American Becky =/= Cameroonian Becky

When I was considering Peace Corps and talking to a lot of returned Peace Corps volunteers (RPCVs), I heard pretty often that Peace Corps was life-changing, that one would come back to the same place and find oneself indelibly different. 

In the 11 (almost 12!) months I have been here, I have watched many changes occur in my PCV friends. Most people pick up Cameroonian habits - they begin to talk like Cameroonians ("C'est quoi ça?!" or "On va faire comment?"), or use gestures like Cameroonians (the clap followed by spread hands and raised eyebrows to indicate innocence or helplessness in a situation), or drink like Cameroonians ("Vin de palm at 9am? Well it is a Wednesday.")… 

Watching these changes in others, I realized I must be changing too. So, in honor of self-reflection and my new hair cut, I decided to compile a list with the help of my lovely postmate Danielle, and with inspiration from Sarah Mae's very entertaining blog post. 

The most obvious is my name:  In America, I am Becky. And that means I have the same name as a lot of white girls in rapper songs.  But in Cameroon, I am Rebecca. And that means I have the same name as a lot of people's grandmothers, aunts, cousins, sisters, etc, making me instantly part of the family. ("Ma grandmère! Tu es là? C'est comment, non?")

That is only the beginning... 

Becky is irritated when she's forced to sit three to the backseat of a sedan. 

Rebecca is thrilled by the spaciousness of the backseat with only three people in it. 

Becky considers her 1996 Honda Civic to be quite old.

Rebecca is unfazed by cars of 20+ years of age, even those sporting no window cranks or mirrors, makeshift rope door handles, nearly shattered windshields, holes in the floor, or all of the above. 

Becky knows that hitchhiking is dangerous and prefers to drive herself or take public transportation.

Rebecca knows that hitchhiking is practical, cheap, and usually the fastest and most comfortable means of transportation. 

Becky doesn't discuss pooping or farting unless trying to fit in with the boys. 

Rebecca regularly discusses the quality and quantity of bowel movements with her friends.

Becky poops in toilets and then pushes a button to flush them. 

Rebecca poops in a hole. 

Becky finds mushy foods to be rather gross and unappealing.

Rebecca eats primarily foods that don't require teeth, such as couscous de maïs, and isn't sure she would get out of bed in the morning without the promise of oatmeal. 

Becky finds nothing more refreshing than a long, steamy shower after a rugby game.

Rebecca finds nothing more refreshing than a freezing bucket bath after a hike in the hills.

Becky washes her hair approximately every three days because she finds it annoying.

Rebecca washers her hair approximately every six days because she finds it annoying. 

Becky wakes up to an alarm from her iPhone.

Rebecca wakes up to pigs, goats, roosters, motorcycles, and the market DJ. 

Becky buys groceries in the grocery store, sometimes spending several dollars on a yogurt.

Rebecca buys grocers in the farmer's market, sometimes spending 20 cents on 5 cabbages.

Becky considers a $10 tshirt not a bad deal. 

Rebecca is seriously insulted (it's because she's white!) when asked to pay more than $1 for a dress.

Becky sometimes flirts with men.

Rebecca receives at least three marriage proposals every time she leaves home and responds with scathing sarcasm. 

Becky often had her day scheduled from 8am to midnight. 

Rebecca often has to attend one three hour meeting OR teach for two hours, and feels proud of herself for working so much afterwards. 

Becky would be insulted and consider starting a fight if called aunty, mother, or grandmother.

Rebecca's heart melts a little when called tata, mama, or grandmère.

Becky's day is made when - I'm not sure, actually.

Rebecca's day is made when she receives a package or letter from home, when a Cameroonian defends her from unwanted advances or racism, when given hugs by children, when fed by her neighbors, when the tailor has finally finished her dress, when the grocery store has Oreos or brown rice, when Danielle gifts her a Time magazine, when one of the village fous (crazies) gifts her a large bag of safou, when one of her students tells her she is peer educating, when… 

Becky doesn't like to cry in front of others.

Rebecca is regularly reduced to tears by mean moto drivers, sad songs, sad movies, sad news articles (including Economist magazine articles about Middle East politics), and thoughts of cheese.

Becky considers beer, like scotch, to be a "manly" drink.

Rebecca considered beer, like palm wine and sachets (small plastic bags of nailpolish-quality alcohol), to be a "manly" drink.

However, Rebecca considers American-sized beers to be teeny-tiny and rather emasculating. 

After all those beers, Becky's preferred hangover treatment is gym and bagels.

Rebecca's preferred hangover treatment is a spaghetti omelette smothered in mayonnaise and/or avocado plus several cups of instant Nescafé and sweetened-condensed milk. 

Becky is impatient and hates having to wait 15 minutes in line at the post office. 

Rebecca is impatient and hates having to wait 3 hours for a meeting to never start. 

Becky is clueless about current TV shows and popular culture references.

Rebecca is clueless about current TV shows and popular culture references.

Okay, so maybe not everything transforms… But moving halfway around the world is bound to change anyone a bit, non?