Culture. Kultura. Cultura.

So today's topic is Culture.  I wonder how culture even are started. Culture is defined as an inherited behavior or way of thinking. Culture is a norm or tradition in the family, race, different places to live, and even religion. To me, culture is something that we are so comfortable with that we don't even realize other families or races do anything different than our way of living.

I remember when I was living in the Philippines for about a year and a half serving for my church, I was absorbed in a world with a different culture and language. I never thought that culture shock was a real thing, but boy howdy! It was true to the meaning. It was shocking. I remember walking into my first apartment and seeing the conditions. No AC. Doing laundry by hand. No toilet paper. Bucket showers. and No clean water (we had to pump our water for showers, washing dishes, and doing laundry) You can call me a brat, but I don't know how to live without these things! I never realized that not only anyone can live without those things but it is a totally NORMAL thing! I remember crying a little in my bed thinking "What am I doing here?" I mean. I don't think anyone can just be used to these thinks right off the bat especially after an 18 hour flight and one emotional jet lag-ed girl lost and confused with no one to talk to in an unknown world.

Now, thinking of my whole experience of my mission in the Philippines, the things that made me cry of despair and sadness, now make me cry wishing I could go back and live like that again. The culture of the Philippines is AMAZING. The people are the sweetest people you will ever met! They are respectful, modest, loving, and family is number one. Families live together to help the elderly, save as much money as possible, and that is just simply culture!

During class this week, we talked a lot about the Mexican culture and how there is a huge culture cross with Mexican culture and American culture, and something I never thought about is that the "Mexican culture" that we all know here in America is completely different that the culture they have in Mexico! As we were talking about all the different struggles of a strong family trying to make it to America for a better life, they begin to realize that their dream might be a nightmare. The father struggles to get jobs and the mother begins to enter the work force and loses her relationship with her children and when they finally make it, the living conditions are hard and the family is struggling. As we were talking about this I realized that they also have a culture shock and have to change their traditions or customs for American customs and traditions.

As we were talking about this, I was overwhelmed with the thought of me struggling moving to the Philippines and compared it to others moving to America and struggling with disappointment and trying to love the "American dream." I was overwhelmed with emotion in realizing that I have misjudged other races like Mexican or Koreans and trying to keep old traditions from their homeland and get along and understand our traditions and customs. So maybe when you see a party in the park on Sunday with pinatas and a Mexican BBQ, think about their cultures and traditions then think about yours and hopefully you realize, just like me, that we all have norms and inherited behavior that keeps friends and family together.

So that is my two cents for this week in learning about the family and culture. Hope you liked it! So what do you believe about family culture? What is a tradition in your family? One for example, for me, every Christmas Eve, we would open new PJs, then all of the siblings would make a fort and all 8 of us would sleep together waiting impatiently for Santa to come. How about getting married? Which traditions will you keep? Will you start new traditions? What do you think?