Sudan is a war torn country, where millions of lives have been destroyed during the civil strife between the Arab Herders and the African Farmers. However there is still some hope for the luckiest of this country's poor inhabitants. Two of these lucky boys have been given a chance at a new life in America, but their future in the States may not be as easy and fun as it first appeared to be.
Peter and Santino have seen almost all that Africa can throw at them; their families taken away in front of their eyes, lions eating their friends, the government of their own country shooting at them, and the skin on their feet wearing down so much, that there is only a bloody piece of flesh resembling their foot, left over. The problems in Kakuma Refugee Camp may not have been that severe, but it was still pretty rough. Living with no electricity or running water, disease was very common with so many people in such close quarters, families being separated daily and overpopulation were just a few of the many of problems that these brave boys faced. But for Santino and Peter life just kept getting better. In America they had a house, a car, and they were treated kindly and given belongings.
However, living in America wasn't always this good, since they had poor English skills, they seemed to be having trouble with the law. For example, they weren't aware of the fact that you had to have a license and car insurance to drive; they didn't have either of those. Another problem that they experienced was when they first came to school several of the other students looked at them in very impolite ways. This rude behaviour made them feel excluded and different. When Peter played basketball with some of the local kids, they attempted to steal things out of his pockets because they figured he wasn't used to that and therefore they could steal things from him without him noticing their actions.
The jobs that they could apply for were very limited due to their lack of a complete education, therefore they could only earn about $7 per hour. This small sum of money was insufficient to pay for rent, petrol, and to send money back to Africa.
On the other hand, their friends from school were very kind and empathetical towards them, inviting them to a party and including them at the lunch table at school.
One unfortunate incident is when their house got broken into, which meant that they would have even less money to support themselves, and their families in Africa.
These were only some of the experiences that formed part of the culture shock they felt. They dealt with this by trying their hardest to improve their English skills and they also increased their efforts to make new friends whenever they could, also they stayed focused and made sure that they were doing exactly what their teachers asked them to. Staying focused meant that life was more stable for them, and they could fall into a simple routine which they would follow everyday.
Peter and Santino have experienced more in their lives than we will ever get the chance to experience.
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