Same Race, Different Rats

     One of the reasons why I left "Corporate America" was to rid myself of the toxic effects of working---and by working I mean living, breathing and sleeping work because that is what working in "Corporate America" requires (if you want to be the best that is, and who doesn't want to be and do the best in whatever they do?)---in an environment so greatly influenced by the "Rat Race."  Yes, sure the money can be enticing, but accompanied by the never-ending competition of what car you drive, how much money you make or what designer brand you are wearing, some are caused to really question whether such a profession is worth the headache while others attempt to cope with the self-degrading reminder that you truly don't possess any value until you can keep up with the Jones'.  So I decided that if I am going to deal with such a materialistic value system, I might as well do so while in a profession that is aimed to help the less fortunate, discouraged, disempowered or devalued.  Now, please don't mistake my dislike of the rat race as a disapproval of enjoying some of the finer things of life because I too enjoy some of these indulgences.  What I am referring to is allowing such a value system to be carried over into your personal life where the value of people and life itself is determined by a price tag.  Therefore, in an effort to rid myself of such surface-level living, or so I thought, I took steps toward preparing for a career in the ministry/non-profit/academic/philanthropic arena.  I soon learned that the rat race isn't an "effect" of "Corporate America."  It's an effect of the human race, the human need to feel superior.  Deciding to work toward achieving a higher education, I quickly realized that the race did not stop, but rather continued, only using different rats this time.  Instead of what car, it's from what school is your degree.  Instead of how much money, it's how many SAT vocabulary words you use while speaking.  Again, I am not discouraging nor frowning upon any educational accolades or articulate speech deserving recognition.  However, I can't tell you how many times I have had conversations where people are not described first by their sincere and kind actions or introspective thinking through real-life experiences, but rather the number of degrees they have and from which schools as if the latter is a true indication of the person's deserved level of respect.  What ever happened to not judging a book by its cover?  What ever happened to a person's level of respect being determined by their actions and interactions with others?  As I sigh to myself, oh how silly I was to think that I was escaping such a superficial value system.  We just can't help ourselves.  Again, I return to my "Superiority Complex" thesis.  
    One of the best things I love with being in a third-world country is that I can wear the same sweatshirt or pair of jeans (ensuring that it is clean and smelling fresh of course) three times in ONE week and no one cares.  No one points out the fact that I am not wearing a different outfit each day.  No one cares that I am not matching from head to toe.  It's not about me being lazy or dirty.  It's about recognizing that there are way more important things to be worried about like water or from where the next meal will come.  Of course third-world countries too suffer from the effects of their own version of the rat race, but because this is not my context, because I am here only temporarily, I am able to escape my world's rat race and just simply live in another's without the effects, able to be an observer and be reminded of the things that truly do matter in this world so that when I leave this place I am hopefully made stronger and that much more encouraged to be the change I desire to see.