saturday-8 :: culture



Sometimes we fail to recognize how our own lives are effected by the culture that surrounds us. Several aspects of our lives are effected by our culture and so this week's questions will explore that. Some refer to parents and other family members. If they do not apply to you specifically, then answer them in terms of who were most responsible for your upbringing.



1. Do you have a specific and unique rule that you or your family follow at the dinner table? We wait until all parties are seated befoe eating. It's always unsettling when I dine at someone's home and the minute the food hits the table, everyone's reaching and digging in!



2. What is a specific activity, behavior or tradition that occurs in your family during certain holidays or birthdays? Everyone's birthday is celebrated individually. We don't aggregate all the birthdays in one month and have just the one celebration. In my family, each persons special day is treated like it's special.



3. How do the various members of your family greet each other? What about extended family such as cousins, aunts or uncles? We hug and kiss on the cheek. Especially children, they're usually first to be acknowledged.



4. How do you or your family treat visitors to your house? Are there different treatments for different visitors? If they're friends that the family knows, they're hugged. If not, they're enthusiastically greeted and spoken to. They're not left alone, either. The family tries to make them feel welcomed and inclusive.



5. What foods are special or unique to your family? Capirotada (a Mexican bread pudding), champurado (Mexican creamy hot chocolate drink), homemade banana cake, and jamming macaroni and potato salads.



6. What names do you use to call your grandparents or other older relatives? For grandmother grandma, for great grandmother nana.



7. What values have you learned from your parents? A strong work ethic, appropriate speach, good manners, self respect and dignity and allowing others to maintain and keep theirs.



8. From what countries have your ancestors immigrated? Mexico.



Culture plays a big part in all of our lives. We may have values the same or different than our grandparents, we may have a key word or phrase with special meaning to just our family, we may have a family of certain professions and there are ranges of topics we can and cannot discuss with our family, all of which is culturally driven. I hope you enjoyed thinking about and answering these.