Well, this post will be a little different than the normal ones I have, and do not worry, an update on this past week is posted too!
I am going to talk a little about me and the culture I have.
I was born in Kentucky but mainly raised throughout Florida and Georgia. All of these states are in the Southern part of the USA. Now, there is a little something you should know about the South. We are the SOUTH. What I mean is that we have our own subculture within the culture of America. We are patriotic, outspoken and God-fearing. We love fried foods and American football is a religion, with hunting a close second. What is interesting about our culture is also our speech. Not just the noticeable drawl that many expect when I say I am from Georgia, but also the sweet terms we use. For most people who are around me, you have probably been called any or all of these things:
~Baby
~Sweetheart
~Doll
~Babe
~Bae
I think you get the idea. These are terms of endearment that we in the south use just as commonly as your first name when we are speaking with you. I have gotten so used to saying them, I barely notice when I say them until the person I am talking with points it out. I have used these terms with everyone from my fallen angels at the juvenile detention center to my best friends. Eventually I get around to giving you a personal nickname and you will get called that in addition to the sweet names that most southerners use. It is part of who I am, and possibly as southern as I get, maybe even 'more' southern than most southerners in this area!
There are also phrases, such as:
~Well bless their heart. (this can be really meant or sarcastic)
~Poor baby/poor thing
~My word!
~Child! (this can and will be said to anyone, of any age. It is just our thing.)
~Boi! (pronounced as 'boy' with a slight 'oi' sound at the end of it. Can be used as a terror endearment, like I do, or as frustration with a man/boy/guy)
~Y'all (this is a southern conjunction of the words 'you' 'all'. And yes, we all say this in the south.)
Here at the base we have culture nights once a week since we have so many people from different countries. This next week, the USA has our culture night here. We get to make dinner and share some prayer requests for our country. On the menu for that night, the Americans in our Discipleship Training School and School of Worship have decided to make fried chicken, corn on the cob, potato wedges and sweet iced tea with apple cobbler for dessert. Mhm. That is right. Sounds awfully southern, doesn't it? A comment was made by one of the students of the SOW, "When I think of American food, the only thing I can really think is truly American is southern food." What a compliment for my area of the Nation. It is amazing. (My participation in this dinner idea was the sweet tea. Gotta have sweet tea.) They came up with all the other items. Awesomeness. Epic win. (pics next week!)
So I am learning the value of my own culture that I come from. Normally it is very hard for me to identify with where I am from, because I have moved around so much. Thankfully I have also had the benefit of of my experiences here in Hong Kong, where I my own ideas and culture have been influenced by the diversity of the people that come, go and stay here. I have come to see the beauty of so many different cultures, which now includes my own culture and seeing the beauty of it as well. (no offense to my American friends reading this post, but considering that most of American culture is a melting pot, finding something we can truly call our own is hard! Example: all American breakfast: Canadian bacon, French toast and an English muffin. Yeah. 'all-American'. See the problem I have had?!)
Anyways, this is part of who I am (especially the words and phrases, haha) and I love learning about other cultures, and my own. So. Let me go work on that other blog post that y'all have waited on!
~*~Leave a Legacy that will Make a Difference in the World Around You.~*~
