Cultural Dissonance

by Shelley Hepler  

As I think of my first few days in Cagli in the context of Cultural Dissonance a few encounters with the locals come to mind. The one that stands out most is a​ chance meeting with a townswoman. As I entered one of the streets, I came upon an older woman with two small children. The little girl was eating a sweet treat as she walked. She was curious about me, so I smiled at her. She didn't return my smile. Rather, she just stared and distracted licked her sucker. It started me, as children are usually open and candid. Realizing that the little brother was also looking at me, I then smiled at him. He was a bit more open. I sensed he wanted to smile back, but his grandmother tugged on his hand. As he stumbled to catch up with her, I noticed that he had a cast on his right arm. I made a small sound and pointed to my own arm showing that I saw his cast. He nodded. However, the grandmother said something to me and made a forceful gesture as she rushed the children along. I stopped and moved to the side of the road, waiting for some distance before I continued on my way. The interaction with the three was so brief, yet it shut me down for several minutes. Had I offended her? Or, was she already upset with something else? Could she have been frustrated with the children for some reason? I had no way to know. I felt strange and I'm still not quite certain what happened.