A Comparison of Traditional and Non Traditional Way of Living - Essay Example

A comparison of Traditional and non-Traditional Way of Living
Life in Bhutan was generally rural and of low standard of living. Consequently, there are many poor people in the area that I was raised in. Education is considered important but between going to school and working for the day’s food supply, the latter is deemed more important. For this reason, most people find it difficult to rise above their circumstances and succeed. Children are often forced to help their parents work and earn money for food. When they are not working, they are left with younger siblings to take care of. This creates a strong bond between family members but the situation also keeps most of the family members on the same economic level for a long time. However, there is not much pressure for children to break away from their families because they are taught to value family more than wealth. Moreover, the norms in our community suggest a simple and timid way of living. There is not much challenge that can really force a person to plan and strategize in order to break away from poverty and difficulties of rural living. Instead, the similar lives of each family somehow seem to say that life in Bhutan is just fine because it is how everybody in the community lives.
Being of Nepali origin who was born in Bhutan, I became one of the refugees who suffered many difficulties. The refugee camps were made of bamboo, mud and plastic. The camp is not a good place to live in but we did not have any choice. Therefore, we have to endure the extremely harsh circumstances brought to us. Living in camps is the worst experience I ever had. It was worse than the lives of many animals. Some animals are given good homes and enough food but we lived with just small spaces allotted for each member of the family. So many times, food is not enough for all of us so we learned to share what meager food is available. In addition there was no electricity so we also suffered the heat and cold through changing seasons. We were also in dire need of water and sanitation. Life in camps means being thankful we are still alive. We had no right to complain. We only had to hope and pray that someday, the sun will shine bright on us.
Thankfully, that day finally came for me in 2010 when I resettled in the United States. American lifestyle is completely different from what I have been used to. There are no friends to have a lazy chat with and no time that we can afford to waste. Even in rural areas, American living has high demands because of the standard of living. People need to work hard but at least one can be well-compensated for his job in this new environment that I embraced. There are so many difficult situations I have to face in this country and there are many different challenges also that forced me to adapt but the changes that I made are generally beneficial for me. When it comes to life’s trials, what I am going through in this country are nothing compared to what I experienced as a refugee in Bhutan.
In America, one has to hustle in order to survive. Gone are the days when I could survive despite being timid. Just like everyone else, I learned to be busy so that I can improve my life. Therefore, I chose to face the challenges of education and I also limited my time with my family because I know I have to work and study at the same time. This decision gave me more freedom and a new perspective about life and family. Read More