Te invito...

You’ve all heard of this line in a popular children’s story “You give a mouse a cookie, he’ll want a glass of milk.” Well I’m here to tell you the Peruvian version…”You give a mouse a cookie, he’ll give half of it back to you only after he has asked you to sit down and rest for a while.”

The culture in Peru, something I learned very early on, is one of generosity. This particular custom of sharing whatever you have is called “invitar-ing” in Spanish, which sounds a lot like inviting someone to something, which actually isn’t too far off its true translation. If you want to share your food with someone, you simply say “te/le invito.” I have never felt so put at ease with these people, especially since they don’t have much to offer. But the little they do, they make sure to give to you. I’ve been given the following: bread, oranges, bananas, eggs, fruit juice, and even babies (Tempting, but no…). Not to mention the umpteenth times that I have been offered a free lunch, even if I’ve already eaten. What’s great about Peru is I don’t have to worry about going hungry, even if I’m some place where I don’t know anyone, I’m still guaranteed a good, hot meal.

This little custom though, while good on the receiving end, can be a bitch on the opposite end. For instance, I might have 1 orange for a snack, but if I’m surrounded by 4 other people, it’s assumed that I have to share the orange with everyone…meaning there’s not much left for me. I don’t consider myself a very stingy person per se, but the Peruvians sure make me feel like one when I don’t want to share my 1 orange with the 4 people sitting with me.

To avoid these orange-less-type situations, I do a number of things. One, make sure to buy more of something than I think I want in the instance that I find other people eyeing my food. And two, simply don’t show anyone my food and eat it in solitude later. While I’d like to say that I do more of the former, many times I choose the latter as I simply want my orange all to myself. Call me selfish, but that’s my life.

So the next time you all see me, either here in Peru or back in the states, and you see that I have some food, don’t be afraid to “invitar” yourself, unless of course I’m behind some wall ravishing my one piece of fruit…don’t even bother.