The Road to Discovering Identity
It’s that time again…Summer travels are Right around the corner! During my travel immersion trips, I place a big emphasis on learning where you are, learning who you are, and learning whom you are among with a “hands on, ALL-in, Open-Minded” approach. Not only are you seeing and stepping foot into history, you are eating and drinking it, quite literally in fact. Everything you experience and see, especially the people you encounter, all have a possibility to shape the person you will become if you will be open-minded enough to let things soak in… If you allow yourself ask many questions…And seek answers to those questions… If you invest time in being enlightened and enlightening others… The course of my life changed when I started traveling and sought to learn about others, it in turn allowed me to learn about myself and my culture not only about others and their culture… And I am a better person today because of this.
What does that mean? Well, let me start by saying this. As an American, we are always told we are a “baby country.” That really doesn’t mean anything unless we leave our country to understand for ourselves what that means. Hence tying in learning “who” you are mentally, culturally, as a nation, etc.
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
My first solo abroad trip was to Rome, Italy, with the University of Texas Rome Study Program in 2007. Let me tell you, when I first saw the Colosseum and the grandiose Piazza Venezia it’s just something that you have never seen before as an American. We have probably all seen the pretty historically inaccurate “Gladiator,” so we know about “il colosseo” or the colossuem, but being there and looking up at something that for us could be as big or even bigger as a sky scraper, but older than anything we have seen before (if it’s our first journey to the old world sites), really gives one perspective. The perspective is what ever you take from it, what it means to you, how you feel when you see something, how you react, and so forth. My favorite part of traveling, in fact, is that it’s a dynamic learning adventure and acquiring new perspectives.
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
I remember standing in front of Piazza Venezia in awe, just wondering how they did so much back then. Then I went to The Pantheon, and thought, “How and Why did ancient Romans even come up with the idea to build the first round building in the world?” What’s even more so astounding is that the Pantheon is in PERFECT proportion…The distance from the floor to the top of the dome is Exactly equal to its diameter. How did they get so much precision back in the day? It remains the tallest unsupported building in the world and was the tallest in the world for 1300 years! Thus I think it’s still a marvel to today.
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
To me, these questions I asked myself is precisely what I mean by discovering identity. I asked questions and discovered where I am, and whom I am with. Who are the Italians? Even today, they are originators of exquisite fashion, architecture, style, food, a life is worth living every second kind of lifestyle… I can go on and on about what I’ve been learning. Au contraire, it also made me think about America. Who are we as a culture? What are our impacts on the world? On people in the world? What is our legacy, our food from our country, our style? This all led me to discover who I feel we are as a people and how I fit in to all of this. Thankfully I can stay uber relevant and tie in the Lifetime Story I just watched on Meghan Markle, soon to be THE American Princess in Great Britain. Why is this relevant? This moment is changing traditions of British history, and tying in a modernization to a monarchy older than America. This may in fact help us Americans be looked at in a better global light. Trust me, it has been in decline Again (but we have our ups and downs as does everyone) since at the least November 2016; The most recent of turmoils that is.
Why do I feel the American-British Royal marriage is going to affect not only us but can be globally, a big deal for us Americans? Because it makes people look again at their identities and how they are reshaping. It’s an important first time for history, period! First biracial African-American royal in British history, and let’s not forget the last King, Edward the VIII, who married an American and had to abdicate the throne which caused a constitutional crisis, which threatened the stability of the monarchy!
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
Look at me now! Sorry, look at us now lol…Ballsy moves going down. Even down to the fact that divorcees weren’t even allowed to step foot in the royal court up until the 1970’s, and now one to marry Prince Henry. Times are a-changing as they should be and always will! Our identities as a nation and people of a nation change along with it. If you are the same person you were ten years ago, you should assess if that is a good thing for you and the people around you. No one is born perfect, there is not really a “perfect” anyhow, meaning we should all strive to improve ourselves and our lives the best we can whilst being good examples for the people around us… Even if others aren’t a good example to you…
That will entirely be another blog; How your worst pains can lead to your biggest triumphs! I learned to pour love and understanding in the people who hurt me the most. When you do this you have no doubt you did everything possible and everything in your power, in the right way, so there should be no regrets and nothing to be sorry for. The end result in my case? Pretty much every single person who did me wrong ended up apologizing to me…randomly even years later. Even when I haven’t thought of them anymore nor had any contact, maybe it weighed on their hearts, or maybe my seeds of love and forgiveness sank through so deep that they were able to see a better way for themselves to live, and better way to treat others and learned from their mistakes. That is all that one should want. Not to hurt others how they have hurt you. There is not true peace nor comfort in that. I’ve forgiven all in my own way long ago, and let it go… This is better for one to do. Why hold pain and sorrow when you have suffered enough? As Elsa on Frozen said, “Let it goo, Let it goooo!” You reap what you sow, and I learned to sow love and forgiveness, and what you reap is strength… Especially when you feel there is absolutely nothing left, THAT moment is when you see how strong you truly are…That is the moment you should realize your triumphs. Blog Sneak peek over.
People have not always said the best things about Americans. Sentiment is always up and down, that’s life, just like the stock market…. Up and down. Sentiment went back up during the Obama era (from a global standpoint) then back down with all of this gun violence and non-love for our current president, then they will go back up and so on.
Just like the peace and denuclearization talks of North Korea, this has happened time and time before with Clinton and Obama and now again. As individuals all we can really do is learn as much as we can about everything and should hopefully strive to PASS ON a better understanding to our next generation so we can hopefully make a positive impact that will again be passed on. I’m old enough and more aware of the way the real world works to think the same issues will ever really disappear, but I do know it would help in any event to learn how to communicate effectively and spend the time to educate and enlighten others with a caring heart, you will reap that in return.
Thus what I have been doing for my entire life’s work… Taking the time to culture, educate, enlighten, and make as much positive impact as possible in any way possible, which is my part of building a better future, in hopes we do it together. Tying this back to my thoughts that this American-British union will help us all on a global scale to build a more accessible and better world by sticking a fork in racism, updating old school thinking that isn’t relevant to the times, and shutting down the fact that elitist and supremacists thoughts matter… Thankfully they DON’T. There is always opposition, it’s how you behave and how you handle it that matters most.
High school anecdote for you: I was being picked on/bullied by a few girls in 9th grade and couldn’t understand Why when I was brought up to be kind to everyone, and pray for those who hurt you.. I was quiet, always smiled, and did nothing provoking to anyone nor stepped on anyone’s toes… I spoke with my sister when I was upset one day and explained it to her, she said, “Jess, not everyone is going to like you…” I said, “But why? What am I doing wrong? What am I doing at ALL to ANYONE?!?! I keep to myself, and I’m kind to everyone, I don’t have a boyfriend, I am not a cheerleader and not in the “popular” kid crowd even though I am friends with everyone, why are girls being mean to me?!”
She replied more or less in these words… “It doesn’t matter, they will be jealous of who you are, your smile, your good grades, the fact that you don’t do anything to anyone when they are doing things to you… Whether you do something or not, jealous people will find a reason to be angry and say mean things, and if you give them no attention it will make them even more upset, and that’s life. Just continue to do what you do and don’t pay any attention to them and high school will be over in the blink of an eye and they will still be click-y mean girls probably who will not go far in life because a bad attitude wont get you far, and You will be doing bigger and better things in life and never see them again so what will this tiny amount of time matter? It wont…” Wise words Mel, and I obviously have never forgotten them. Thanks for always being a great big sis to me. End of “opposition” anecdote.
That story ties in to everything in life. No matter if it’s work, politics, your siblings, what ever the case is, no one will get along with everyone, so opposition will always be there. However, I believe we can help this issue with those around us, as individuals. If those mean girls parents knew how they behaved, maybe they would have done something. But maybe it could help in the first place to instill in them from a young age that you should love one another, and be kind to people even if they aren’t kind to you… Wouldn’t that be something that might help? Who knows for certain, but what you see from a young age stays with you. I have another anecdote which supports this in my own experience.
I’ve met a man from the Midwest who was outwardly close minded and didn’t deny the fact he was “a bit” racist. So instead of me acting emotional and slamming down condescending questions or looks at him when I saw this, I took time to understand where he was coming from. He straight up told me he was just raised this way and that’s how his parents were. Sad, but instead of just leaving it there, I took the time to plant another seed, a good seed. He came to his own conclusion based upon the example I showed him (another blog story) and he was seeing another light. I don’t speak to him or anything but he lived in the same place as me for 2 months so just by planting a better seed over that course of time I was able to see a difference in him, and I thought, if I can help him, maybe I can help many. I was then encouraged and knew it is possible to make a change, just keep going and do it on a bigger scale.
The Royal marriage IS a bigger scale, a LOT bigger. Can you see the impact that it could potentially have on the next generations to come? I can. I was told I was a “see-r” as opposed to a “dreamer,” so this is what I see. On the one hand there is more outspoken racism in America and the world than I’ve ever seen in my lifetime, and on the other hand, I see this tremendous example of people of great influence and power on a global playing field showing their support to diversity and global change. This is EXACTLY what I’m about! Affecting history and shaping the future for the better. Now our identity as Americans, will be tied even more so to Britain and the world on a different level. I don’t know how yet, but if someone from a blue collar, non aristocrat family, who is also the first biracial African-American to become a princess in a highly traditional monarchy where rules are never meant to be broken, can become a princess and change the game, it makes me hopeful that there are good things coming. Congratulations Duke and Duchess of Sussex!
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
If you are a traveler it is important to know about current events, especially political ones. Not only do people ask you all around the world question such as “what do you think about gun control, or Hilary vs Trump (when that was happening), what do you think about the peace talks in North and South Korea?” Do you really not care to have something to say? If you don’t that’s incredibly boring and uninteresting; How long do you expect to carry on an intelligent conversation with anyone? Even any conversation with anyone? I’m not only speaking about politics, learn about as much as everything you can from people who know about it. I am very keen on being well rounded, and adding to my repertoire of knowledge. There is SO much interesting things out there I have learned from people all over the world that I share and they share to others and so forth. It’s a beautiful thing. I’m avid on learning about as many subjects as possible, learning interests me so it’s not a chore to ask questions and listen to interesting answers.
This allows me to meet very intelligent people who add to my character and knowledge, and it leads to more and more intelligent and interesting people and thus I find my life full of amazing, wonderful, and beautiful people inside and out. Genuine people are increasingly hard to find, so when they do come across, I never take them for granted and those people and I end up becoming close, family, if you will, even if they are in reality very near and dear close friends. I don’t throw the word family around easily however, everyone must be careful because those closest to you can hurt you the most as we all know. They say you are who you hang out with, and I choose to be surrounded by people who uplift me, as I uplift them. Life is too short to be surrounded by people who want to do you harm, or who aren’t symbiotic with you, so do yourself a favor and end your toxic relations and your life will feel more and more uplifted by each passing day… “Bye Felicia!”
In discovering identities I found that there are many people who don’t care about anything or anyone except themselves, it is a type of person that I can now pretty easily spot. Some people are very good at hiding out in the open, but once you have had many experiences with seeing this type of person, red flags pop out everywhere even when they think they are hiding. Let’s relate this to traveling. My sister went to Florida with one of her best friends back in the day… And she was held down (by a shackle) by this person the entire time. Not caring what my sister wanted to do, complaining all the time, didn’t want to do anything except be in the bar etc… Biggest tip I can give you, Don’t travel with ANYONE who you even think may be spoiled or who you even think may cramp your style. It will save you a HUGE headache. This happened to two of my very good friends… They ended up fighting and not speaking for a while.. It took a little while but I’m happy to say I helped bring them back together because they are both beautiful and amazing people and what they went through was typical group traveling faux pauxs. They are even closer and best friends to this day! 🙂 But during the turmoil I told to both of them, if you are going to travel with a group this should be a RULE that everyone should speak out loud to not cause any confusion or issues in the future…
“We are all grown people, if we want to hang out as a group we can if we all would like to, but absolutely NO ONE has to do everything that everyone is doing. You do you, we do we, we meet up when we want to, we leave when we want to and come back when we want, no one has to feel like they can’t do anything by themselves because after all this is ALL of our vacations and we do what we want! As long as everyone is ok with this, and symbiotic and has no issues with this, then we can try this group vacation out but there will be no expectations and if we need alone time we all deserve it and all equally deserve to take it.”
This is the biggest thing I find when I run into group travelers, they say oh it’s Sooo hard to get everyone on the same page, someone wants to sleep in and someone wants to go out, we want to go to different restaurants etc.. And I say, well, why don’t you? Are you their mom or dad? Are you responsible for them? If not, then this is just as much your vacation as theirs. Do not mistake this for being selfish, it is selfish for anyone to force another person to do something against their will. If no harm is being done, and everyone are friends on the same page just wanting to have a good time and do their thing, then it’s a good and healthy vacation to do just that.
Just be respectful to everyone, such as you shouldn’t blare loud music at 4 am while others are sleeping, this would be an example of selfishness and disrespect. Unless the others say they don’t mind that going on in their common living quarters, then you should be respectful enough to abide by house rules. I actually prefer to travel solo then meet up with friends, because it’s just easier that way on everyone. Speaking of identity, you really find out who you are and people are when you travel / live together. It’s how you handle situations is when you find out who you are and who people are. Everyone makes mistakes because no one is perfect, but you should do what you can to not add fire to any situation, it makes it easier on you and everyone else. It’s a learning lesson for sure, and that is why I can advise on this, I have had many roommate issues in my day and traveling issues in general so I can advise on how to alleviate certain situations. We have all gone through tough situations, that is life, if you choose to learn from mistakes and issues, you are better equipped to not let the same thing happen in your future.
Continuing on about being better equipped for travel and your future, when you travel and take the time to learn about the culture and people you are visiting it WILL make you more equipped to handle more situations and handle more travel. You build upon your travels and increase your database of culture and travel knowledge with each new place you discover. If you just go to a place and can’t be bothered to learn about anything meaningful, and just go bar hopping and to clubs, is it not right if people think you are ignorant, or spoiled, or arrogant? What about if you don’t even learn ONE word of that country you are in, is that not both ignorant and possibly arrogant? Are you one of those people who expects someone who comes to America to speak English? Even one word?
Point being, if you have expectations on others and don’t put those expectations on yourself that is both arrogant and ignorant and it’s no wonder why people from other cultures think the way they do if you behave that way. If you dish out that kind of disregard it is only your own fault for adding to that identity we have been stuck with since forever. Like I said, if you learn ONE word, which is INCREDIBLY easy, just ONE.. They will already respect you more than the rest! So what’s the big deal? Just do it. Learn “Thank you” and I promise you will see beautiful reactions and results. “Oh my goodness you are American and you can say thank you in my language?! WOW that is so rare!” Do you know how many times I have heard that? TOO many to count, but I receive respect and better service and smiles every single time, so there is no downfall in trying. PS as I said in my other article, “There is no try, there is only do.”
Don’t throw away opportunities to learn about a culture when you are in another country, it will surprise you how learning about others will impact your life, and in return teach you about youself. The reason I said to learn thank you is that is shows much more than you know “one” word or phrase in another language. It shows respect, a deep appreciation, and care. It shows more than knowing, Hi, or Bye, or Money, or bathroom, it shows that you are there to be respectful and learn about Them and show them you are Not that stereotypical American traveler because you are Trying to be a good example and showing them that we are a changing nation, one that is trying to shake our previous stereotypes, one that is more respectful towards others.
Please don’t learn the cuss words or beer First; It’s so terribly stereotypical, useless, trashy and embarrassing. For example, if you know how to say F* you, are you going to go up to someone any say,”F* You! (In their language) It’s great to meet you!” I think not. It’s useless. Sure you can learn them later it’s natural to learn things along the way, but they expect all you know is the bad words and unfortunately, I’ve seen it a lot. Why would you want to know only bad things if you can’t speak them, nor will they help you get close to anyone nor their culture…? I’ve learned that this is really part of the identity we have as Americans, they expect us to only ask for the bad words, if we want to know anything, and I’ve been to Europe on and off for 10 years now, I’ve met SO many people, and there is a lot of truth to these things. Of course, You probably aren’t one of the people I’m referring to if you are reading my article, so HAT’S OFF TO YOU!
They love when you ask them, “How do you say “this or that” in your language?” It will give you so much to speak about and not only that, you will build upon that as I said, and many languages coincide, so it will help you in your travels. I can get around in 10 languages now. Ten! Yes when you don’t use them you lose them, but before I go to another country I brush up on them again so it’s fresh and it helps. My Spanish and Italian aren’t used regularly but I am able to upkeep them the best. But it only took me three months to learn Flemish, which is what they speak in Belgium. Which happens to be darn close to Dutch, which I just found out recently is close to Afrikaans! So I was in Los Angeles speaking to someone, she spoke Afrikaans to me and I was completely able to understand and respond! BOOM baby BOOM! When I’m traveling obviously languages comes back easily after a few days, all I have to do is try. Besides having things to speak about and being able to relate to someone else on another level, learning about another persons culture can allow you to be safer during your travels. What is accepted? What is not? What is the state of the country right now, is it a good time for me to travel?
Image that you didn’t know about the military coup d’etat in Turkey in 2016 and you planned a trip there. You would be up the creek and without a paddle! Even if it was over by the time you wanted to go, by a week or a month it definitely wouldn’t be the best time to travel to a devastated country when wanting a relaxing vacation. But you wouldn’t know if you didn’t care to look into the country before just deciding to go or to the political situation. Would you be proving the people right who thinks we are ignorant, but most of all yourself? Probably so.
I ran into this when in Ibiza last year. I met some Americans who literally came one day AFTER every single party on the island was finished…LMAO! Not everyone goes there to party however, there are beautiful beaches and incredibly relaxing things to do, but in their case they specifically went there to party. Just so you know, the party season starts in April and ends mid October more or less so there’s an insane amount of time to get there if your purpose is to party. So if you are going there just to have fun with people from all around the world and arrive one day after the clubs are open for half of a year, I’m going to laugh and ask you why you didn’t bother look into anything before buying a plane ticket and advise you do that for future travel.
Simple mistakes can be avoided with research. DO IT! I don’t know every single thing I’m going to do when I travel. I’m the queen of spontaneity, but I’m highly knowledgeable about when is the best time to go to places, that is literally the first question you should ask, then from there you can wing it and have guidelines of what you want to do, and do it at your pace and add things you learn about etc, but the point is I always have ideas of what historic things I want to check out, and especially what food from the country I absolutely MUST try and wine as I am a bona fide wine aficionado… Guidelines are always helpful, but I do tend to always wing it. Just make sure it’s a good and safe time to go if it’s a country you are unsure about and it’s during the season in which you seek.
Many around the world identify us as not knowing much, even about our own country. Why would anyone not want to know about things happening around us? I swipe my iPhone left and read the apple news constantly throughout the day and it automatically refreshes, it’s SO simple. If you want to invest, you should definitely know what’s happening in the world, one little thing can make or break you on a trade. Let’s work on changing the negative parts of our global identity that has stuck to us as Americans. I combat that ALL of the time by just being me. I’m not trying to be someone or something, this is who I am. I love languages, culture, meeting people, getting to know about others ways of life and what they typically eat, how they dress, their customs, their travels etc, it all interests me. I understand not everyone is like me, but I am just saying that you should try learning about others and it will surprise you and you may surprise yourself when you find yourself interested in things you are learning and seek to learn more, and try new things.
There are so many interesting things to learn, see and do! So much delicious food to learn about which may give you your next travel destination. For example, did you know that in every single region in Italy they are known for a specific, food, risotto, or pasta? How many pastas can there be? Hundreds! So many you can’t even imagine. If you love pesto like I do, you MUST go to Liguria, where pesto was first made. Cinque Terre is in Liguria, and Genova where Cristofo Colombo is from! You may know him as Christopher Columbus, no he was Not Spaniard he was an Italian who worked for the Spaniards. Boom. The pesto is out of this world there… Why? Let’s talk about soil. If you are not aware, soil and it’s properties gives distinct flavors and tastes, which is wine tastes different from everywhere down to the square inch it is from. In Burgundy, France the monks mapped out precicesly each square inch of land and each place has a different quality hence the better soils on the plateaus which the sun hits has the best flavors thus the most expensive… So pesto is made from basil, cinque terre means “5 lands,” they look like 5 different mountains, the basil on these mountains which are on the sea have a very distinct flavor and are naturally sweeter, thus no matter what you do, you will never try the same pesto around the world unless you have the basil from where it’s from. AMAZING!
Did I just blow your mind?! lol Maybe you didn’t know about these things, maybe you never even thought about these things, but I learned about it so I could pass it on to YOU! And inspire you to get out there and travel and try these things that you can only have in certain parts of the world! I just gave you a bunch of cultural lessons in this blog, that’s how easy it is to spread knowledge and interesting facts about other cultures. Get out there and do the same! People see in me that we are interested in culture and we ARE a culture of cultures, and many say, “But you are different Jess. Not everyone is like you.” I respond with, “Maybe you are right, I am different, but I am very happy to say that more and more people are with alike thinking nowadays in America and eager to learn and explore and become global citizens, and I’m so happy for this!”
I always come back with the positives I see. Enlightening others to the fact we are changing for the best which helps our global outlook even if it is on a relatively small scale. Think of gossip and how it spreads, spreading good things about our changing society is great! If you think, “Why do you care what people think?” It’s not about what people think, it’s about my passion in life, educating people and spreading the good word. I educate people on everything I’m able to, and receive education from people around the world on everything I’m able to learn about which helps one become incredibly well rounded and adept in life to handle many situations. One such thing I like to educate about are current events, and Americans striving to become global citizens IS a current event; Americans being more global and choosing to become educated in other countries’ affairs and cultures it’s Definitely something to CELEBRATE! So do not mistake this about being vain or insecure, I’m celebrating out triumphs as a nation, it’s about time people, EMBRACE & EDUCATE!
Of course I also wish to share the positive notes about the American identity I have found along the way. Going back to the Lifetime Meghan and Harry episode I saw where Brit’s and American ex-pats married to aristocrats in London were commenting about Americans, I was actually quite happy and surprised with what I heard. I’ve earlier discovered this about us, but what they mentioned was Americans also are identified as being very warm people, welcoming, who are very inviting, and giving (such as the best tippers); For example they may give you a big ol’ hug when they meet you and are very open and friendly. And as I mentioned earlier we are at times times ballsy. Such as in 2015 there was a terror attack on the “15:17 to Paris” train (Also the name of the movie Clint Eastwood is producing where the three American heroes play themselves), and three American friends took down a guy stabbing people on the train and saved countless lives. Ballsy!
Many could have done it, an entire train full of people, but it takes chutzpah to do what they did. I am not meaning this in a way that I am dissing any other person or culture, by the way, just expressing that I feel admiration for the bravery. I love this about my culture; That in the face of danger, there are many people here (and I know of course around the world, I’m not saying it is only us but my point comes in a minute) who will fight for what is right. Everyone from around the world say “Americans are very patriotic. They are proud to be Americans,” which in some way can be said negatively as in it leads to a certain arrogant attitude but mostly it is said in a very good way, that other people do not always find that same kind of sentiment about their country and it’s mostly something nice to see. I attribute this patriotism to why we are willing to fight for what we believe, maybe it just looks ballsy, but what ever your take is on this, they saved many lives on the train that day, and that is something to be celebrated.
I probably mentioned this in another article but I will say it again, someone I met abroad told me Americans were “too friendly, and you can learn someone’s entire life story sitting next to them in a bar.” I said, “Too friendly? Interesting. Why would you think that?” And he told me he sat at a bar alone one time in Houston, and some Texan next to him and ended up doing just that. He even insisted that he buy all of his drinks because the Brit was a guest in our country. Judging by the deep conversations he said they shared I hypothesized that they ended up exchanging numbers and becoming friends who have still seen each other on occasion, so I asked him if that was so. (By the way I must mention that they were two straight men before you insinuate that it’s probably because it was a hot girl or something… No, it in fact it was just a friendly Texan wanting to make a Brit feel welcomed). He said, “Yes, he bought all my drinks and we realized that we frequently do business in the same places so we also exchanged numbers and now even our families have become very close friends!”
I responded with, “Well you are lucky that you came to Texas… I’m not trash talking, but not ALL Americans are as friendly as Texans. Have you been to LA, Miami or New York yet?” (My dad is from New York and I was born in California and Love Miami so again, no trash talk here, just observations based upon many many many times traveling to those places). We had a big laugh but I also proved a point. It’s better to be friendly than unfriendly, and you never know who will become life long friends from sitting next to someone at a bar! I have amazing friends from all over the world because I’m friendly, and no matter what people say, it’s an asset and not a flaw. Embrace it.
I want to also mention the fact that our identities as Americans have been changing with this political strife. I’m pleased to see that more people are caring about the “state of our union,” the news, current events, and politics, thus making actual change in America, and making us more informed citizens and stepping towards more informed global citizens. How do I know this? Because of statistics and watching/reading a lot of news. No, not fake news, but real news. One recent example is seeing thousands and thousands teachers striking during these past few months because they are grossly underpaid and lack supplies for their kids. Without education how can we do anything? They should be paid better. They are involving themselves more into politics and trying to make a difference and in fact Are making a difference when they now have more funding, even if it’s not exactly what they asked for, it’s about time they are rewarded for all of their hard work!
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
Also when I see more people joining political careers because they are tired of how things are done, that says it all right there. There aren’t just movie stars, and entertainment figures more involved with politics, but also many of those teachers in the lowest paid teaching jobs in the country are stepping up and running for local office to influence change on education and lack of funding… Amazing. More involvement, and forcing a change. A good change at that. My education was a great one (not private either), and my teachers have helped shaped me and educated me in a great way and they should have enough pay and supplies so they can carry this on.
Even something so simple as newspaper subscriptions going up tells you there is more interest in what’s going on in America and the world, and I also read there’s more people applying to be lawyers/higher enrollment in law school. People are tired of how things are, and it’s about time that we identify ourselves as people who care about the state of our country. Not just brush things off, because bad things can result when you brush things off. I might even say you may not be happy with who becomes our future president during the next election if you just brush things off. All these examples points to a greater time of awareness; In ourselves, our country, our goals, our identity, and what we stand for.
This is a refreshing change! We ARE realizing that only we can make change happen. This is a little note for all who think Americans are still stagnant, my friends, we are Not… FINALLY! I’m proud that this much needed change in thinking and acting is going around like wild fire. We need to encourage more people to be like this to combat the opposition that will Always be there. We are more and more discovering ourselves and finding our identity, and finding we have a greater purpose and causes. Look at the Parkland students who became gun control advocates, regardless of what you think about gun control they have identified themselves as people who want change and stricter laws and are doing something about it in ways they deem fit; Much like the teachers who are striking and are now receiving the much needed funding because education deserves to be looked at just as much as a wall or military funding, no one would be anywhere without education. Not even that politician or lobbyist who is fighting for the wall or military funding, or any other job you can think of that requires you to excel above the rest, no one would be anywhere without education, period.
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
Even if it Is self taught, education gets you places. Do you think Steve Jobs and Bill Gates just automatically knew things? They dropped out of fine institutions, but they were incredibly smart. They studied in a fashion that suited them better and faster than the schools were offering to them. So dropping out doesn’t mean they didn’t study or learn, they learned quicker by themselves and not everyone has that kind of skill. Education is, in my opinion, the basis of getting you anywhere in life. Even if it’s sports, athletes are scouted where? Unless there is some kind of exception they are scouted in schools and Universities. I went to The University of Texas with world class athletes, and they all had to do well in studies or not play. I know this because many of them are still my friends and were back then so I know what they had to go through in order to to play.
Do you want to be identified as someone who is of quality, with a good character and chutzpah? (I love that word!) However you wish to be, we must look at ourselves and see if it’s someone we like or don’t like and strive to be better no matter what your beliefs are. If we learn about others and learn how to communicate effectively, and spend time to educate others, then we have more of a chance to be presented with views we might never have come across before and to share your views with others and to shape our own views. It is only when you see views other than your own can you even understand what Your view is because you have no comparison unless you see or hear about some differing views. Right?
(Photo is not our photo it was found on google search engine)
This is discovering your identity and precisely why traveling helps us “discover who WE are,” not only who we are visiting. To build a better you and a better world, it starts with US and discovering how we can shape a better future by discovering our identity and learning how to shape it for the best. I urge all of your to ask questions when you travel, ask what people honestly think of Americans, and in which way, and why. Be open to constructive and educational conversations and try to put emotions at bay so we can all learn and teach how to be more understanding and become more enlightened, better citizens of the world. Thank you for reading and I hope you have a lot to give and receive a lot of knowledge about others when you travel next! 🙂 Buon viaggio! Bon Voyage!
Disclaimer: All Photos depicted from google search, tumblr, pintrist or other search engines are not our property. We do not own or have copyright of those photos. They can be found using google search leading to links to the appropriate sites. This blog is owned by an educational nonprofit organization and not by Couture Travel. Couture Travel does not claim any legal responsibility for the blog as it is solely owned by an educational nonprofit and is allowing the nonprofit to share their travel story blog through this platform to educate students and the masses about the benefits of experiential education. Couture travel does not benefit from any of the nonprofit’s blog content. Couture Travel supports giving back to charities and nonprofits who have a positive mission, and seeks to help nonprofits get their mission statements out, thus allowing them to use the platform for free. Please feel free to write Viva La Vida for any questions or concerns.
#Identity #GlobalCitizens #MakeChangeHappen #aBetterYou #HaveNoFear #SeekLearn
