowl to pour the water on me for my 'shower'. You really can't appreciate how lucky you are to have water at the ready until you turn on a facet... and nothing comes out.

In addition to having access to the modern conviences we all know and love, I believe one of the most important privledges we have that we often take advantage of is our availabilty to a good education. As an extension student, I understand fully how far education has come. The majority of my classes were done through online instruction and the rest of my classes were provided through the satelite program of UNCW teachers teaching here in Jacksonville. I never would have been able to finish my education without this program. I was able to complete my education, without having to leave Jacksonville. This allowed me to continue to work and save money while taking classes instead of having to travel and live at an University to complete my education. Right now many people on the island are interested in furthering their education, but do not have the means. To continue taking classes to be a teacher, you would have to travel to the mainland. Right now it is to expensive to pay instructors to come to the island, and most locals do not have the internet capability to take online classes.


Just as people have since the beginning of civilization, regardless of what you have, you adapt to your surrounding to survive. The people of Belize are use to their life style, and you really don't miss what you don't have. It is also amazing how quickly I was able to adapt to the living conditions in Belize. After the first blackout, I barely even flinch when th power went out. I prepared for the lack of water when possible, and I found alternatives when I could. But in the same way i quickly adapted to the Belizean environment, I was amazed how quickly I fell back into life in the States. I think it is easy to forget how lucky and privledged we are compared to much of the world.