If I were to be evacuated to another country and I could only take three representatives of myself and my family I would be so devastated. Most of the things that I hold dear are not physical things, but traditions, my beliefs, practices and my religion. They are with you no matter where you are. The three things that would represent my culture are:
- My family album that represents our culture with memorable moments like holidays, festivals, family weddings, birthdays, graduations and other memorable events that would help remind and strengthen me of the family I have.
- My laptop that has downloads of cultural music, some family pictures, scanned documents and stored family recipes.
- My documents: I will put all my important documents together like birth certificates, and marriage license.
If upon arrival at this new destination and I am told that I can only keep one of these items, this would be the hardest thing I would ever have to do because it is so disappointing to leave a part of oneself and history behind but if I have to choose I would choose my computer because as much as I love my family album which shows my family culture and our family over generations and my documents, my computer has all my documents, and family album which will help prove who I am.
The insights I have gained about myself include realizing how important my family, and family culture are less about material things but more about what I stand for, believe about my heritage which are very important to preserve the memories and life history to be passed down from generation to generation. These are the things that I pass on to my children and they can not be taken away from them. It is absolutely clear that the culture I am passing on to the next generations will make them have a sense of empowerment by their rich culture.
The insights I have gained about myself include realizing how important my family, and family culture are less about material things but more about what I stand for, believe about my heritage which are very important to preserve the memories and life history to be passed down from generation to generation. These are the things that I pass on to my children and they can not be taken away from them. It is absolutely clear that the culture I am passing on to the next generations will make them have a sense of empowerment by their rich culture.
This exercise has led me to think about people who are forced to leave their homes, communities, and counties to start a new life in a foreign country. They have to learn to adapt to cultural changes, shocks, and adopt new cultural opportunities that are not similar to their own while trying to preserve their own cultures.
References
Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington , DC
Video: “Family Cultures: Dynamic Interactions”
In this program, three early childhood professionals discuss culture, its nature and scope, including family culture diversity, and introduce ways to provide respect, support, and empowerment when working with Family Diversity.
In this program, three early childhood professionals discuss culture, its nature and scope, including family culture diversity, and introduce ways to provide respect, support, and empowerment when working with Family Diversity.
The exercise create a feeling of sympathy in my heart for people who are face with this type of a decision suddenly. You are right it hard to choose what part of your heritage you want to leave behind.
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