Just a thought...

So just now, I decided to check out blogs for people who have done Peace Corps in Jamaica.  I am Jamaican (born and partially raised) and my entire family lives in Jamaica.  I read the blogs and they almost made me upset because it made Jamaicans seem so primitive.  Right along with this anger, I had an aha moment:  Is that the same mentality I go into other countries with?  From what I read in the posts, the volunteers were preparing for service, but how they discussed the country (although they may be trying to be as genuine as possible) seemed as though they felt sorry for us and they were there to save us from some form of oblivion that we were living in before.  I realized that a lot of the advice foreigners are given when going into new countries promotes this mindset.  When we go into other countries, we are taught to respect while being simultaneously taught to pity or play savior for the people in that country.  I'm glad I saw these blogs.  Now I can reevaluate the mentality I am going to Mongolia with.  By thinking about how volunteers see Jamaica compared to how I, a Jamaican, see Jamaica, I hope to go to Mongolia thinking of myself as someone going back home instead of a Western foreigner going to fix a problem.  Thank goodness I have 3 months to do some self-reflection to prevent myself from going in with the wrong mentality!