Changing Your Eyes

Historian and feminist Miriam Beard once said “Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” Traveling across the world, people see different ways of life. My experience of spending many summers in Ukraine has made me aware that Americans have very different ways of life from other countries. My grandparents have demonstrated the vast differences between the haves and the have-nots. My unique relationship with my grandparents has largely been shaped on their farm in Ukraine.

When I was little, I looked at the farm as a fun place to go to pet animals, but over time, I realized that there are a lot of responsibilities. Before my grandparents had me pick raspberries and feed chickens, I thought that’s all they had to do there. Now I have more chores: sweep the driveway, pull out the dead plants, go fishing, cook, and go to the store. You would think that it is all easy, but even the simplest things are harder on the farm. Americans go to the store to buy a broom, but on the farm I make it out of twigs. By the time I’m done sweeping, my back is sore and I can barely stand up. It makes me feel joyful when I know I did a job well done. For cooking, I have to go out in the garden and find food or see if my grandparents have killed any animals or caught any fish. The food is much fresher, but it’s sad to see the animals gone. However, I’ve learned that doing the right thing isn’t the easiest to do. To go to the store I have to walk for forty minutes and my hands are very weak at the end when I finally walk up the long dusty hill. 

Seeing my grandparents living such a hard life made me become closer to them. I respect them more because I see them living on the farm. For my fourteenth birthday my grandparents bought me twelve little chickens. They were three days old so I had to watch them every second of the day. I hadn’t had any experience raising chickens so my grandparents had to help me along the way. My grandpa found a big box for the chickens to live in until they got bigger and then my grandma put food and water in the box. Every day we would take the chicks outside and have them roam around in the tall green grass. My grandparents taught me how to care for them. They told me how much I need to feed them, how much water to give them, and when they need to go outside for fresh air. When we took the chicks outside, my grandparents would tell me stories about when I was little. I loved hearing them tell me about my childhood because it made me feel more attached to them since they raised me. It was amazing to hear them tell me about how happy they were to see me smile. I slept in a crib right next to their bed, and every morning they would go over to the crib and I would start smiling which shows me even now that I loved them from the day I was born. Since I have so much time in the summer to be with my grandparents, it has made our bond stronger and stronger over the years.

My relationship with my grandparents has taught me to appreciate what’s truly important. The problems my friends complain about in America aren’t nearly as bad in Ukraine. On the farm, my friends worry about the crops burning out and not having enough food. In America, my friends worry about makeup and not looking ‘good’. Americas all dress the same way and teens are forced to buy the expensive clothing to fit in. Teens feel extremely pressured to have the same clothes as their friends. On the farm, people don’t care what they look like as long as it is comfortable to move in. Makeup is last on their minds because they get dirt on their faces either way. Ukrainians on the farm don’t feel pressured to dress the same way as their friends because no one cares. They look at how the person is on the inside and not by their looks. Living with my grandparents on the farm has showed me that how I and other people dress and look shouldn’t matter and it certainly shouldn’t change you as a person.

My grandparents’ farm has a special meaning to me because it has shaped our relationship. I spend days and nights on the farm with my grandparents and it’s the perfect time to learn from them. My grandparents have taught me the most important aspects of life. When I will be a mother and a grandma, I hope to share the same lessons and stories that my grandparents taught me with my children and grandchildren. Going to the farm my eyes have opened up on how different life can be in different places. I am very thankful that I have seen different ways of life and that I shared the time with my grandparents.