Multicultural Living

As I sit here writing, an invisible cloud of smells swirl around me. It all started 20 minutes ago when John, one of our missionary friends who lives across the hall, knocked on our door. He walked in followed by two Latino ladies, a Latino man carrying a box about the size of a microwave, and two young girls. They gathered in the living room and began taking bottles and jars out of the white box. John waved as he left us to work out communicating with our new visitors, who only spoke Spanish. Enriqueta came up to me, tilted my chin up, and sprayed a few squirts of something on my neck. Soon the sent of Vick’s Vapor Rub reached my nose. She explained it is good for a cold, helping to clear the nose and throat. Flora picked up a taller pink bottle of cream and squirted some in my hand. The peppermint lotion is extra moisturizing for cracked feet. Still rubbing the lotion in, my arm was gently turned, wrist out to receive a spray of “Floral Fresh,” while the other wrist got misted with “Sweet Sugar.” Enriqueta mixed a few drops from a small container with a dab of menthol scented cream from a blue jar then demonstrated rubbing the balm on both temples and the back of the neck. My roommates and I followed suit as she explained the ointment is for soothing muscle pains. Jill picked one bottle to buy as I began to play with the little girls. We found out they will be meeting John and his wife every Thursday afternoon for English classes, and they invited us to come practice our Spanish. Before leaving Flora wrote down their phone numbers and apartment numbers so we can stop by if we run out of lotion. The transaction made, all the bottles and jars went back into the box, and we said “Adios.” When the door shut the only thing left was the mingling scents floating through the air.

This is a given part of living in another culture. Things don't happen "the way they would back home." In our suburban, middle class culture, if someone wanted to sell something in your living room, they would set up a "Tupperware party." In our multicultural apartment complex, it is completely normal to drop in, selling whatever, spraying this and dabbing that on your prospective customers.