Assumptions

Assumptions

Mary Kay and I have been in Colombia for about a week now and we have visited a variety of different families, schools, and projects. As Mary Kay and I were preparing to leave we were often asked what we would be doing while we are in Colombia. People often don't know how to respond when you say we will accompany the people of Colombia. What does that mean? So far it has meant drinking a lot of fruity beverages and having slightly sore bums from sitting most of the day. It also means having a lot of preconceptions coming crashing down around you.

After spending a year in Guatemala I am used to being surprised and not making assumptions. However, through this experience I realized I was carrying preconceptions I did not even realize I had. One of these was what I thought displacement looked like. For whatever reason I unconsciously had the idea that the displaced people I would meet would all live in poverty. Clearly I understood that all types of people are displaced, violence disrupts everyone although the most vulnerable are generally affected the most. I don't know for sure, but I imagine that the majority of the 4 million displaced people do live in poverty. But that is not the only story and this experience is again teaching me not to generalize. It is an easy thing for us to do when we don't understand something. We immediately want to put it in a context we understand but sometimes we have to be okay with being unsure, and be forgiving of ourselves when we realize we were wrong. 

Mary Kay and I were both wrong about an older couple we met who are members of the IPC. We arrived by taxi to a very nice and newer neighborhood with some fancy houses. We were escorted into a lovely home where we sat at a dining room table with cushioned chairs. I say this because cushioned chairs are rare. I was very impressed. Mary Kay asked if he was a doctor previously (we assumed he was retired). The man told us a small part of his story. He and his wife have 12 children and 19 grandchildren. While I am used to large Latin families this still shocked me. He and his wife used to live in in a different department north of Uraba where he was an agricultore.  There are two words used here for people involved in farming: Agricultore and campesino. These two words have been explained to us differently so we are unsure if this man owned his land or worked the land of others. This family was displaced from their home because of the guerrillas and had to live somewhere for a time. The family eventually moved back to their place of birth where they bought a house just to be displaced by the guerrilla again. After sometime the man started working with a foreign foundation that taught agricultural techniques. He worked with them for 7 years and is now retired (I think) and living in a peaceful little neighborhood. 

This story reminded us that the displacement in Colombia is far reaching and affects everyone. It also reminded us that people are not one way or another. How they live is not a reflection of their story, what they have experienced, who they were, or who they are now. The only way to understand someone is to talk them, and even then sometimes you only have part of the story. We look forward to continuing our journey and hearing more stories and sharing int the reality of the Colombians we meet.  We also hope to continue being surprised and humbled.