Even though we don’t live in caveman or tribal times, it is still a natural instinct to recognize and be aware of others that don’t look like we do. There has been a lot of movement in the past several decades to raise awareness of cultural differences and introduce diversity into our societies.
What about TCKs, though? What about people that come from a particular place, but have integrated other cultures into their identity? How do we recognize and interact with them?
I’ve said this many times, but I’ll say it again. I was born American, I look American, I sound like an American…but that’s about the extent of my “American-ness”. If you talk with me long enough, you’ll learn that although I “sound” American in my dialect, the words that come out of my mouth aren’t your typical American-lingo.
So, although looks are a natural reaction for our minds to think “Oh, they’re different from us – go into diversity appreciation mode”…it might be a heck of a lot more beneficial for someone to stop, listen, and hear what a person has to say. You can learn a lot about a person in just a couple of minutes of conversation, but it takes active listening skills and the desire to want to understand who that other person is.
Looks aren’t the only thing that is important – in fact, looks can be deceiving. Adhere to the old adage; don’t judge a book by its cover. Snuggle up on the couch, get comfortable, read into the book for a while before making a judgment about who or what a person is or what they have to attribute to the world.
