This past Saturday, my best friend, Boring Best, had a cookout at his folks house. In addition to his family and me, he invited a friend from work and her boyfriend, two French people who are staying with him on a visit to Cleveland, and three Russian people who live here and are friends of his through the girl he dates. I tend to be a bit of a hermit and a bit shy so I have to sometimes force myself to go out, particularly when there will be a crowd, but I went and had a really good time, probably the most fun I've had in a while. Everyone ate, swam, played badminton, joked around, and sat out by the fire. It was a lot of fun and everybody seemed to get along fine.
Of course, it always makes me wonder why we can't do that on a larger scale. Right now, the leadership in Russia has been ratcheting up the rhetoric against the West and flexing its muscle a bit. I'm sure the Russian guests at my friend's party are proud of their country, rightly so, but at the same time I think they understand from living here that average Americans aren't trying to take over the world. We're just working, trying to keep a roof over our heads, and hoping to play a little badminton on a nice weekend. Prior to their current regime, France had cooled relations with the U.S. considerably as well. But the two French people I spent time with this weekend were just trying to relax and enjoy a nice Cleveland summer evening.
I think it really is true to an extent that politicians cause a lot of the problems in the world. I don't know how much money anyone at the cookout this weekend makes but my guess is that there wasn't a huge disparity between the haves and have nots. My point being that I understand that humans will squabble over resources. If some people have plenty and others have little, there will always be a certain amount of tension. But I think that when people just hang out together, when they just talk and share things we all have in common, like the need to eat and have a little fun, it's amazing how alike we all are. It's too bad there are so many who have so much invested in us being different.
All I know is that I'm grateful to my friend because he is more outgoing than I am and as a result I got to hang out with some cool people this weekend. And no one talked about politics, or war, or oil prices. We just enjoyed each other's company and made some new friends.
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6 comments:
Well said.
I feel the Olympics are supposed to be just what you're talking about. All Countries getting together to play some games and have a good time.
It's when it becomes political, like people wating us to boycot the opening ceremony in China that it no long is fun!
Living in another country can open your mind and allow more tolerance of other cultures, as well as adjust your attitude about your own country. It's a healthy thing, all around. By "living" I don't mean going there for a war. That has an opposite effect.
At my day job I work with scientists from all over the world. It's a very refreshing atmosphere.
Gary - I find the talk about boycotting the Olympics to be absurd. Most of the powerful countries in this world, the U.S. included, have engaged in shameful behavior at one time or another. To mar an event that actually tries to bring people together is ridiculous. You're absolutely right.
Blue - I haven't had the pleasure of visiting other countries. I was planning to do that this year but foreign travel has now become so expensive. When I was in grad school, the grad dorm I lived in had a pretty big international population. If you spend time with people from around the world, you really do find that our goals are often the same.
One of the reasons I got into the travel business was because I believe in the promotion of peace through tourism. When you break bread with someone, you get to know them at a level of friendship that lasts.
Good post, drdon.
Right on Divajood. That extends, I think, to people we assume don't think like we do, and I'm constantly surprised at my biases and the way they are shattered. Don, glad you had a little piece of globalism over the weekend. It's a small world, afterall. Hope you can get overseas soon.
Yep. People are people. That's the biggest lesson that I've taken from my travels. That, and the fact that complete strangers will do incredibly nice things for you if you are in need - like putting me up in Poland and the Czech Republic when I ran outta cash.
Angelique is my oldest contact on Flickr and now one of my best friends. Until a week ago, I had never met her in person, yet we talk every few days by phone. I love the girl.
Baptiste is an amazing guy and quickly becoming a great friend, as well. Having the two of them stay with me for nearly three weeks is a blast and just renews my energy toward meeting new people around the world.
Of course, they won't all become best friends, but it still is a wonderful thing.
As for the Russians at the party, well, they are wonderful in their own way. But that's a story for another day...
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