A Different Beat To Every Drum

Isn't it such a wonderful thing when the world comes together during events such as the World Cup, and the Olympics? There is a common ethic of sportsmanship between countries.  People who normally take no interest in the sport get together to support and stand by their country with a large sense of pride.  The amount of pride displayed is a beautiful thing, but at these times while we pride ourselves in our home country, we still commend other countries for their great athleticism.  What happens though when these games are not apparent.  I do not want to say this next thing is everywhere in the world, but after my traveling thus far, hell even in my home country, people defend and pride themselves in their home country as the "Right" way of living.  While I have spent the last couple of months out of the country I was scoffed at sometimes and even told by the people I was close with about all of the wrong things done by Americans.  They criticized the mannerisms, and the way/things we eat.  Don't get me wrong, America has its faults, as does every other place.  There is no "Perfect" or "Right" way of living.  What I did find however, there is a COMFORTABLE way of living.  A way in which we were raised that we find a sense of peace in, a sense of home.  Throughout the short time I have taught in a classroom I have always come across the lesson of the differences between people.  For some reason it is much easier to teach children, different people are like the ingredients to a good home cooked meal, or the different colors that make up a picture, without just one of them it would alter the entire outcome.  Children seam to understand much better than adults who have been hardened by the experiences of life, experiences in which we carry the negative much longer than the positive ones.

I have always been someone who has felt different myself, resulting in the embrace of many different types of people.  While traveling alone, I like to think I have opened my comfort zone even further over the last year.  Although I may not love some things in which I am not accustomed to, I do not think to close my mind to these ways of life, but to see them as a way in which others choose, and love.  The keys I'm finding in all of this is "Acceptance".  I am not saying we need to accept every way of life, I find that to be unrealistic at the time being, but what I am saying is we need to become accepting of people who live other ways without passing judgment.  We are all quick to judge others for their differences, yet to these other people, we are also different to them, it's just a matter of who is willing to accept and embrace those differences and who is quick to pass judgement for them.  We all have a different beat to our own drum, but the music we make is beautiful.