Freedom

While living abroad in a small community like Ktechyme, Uganda it is important to fit in. If you eat, think and say the right things you will be accepted by the community members but if you stray too far outside the social norms it can be an isolating experience. Examples of how to fit in include wearing modest clothing below your knees, living in accordance with God and acting in culturally appropriate ways. Maybe the most common piece of advice I received was to avoid men. With high rates of HIV and AIDS transmission and infidelity many women told me in groups or in private that they did not trust a lot of the men to be faithful. For this reason among and to fit in with societal standards many young women choose to wait to have sex until they are married.

In contrast living in Canada feels a bit like being a kid in a candy store with $30 worth of nickles. You can wear whatever you like: bohemian, punk, business casual, classic, grunge and decorate your body with piercings and tattoos and no one will bat an eye. You can choose to be religious or atheist and often being religious can carry more of a stigma than being nonreligious. You can engage in premarital sex or sex after marriage. You can eat bananas or oatmeal everyday or eat food from different nationalities at every meal, you could never eat the same thing ever again if you wanted. Independence and individual freedom has never been so tasty.