When I moved to Toronto I felt at home. Growing up in Small Town Canada where I was notoriously part of the minority was...interesting. Coming to Toronto and seeing more of “my people" and "other's peoples" made me feel at home. I moved to the neighbourhood with the highest concentration of "my peeps" and enrolled in salsa lessons. I wore big hoop earrings, enunciated my accent and to this day I still hold J.Lo to be the ideal beauty. I know it all sounds so funny but it was so amazing to not feel weird because I didn't have blue eyes or couldn't pronounce the word shampoo.
So what happens when you are forced to get out of your segregated cultural bubble and co-exist with the rest of the minorities that beautify Toronto? Understanding other cultures is not just about eating their delicious (and sometimes not so delicious) food nor having polite conversations while shopping in Chinatown. How do you react when you really need to mix and mingle?
This is why this city is such a fantastic place to grow up! Every day we have an opportunity to go out of our shell and learn how to communicate with other cultures. This is our competitive advantage. We get to learn that if a new comer, who is not fluent in English, is having problems understanding us, the best way of communicating is not to yell but to slow down and simplify our ideas. We get to learn that when someone is being harsh (or what you consider rude) is never personal. These are just a few examples among many others, but my point is: cherish these opportunities, learn, really learn, about different cultures and get past the stereotypes. At the end of the day I think you'll be surprised as to how much we have in common.
Posts
Where is your home town TG?
Waterloo...home of the crackberry, you might have heard of it.