Little Voice

I walked into work last week, and the new grad student says “Guten Morgen.” I may not speak German, but I knew this meant “good morning,” so I replied “Good morning.” Then for the second time in the last month I got asked the question, “What other language do you speak?” Nothing makes me feel more ignorant than having to reply none. I mean I took a couple years of Spanish in high school, but I didn’t learn much more than how to sing a few songs. He then went on to explain to me that he asks everyone that question because he likes to know how to say “hello” and “good morning” in multiple languages. I then told him that O si yo is “hello” in Cherokee. He looked at me like I was crazy, and asked me how I knew Cherokee. I told him I only knew a few phrases, and that I was from Oklahoma, so unsurprisingly I had some Cherokee in me. He replied, “Oh, it makes sense why you wear feathers in your hair.”

This got me thinking about how we perceive other cultures. He thought wearing feathers in your hair was a common practice whereas it is actually pretty disrespectful in certain circumstances. I wouldn’t expect him to know this, but this got me wondering what I don’t know about other cultures.

The answer? Not a whole heck of a lot! I know very little about other cultures.

So Culture Goal Number 1: Simply, learn about other cultures.
This is a very broad goal. I realize this, but I figure it can be as simple as a google search or as complex as a plane ticket.

Culture Goal Number 2: Learn another language
If for no other reason, the next time someone asks I can have an answer. I have no idea what language, but lately I have been really interested in Germany for no good reason, so maybe that would be a good choice? I enjoyed playing around with French a few months back, so maybe French?

Culture Goal Number 3: Go to more festivals, museums, plays.
I like these things, so this should be good =)

Culture Goal Number 4: Look more seriously into a summer research experience abroad.
I have been thinking I would like to do this next summer, so the early I figure out how to the better. I think I would enjoy this more than taking classes, so hopefully =)

Thanks for reading =) I truly appreciate it =)