Reflection

As someone who has previously had work experience on construction sites I have had my fair share of experiences in how women are treated in the work force. Over the past few days I have been able to experience a different side of the spectrum. While on the worksite at the beginning of this week I was able to work closely with the day laborers, and I was shocked at the patience and passion that they had with working with me and teaching me different skills. The laborers were very good with showing us how different procedures were performed but also letting us try them ourselves. I must have spent a good two hours attempting to chisel an area out of cement blocks and lets face it I'm not very strong nor do I have a good technique... so after giving everyone a good laugh they were ready to come show me ways to make it easier and respected the fact that I was willing to do actual work. It was refreshing to know that my efforts were appreciated and to actually feel like part of the team here; at home typically most opinions or work would be overlooked solely for the fact that I am a young female working in a "man's job."

This is something that has been a major difference that I have noticed in my time here; Jamaica is very much so a community, and while there are many different people everyone is a family. In many ways they have a system that is superior to the way our country works in the manner of being supportive of each other and wanting to see everyone succeed. It is sad to think about the potential that lies in this country and the fact that they cannot go anywhere with that.

Tonight we watched a documentary called "Life and Debt" which discussed the financial problems that Jamaica has been facing. It is something like this that demonstrates how corrupt the world really is. It is because of people in superior roles and corporate companies who have the ability to take a stand and make a difference, but choose to worry about bettering themselves. When watching this documentary, a decent amount of what I was watching were facts I had already been aware of. It is sickening to think that people here are working full work days, 6 days a week and making less in that week than people make in a few hours in America. Better yet, the fact that people are slaving away in factories for large companies who are clearly making an immense amount of profit, and yet they do not reap any benefits of the work that they put in to make that product. 

When reflecting back on the past week it is hard to sum up everything that I have experienced and learned, everything seems so important. However something that is commonly referenced here is being "one." If I take nothing out of this I learned what it is like to be a part of one unit, and how they have made themselves one here, even in the worst of circumstances this community has come together in these tough times. This is something that I hope will one day transfer back home, and hopefully one day the Jamaicans will be able to experience the full joy of having a comfortable lifestyle with that same mentality. 

 - Megan