Just yesterday, I experienced a most delightful night of
essentially, intercultural communication. Let me give you an overview. In my
church, there is a community of Telugu believers, and many among them are construction workers. My friends from
church organised this special event to show our brotherly and sisterly
love for them, and I was there to help out. They were the VIPs for the night;
we Singaporeans barbequed food, served them and mingled with them.
That's us singing an action song! I'm in black on the left. My new Telugu friend, Aqulla, in orange, is behind the white table.
I observed that several Telugu stood in close proximity and had
no qualms about physical contact when chatting with us. This was definitely not
our usual mode of interaction. Once, when we took a photo together, Aqulla, my
new Telugu friend, asked me to shift closer to him, which I did gladly, and we
put our arms around each other’s shoulders. I deliberately reciprocated his warm gestures
so as to show him that I value him just as any other friend. Aqulla and I
exchanged numbers at the end of the night, and even shared with me some of the struggles
he faces at work. I was really touched by the warm-hearted Telugu, and also
surprised by how rapidly our relationships developed. It was not just between Aqulla
and I; my other Singaporean friends also had similarly wonderful though
unfamiliar experiences last night.
“No one in Singapore treats us so kindly. Some are even
afraid of us.” I quote this line from a Telugu representative during our closing
speech. It gave me mixed feelings. Though glad that they were blessed that
night, it pained my heart to know that this was an exceedingly rare occasion
for them, and that the next day, they would return to a harsh world. Therefore,
we should spread the word - to apply our understanding of cultural differences
and have an open, non-judgmental attitude towards the various ‘strange’
cultures.
Hi Jerick,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this hear-warming post. I am very glad that you and your other friends played a good host and made these guest from Telugu feel at home.
Sadly, I have to agree with you that this is indeed a very rare occasion for them, as the society tend to pass critical judgement of them.
As my dad is a construction contractor, he has many Blangadash workers. There are many instances where I interact with them as I will help my dad out during the vacation since primary school. Although they share a culture that is very diverse from me, I choose to be open-minded and interact with them. Most interestingly, I remembered vividly that it was one of my dad's worker who taught me how to use my hand and partake my food :)
Thus, I agree that we should "be the change we want to see in the world", famously quoted from Gandhi. Let's apply our understanding of cultural differences together :) Cheers!
That's awesome! I'm sure you have had eye-opening experiences with them. It is really crucial to keep an open mind and non-judgmental attitude. Yes, let's be the agents of change for the better =)
DeleteHi dear,
ReplyDeleteTis story made me see your inner Godly beauty, I thank God for that! Because on every occasion I read about your post, I can somehow find a sense of fellowship with you and God, amen to that.
"Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation." NIV Mark 16:15.
You were precisely doing what God intended Christians to do, and I have lots to learn in this respect from you, great brother. Everybody is equal in the sight of God, and I'm so sad to see that people in your country are discriminating against the darker skin colors, kinda like the situation of blacks in the US still.
Also, brother, what you were doing was pure sacrificial love, the kinda love that God had commandeth in the bible. How so? You mentioned:
"I deliberately reciprocated his warm gestures so as to show him that I value him just as any other friend. "
To do such a deliberate social action requires a very powerful motivation in the direction of love, Godly love. It requires that you must be doing it for God, and only God, for there to be this very powerful motivation. Because only doing it for God can make you want to put your arms around him, despite all personal, social, cultural inhibitions that, I imagined, must be racing through your brain. I fully applaud your Godliness, and I'm sure you will be richly blessed in the land which you inhabit. Amen to that. With that I should share a verse:
" 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. " 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Amen, may all your classmates and teachers drill this quote from Scripture into their hearts and minds.
Hi Caster,
Deletethanks for your affirmation =) I agree that even though people of several other races may induce unpleasant sensations in us, we must choose with our hearts and minds to love them. It helps to humble ourselves and see that we are all equally valuable in God's eyes. On the other hand, we also have the same human weaknesses as them.
Thank you again! God bless. I hope you have a wonderful week ahead :)
Jerick
As your previous readers have noted, this is a very heart-warming post. You focus on a very specific event, and within that, describe the idea of personal space and how the Telugu view that differently than many in Singapore (the Chinese Singaporeans in general). You've contextualized this well, too.
ReplyDeleteYou also touch on the issue of discrimination, which is evident in the quote from Aqulla that you share regarding how people fear the Telugu. It is so reassuring to know that there are groups of people in Singapore like your church who are trying to bridge the gap between the migrant workers (who, ironically, are invited here to do the work that most Singaporeans cannot do or wouldn't want to do at such a cheap labor price) and many local residents.
As I look at the photo of the church night though, I note that the Telugu are standing together, separated from the rest of your church. was that for a reason?
There is only one language issue here:
-- Aqulla and I exchanged numbers at the end of the night, and even shared with me some of the struggles he faces at work. >>> Aqulla and I exchanged numbers at the end of the night, and HE even shared with me some of the struggles he faces at work.
In any case, this is a fine post. Thank you, Jerick!
Hi Brad, I must say, you are sharp. Yes, I definitely acknowledge that grammatical error. I missed out the 'he'. You were also quick to notice the racial segregation in the photo. Rest assured it was not out of any discrimination. I can think of two sensible explanation based on my observation that night. Firstly, the Telugu were more enthusiastic then us Chinese. I noticed a couple of them calling their friends to the front as we were all gathering for this dance. Secondly, it might be because we Chinese had not fully become at ease with being among the Telugu.
DeleteThanks. I sure do hope for the Telugu to be more warmly welcomed in Singapore in the near future! =)