Do we ever leave the playground behind? Or do we carry it wherever we go?
A chip on our shoulders, reflecting who we are. How much can we carry before it brings us down and buries us?
I see cultural values as a norm in a diverse Britain, but I see at times, glimpses of such bitter racism and I wonder why. The My Tram Experience videos shocked me, and provoked responses across the youtube community and indeed the British community I suppose, but more than that it provoked responses amongst people like me, people whose roots don't lie in Britain.
Deep thoughts pervaded my mind about the playground. Many people from Sri Lanka, and indeed prevalent amongst South East Asia, well I suppose even the greater world are willing to migrate to countries in the hope of providing a better future for their children, a place to build roots but how far do we carry the playground and how far do we assimilate into corporate beings losing traditional culture replacing it with popular culture.
Going to the local masjid, prayers being conducted in Urdu instead of the traditional Arabic, is that going too far? I suppose not, prayer is after all personal but I feel that it is incredibly difficult to strike that balance between fitting in, and standing out. I have a few family members who live abroad who would probably curl in disgust if they were to spend a few weeks in Sri Lanka living as a local, but is that due to leaving the playground or is it merely because they're used to the commodities that living in countries that Britain, Australia, Canada and America provide. Similarly I know people who bring too much of the playground with themselves, celebrating every single holiday that their mother countries have (its a fair bit!) being averse to speaking in English, not engaging in the wider community and either unable but more likely unwilling to adapt.
Pieter Willem Botha, the first president of a very divided South Africa stated to the House of Assembly that "We must Adapt or die" in a speech where he attempted to simultaneously devolve some power to the non white people of South Africa while maintaining the power of the white party. His words though misdirected do ring true. We must, absolutely must, adapt or we too shall perish.
This necessarily includes divesting the feeling or the mindset that people from such countries are superior. They aren't, socially advantaged perhaps but not superior, and this is why I will always support social mobility, I will always support integration, this doesn't mean losing sense of cultural values, it means sacrifice.
One does not meet business executives without putting a suit on, similarly if we are to leave the playground we need to adapt, we need to change but who we are inside need not, our thought process need not. Culture leads to diversity, diversity with direction can only lead to success.
Carry the marks that the playground left on you, but leave the damned swings behind!
A chip on our shoulders, reflecting who we are. How much can we carry before it brings us down and buries us?
I see cultural values as a norm in a diverse Britain, but I see at times, glimpses of such bitter racism and I wonder why. The My Tram Experience videos shocked me, and provoked responses across the youtube community and indeed the British community I suppose, but more than that it provoked responses amongst people like me, people whose roots don't lie in Britain.
Deep thoughts pervaded my mind about the playground. Many people from Sri Lanka, and indeed prevalent amongst South East Asia, well I suppose even the greater world are willing to migrate to countries in the hope of providing a better future for their children, a place to build roots but how far do we carry the playground and how far do we assimilate into corporate beings losing traditional culture replacing it with popular culture.
Going to the local masjid, prayers being conducted in Urdu instead of the traditional Arabic, is that going too far? I suppose not, prayer is after all personal but I feel that it is incredibly difficult to strike that balance between fitting in, and standing out. I have a few family members who live abroad who would probably curl in disgust if they were to spend a few weeks in Sri Lanka living as a local, but is that due to leaving the playground or is it merely because they're used to the commodities that living in countries that Britain, Australia, Canada and America provide. Similarly I know people who bring too much of the playground with themselves, celebrating every single holiday that their mother countries have (its a fair bit!) being averse to speaking in English, not engaging in the wider community and either unable but more likely unwilling to adapt.
Pieter Willem Botha, the first president of a very divided South Africa stated to the House of Assembly that "We must Adapt or die" in a speech where he attempted to simultaneously devolve some power to the non white people of South Africa while maintaining the power of the white party. His words though misdirected do ring true. We must, absolutely must, adapt or we too shall perish.
This necessarily includes divesting the feeling or the mindset that people from such countries are superior. They aren't, socially advantaged perhaps but not superior, and this is why I will always support social mobility, I will always support integration, this doesn't mean losing sense of cultural values, it means sacrifice.
One does not meet business executives without putting a suit on, similarly if we are to leave the playground we need to adapt, we need to change but who we are inside need not, our thought process need not. Culture leads to diversity, diversity with direction can only lead to success.
Carry the marks that the playground left on you, but leave the damned swings behind!
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