Culture shock in America
I'm a well-traveled person. Been on every continent except for Antarctica. Yet in no other country did I experience as large of a culture shock as I did in Colorado.
Maybe it's because my expectations are more aligned with actualities when I go abroad. Maybe it's because I prepare myself more when I go abroad.
In Colorado, I met people who do not live like me, whose priorities are very different from mine. I met people who moved to Colorado in search for natural beauty and never left. I met people who went here to rock climb and ski to their hearts' content. And to support themselves, they worked part time or seasonal jobs such as ski instructors, construction workers or bartenders. They happily live pay check to paycheck, without any guarantee of next month's paycheck. The sweetest job as defined by one guy I met was being a meter maid - except for the fact that it's a year-round job and would cut into winter skiing time.
Who are these people?
Their lives are all about the mountain towns they live in. Their conversations about their neighbors. Yes, technologies such as the internet opened access to the rest of the world. But most of them don't really care.
I used to think that not being global and not exposing oneself to other things in the world is a weakness, a blindside. But is it really?
I typically surround myself with motivated and ambitious people; people who want to change the world. Sounds great doesn't it? But many of them are so more unhappy than people I met in Colorado.
Is happiness easier to come by when you have a more simple life?
posted by Cat @ 9:54 PM
4 Comments:
It's so true!
There's more to life than work. But for people living on the coasts, you'd never know it....
I think some people, such as the "motivated and ambitious people" you typically associate with, are happiest when there is a certain amount of instability and uncertainty in their lives. There must be another rock they can climb, another country they can visit, another project they can conquer, another degree they can acquire, etc.
They accrue experiences like people collect antiques; they are people on a mission to be accomplished, well-read, well-traveled, eclectic, and well-informed. It comes down to what's important to you, doesn't it? If rock climbing, skiing, and taking in Colorado natural beauty is what is most important in your life, you'll prioritize that above all other things, including professional achievement and ambition. If attaining career success and respect/recognition within the business world is important to you, you'll devote time and resources to making that happen at the expense of other things. Doesn't mean it's less important, just lower on the list.
Is it better to strive for less, and having reached that, be content, than to strive for more, and not reach it, and be discontent? And who determines what is "less" vis-a-vis "more"?
Wow Cat, this reminds me of one of my own posts. I had the greates culture shock when I came back to Germany...
and btw, congrats to your new home! I start to save my money for a flight over there!
Hmm... my novel little thought on this is that when you have someone that's rock climbing or skiing and they get in an accident (ie skiing the backcountry, rescue missions for ski patrollers), people always says, oh, at least he died doing what he loved. The "ambitious" folks...if they have a heartattack while being a workoholic no one says, well at least he died doing what he loved. -Roommate
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