I've been back in Venda since Jan. 2, but it's taken me a while to find my equilibrium.
Going home was more difficult than I imagined. There was the culture shock of readjusting to a world where even the poorest kids have shoes, but it was intensified by traveling to a very materialistic society during the most materialistic time of year.
It hit me the moment I walked off the plane into JFK. The jolly voice of Burl Ives was blaring from loudspeakers in contrast to the general crabbiness of people waiting in huge lines for their planes or for difficult-to-find transport out of the airport. This was Day One of the NYC transit strike and I had a 10-hour layover in the midst of it all.
Once I finally made it to Ohio, I was overwhelmed by all the glittering holiday lights on homes in my sister's neighborhood. Even though my village in Venda has electricity, they use it sparingly -- for the (unfortunately ubiquitous) TV and maybe one overhead light at night. There are no streetlights, which makes it possible for me to see all the glory of the sky in the southern hemisphere.
In the states I was also was stunned by the amount of Christmas presents everywhere -- new ones for me as well as my family members nearly every day. I was happy that so many people thought of me, but all this stuff was so overwhelming. I felt the same overwhelm when I was moving my belongings to a storage unit before I left. Why do I have so much stuff? After 5 months without it, I know for sure that I don't need even half of it.
I'm not saying that Africa is better than the US. There is materialism worldwide, I am certain. In fact as I sit here in this Internet cafe, the Venda girl next to me is showing me her gaudy pink-gem bellybutton ring and complaining that it is painful.(!)
Really, the hardest part of being back home was returning to a world my father inhabited just before I left. Now his absence, especially during family gatherings, is so obvious. He would have focused on the spiritual aspect of the holiday. All my life, when we asked him what he wanted for Christmas, he would always respond: "peace, love and joy." I miss him so much.