Saying that I'm an "American" shows disrespect.

Should we from the United States be called "United Statesians", or United Statans", or United Statesans"? I don't know and I guess I haven't got it right because Spell Check is going wild. In Spanish we are "Estados Unidos". Abbreviated that is "E.U.". That's is potentially confusing. The thing is, as you all know, that from Canada to the tip of Argentina, for some misguided reason everyone thinks they are Americans. They do, actually, live in America; SA, CA, NA.

So, when, as always, someone from the US says they are American, they get that look. That "It must be nice to be the center of the universe" look. Well, that is how we come across. I heard a woman last night giving a lofty opinion that the Nicaraguan poor ought to stop robbing tourists because we are the most important thing in their economy. How has that worked in the USA? The poor here, as in much of the third world, have a pretty clear idea about the robbery we commit as a nation. A peasant in his banana patch can tell you more about NAFTA than most of us at home can. An illiterate Mayan on her milpa can give you the history of the United Fruit company and the infamous Dulles brothers.

They lived it. They are living it. I am back on my high horse about all the conversations I overhear, often from very nice, well intentioned people, about how the Nicas should learn sustainable farming. We have that dialed in in the USA, don't we? How we should teach forestry here. My hand to God, I hear conversations about the health care system being unfair here. Of course it is true, but from what righteous mountaintop are viewing this?

Maybe we could come to learn. We could learn so much about thriving in spite of adversity. We could learn so much about strong families. We could learn so much about being content and happy if everyone has food and a place to live.

I have so much to learn. One of my favorite phrases which I hear from Nicaraguan friends in "SI Dios quiere." After you make a plan, agree upon it, you acknowledge that anything could happen between now and the planned event. It has taken me many years to partially learn that I am not the boss of me, that all sorts of things (earthquake, stomach ache, iphone not working, losing my keys) can come at any second of any day. Nicaraguans often have a grace in their attitude towards life that I want to learn.