Thursday, October 6, 2011

Culture & Socialization

Reading "Lives Across Cultures" by Gardiner & Kosmitzki.

There are things about my own culture and I want to appreciate the culture and society I grew up in:
  • As an infant, I remember sleeping in a crib and occasionally on with my parents. The crib, though, was always close enough to the parents room where they could always keep in watch. As we grew older, my siblings and I started sleeping in one room together. Two on a bunk bed, one on a coffee table, and the other on the floor inbetween the table and the bunk bed. We slept this way for about 10-15 years until we moved out to a bigger place where we now all have our own rooms. But when my brothers come back from college, we have no problem rooming together and sleeping in the same room because we grew up this way. In the future, I would probably place my kids in the same room, it brings more intimacy and lead the kids to be closer in the future. Separating them into different rooms would bring about too much individualism, wanting to create their own identity too soon, and a want for privacy at an early age.
  • In terms of eating preference, I probably would draw closer to eating rice with all my meals, preferably with veggies and meat. My dad was always a person who couldn't be satisfied to eat a meal without meat or else he'll be hungry fast, so I'm the same way. Things like hamburgers and American fast food turn me off to eating, lol.
  • With the choices that my aging relatives have made in life.. I see that my grandparents from my mothers side are very happy. They raised four girls that grew up to all be pretty successful, have kids of their own, and are very fortunate in their life. Their own daughters keep in touch with them all the time and they live with the eldest one. My grandma always has something to brag about, either whether about her own children or her grandchildren. My grandpa is very satisfied at his old age too, he's 90 years old and still does all the house chores at home as well as the gardening. He made wise choices such as giving up smoking which led him to a healthier life style. On the other hand, my grandmother from my father's side is an amazing women but I'm not sure how happy she is with her life. I know for sure she definitely trusts God with all of her heart and she's still living a pretty healthy life, but she doesn't have all of her children by her side all the time. Because her husband died, she's alone most of the time taking care of all the house chores and taking care of herself, and it seems that she's a little lonely. Thats why my heart breaks for her because she has the best heart in the world and too bad she can't come to America to live with us because she'll nag about all the flaws in our home. My mom seems to be living the greatest in life right now. God has been dropping a whole bunch of greatness in her life and she feels like now is her prime. She's wiser, she's more active, she's more experienced, and she overcame so many things. Now is her time, and she's making all the choicees that satisfy not only her but God. My dad, on the other hand, seem to

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