We moved from Nashville, Tennessee, to Sydney, Australia for several reasons. High on the list was our desire to raise our kids in a more diverse environment. When we first arrived here, I got secret thrills when I'd find myself the only caucasian (anglo) person in a setting. Being a person who loves interacting with different cultures, it was nothing short of amazing to come here.
Last week I was in the parents' room at church, nursing Finch. I'd been in there for quite some time before my brain lazily made the observation that Finch and I were the only anglo people there. Last year I would have noticed it right away. Now it didn't make much of an impression on my brain.
Yesterday we went with our good friends to the Hunter Valley. On one hand, we had just another wonderful weekend with friends. On the other hand, if you break it down, we had all sorts of cultural experiences. Of our 12 friends, only one was anglo (well, his son is biracial so categorize him as you wish). We started at Hunter Valley gardens where we enjoyed a West African drum and dance workshop before walking the gardens for several hours. Then we continued on for cheese and wine tasting at various wineries before ending with gelato and the two hour ride home to Sydney.
Today, after church, we stayed on for the South Asian cultural celebration: food prepared by Sri Lankan and Indian members of the church, a Bollywood dance performance put on by the kids (complete with costumes), and a breakout dance session. So. Much. Fun. All of the South Asian people at church were wearing beautiful salwar kameez, the weather was great, the food was amazing, everyone was having a great time. The same was true several months ago when the whole church celebrated the Lunar (Chinese) New Year.
We attend an extension service of a really big church. In our extension service there are 300 members representing 33 different countries. It is probably only 30% anglo. I love the variety. Like our friend D who is African...Chinese. A Chinese minority African from Mauritius! Our children are surrounded by every shade of skin, and are not alone in balancing multiple languages, ethnicities, and cultures within their home. Mixed race marriages, biracial children, first and second generation immigrants, refugees, upper class professionals, all in our environment: friends.
It does not cease to amaze me that in that regard, this move has been more than I ever dreamed it could be. We walked off the plane into a different life and I have loved every minute.
After church today, The Captain dropped Finch and I at the house for a much needed nap, while he and the "big kids" continued on into the city for the Aroma Festival (tea, chocolate, coffee, and spices). In Nashville our efforts to connect across the boundaries of ethnicity, class, and culture were labored and ultimately, not very successful. Here, we are blessed to be a part of a group that doesn't identify differences as boundaries, but as wonderful spices that serve to enrich all of our lives.
That sounds awesome. I'm frustrated with how hard it is in most of the United States to cross cultural and racial lines. There seems to be such a need to self segregrate and I think that this is most prevalent among minorities themselves, which makes any meaningful cross cultural conversations difficult.
When we lived in Oakland it was different because most of my friends were different cultures and races, I was frequently the only white woman. I miss that, and I'm sad that it is so difficult to raise my children in a more inclusive environment.
Posted by: erinthebeekeeper | 19 July 2009 at 10:08 AM