The little things..

It’s the little things that make you realize you feel at home that are the most important while living abroad. Its not the big trips or wild adventures that matter most but the small moments that make you smile and bridge the culture you are from to the culture you now live in.

Last week I allowed students to play with and braid my hair. It sounds like nothing, but this simple act, this girly activity, finally connected me to the students I spend everyday with. Letting them brush and braid my hair made me somehow more real to them, less scary and intimidating. Plus it was comforting to me as anyone who knows me knows that having my head “petted” is my number one comfort. After finishing my French braid the students stayed gathered around me to talk and giggle. They tried harder to communicate with me than they ever had and followed me around for the rest of the afternoon. Everyday after classes students now come to talk to me, they sit near me during extracurricular activities and run to help me when I am carrying my things to school, greeting me in English with smiles and waves. Students now approach me without the shyness and fear they previously had. They now take the time to communicate with me, to learn new words and phrases while we are not even in class. If I had known that letting them play with my hair would have had such a dramatic effect I would have done it weeks ago!

I also introduced my roommates to American music the other night as well. I plugged my I-pod into its speaker and danced and sang to music while helping to prepare dinner. Before I knew it my two female roommates were dancing along with me and we were having a full blown dance party. We laughed and sang together, and made up silly dance moves. The atmosphere of my house completely changed and we had the most carefree and fun evening I have had thus far in my new home with my roommates. Plus they gave me the greatest compliment of all, they said I danced like Michael Jackson!

It was important for me to realize that I can implement parts of my culture into my home. I do not have to completely ignore the parts of American culture that make me feel comforted and happy, I can bring them into my new life here as well. It’s this act of sharing and learning from one another that makes each day exciting and new and connects me to my new Thai friends and students. It just took me a little time to see that I had to look at all the differences as possibilities to connect rather than reasons to be separate.