Si no importa eso, que importa?

So today I meandered my way down to the Zocalo to meet Danny at a cafe (my favorite place to study!) And unexpectedly found myself deep in a philosophical discussion about the point of life, ethnocentricism verses cultural relativism, etc. The other day at VAMOS I noticed that one of my kids has teeth that are in really bad shape (This is relevant, I promise). I was thinking (before I found out that personal hygiene is addressed in the classes) that I should really bring him a toothbrush and show him how to use it and such. Really, though, who am I to tell him how to take care of himself? For all I know, in his culture, personal hygiene isn't important. What gives me the authority to tell someone of another culture what is good/isn't good for him? I know that my purpose at VAMOS is to help the children learn how to become successful human beings...by our (American) version of success. If I have no authority then, how do I define what "helping" is? I feel like we live on two different planes of consciousness...what we do and think in our everyday lives, just going through the motions of what our culture tells us is worthwhile, and what we try to comprehend when we really sit down and think about the order/purpose of things. I guess the best I can do is just go through the motions of what I think is "helping" and just leave the bigger questions for later.

Re-reading what I just wrote, I guess it sort of sounds like I'm diminishing/negating the importance of what VAMOS does. That's not what I'm meaning to do at all! I really deeply respect Patty and everyone involved in VAMOS, and I believe in the value of education and community. When I'm at VAMOS, I feel like a worthwhile human being, that I'm actually doing something of value. I suppose I'm just trying to come to a deeper understanding of how I can best serve in the future...