100%
Purity is overrated.
Through the ages, society has prized the absolutes: the whitest of white steeds, the perfect purebred dog, the matching set of dishes, or the untainted noble lineage. We aim for the flawless lawn, as evidenced by the number of dandelion killers on the market. Superlatives and homogeneity are the ideals. This narrow scope, the concentration of acceptable qualities, means perfection, and society always clings to the purity of what is "ours". It is an ancient prejudice, this preference for "us" and mistrust of the "other".
Anything less than 100% makes people uneasy. Even here in the United States, home to immigrants from all over the world, there are still groups that squabble over the validity of a lineage, branding only those who came over at the start, and on the right boats, the truest of Americans.
BUT
Nature loves diversity. Variety and adaptation are the rules. They are the keys to survival and progress. Even the most boring patch of mud or grass teems with a variety of life if you look closely enough.
However much society has frightened that love out of us, deep in the wild parts of human nature, there is still something that's drawn to the exotic. It may not feel as safe and comfortable to most people as the culture of their birth. They may retain that fear of mixing at the same time as this distant appreciation for the "other", but there are some lucky few who fully embrace the natural instinct for diversity, and their lives are enriched by it.
I certainly don't suggest we should all reject our own culture or the culture of our ancestors. If you're 100% something, by all means, celebrate it. Celebrate who you are, not because it's better than everyone else, but because it's you. It fits. The palette of the world has an infinite variety of colours, and the true and blended hues are equally beautiful.
I often hear the statement that Americans have no cultural identity. It seems to be an accepted fact that our wide variety of immigrants prevents it and dilutes the original native cultures of the immigrants as well. Usually, it's said sadly with a head shake for those poor lost Americans. Sometimes, the remark is spit out angrily by Americans who are lobbying for homogeneity - English only, or some other senseless stripping of freedoms. "If they want to be Americans," it seems to say, "they had better be my kind of Americans."
But, I contend that diversity is our cultural identity. The ideals we claim to embrace are freedoms to think and act as we please, so long as it does not impair the rights of others. We are a collection of states rather than just a single unit because we recognize the right of groups to think differently. Our openness to variety is our strength. We move forward because we have this great pool of ideas to choose from. We let ourselves mix, discuss, distill, and discover the best from all there is on hand.
The same applies to cultural matters. Not being 100% one thing leaves you free to pick the elements that suit you best. As Americans, we are fortunate to have access to that palette of world colours and to each have the freedom to mix the colour of our choice. We don't need to be bound by the expectations of tradition. We can create ourselves from the best that we know and leave what doesn't suit us behind.
Does that dilute the spirit of the original? Who cares? So what if American pizza isn't the same as in Rome; Taste it! Our St. Patrick's Day celebrations may not be authentic; Don't worry about it, wear your green proudly (even if there's no Irish in you!) Some of our music entwines threads from traditions hundreds or thousands of miles apart; Dance just the same!
Not a weakness.
No less valid than the absolutes.
And, if you're not 100% American, even if you're not the slightest bit, there's nothing to stop you from embracing this philosophy, too. We are all heirs to the wide range of human experience, all entitled to be who we are, even if it's not easily defined by what is traditionally "ours".
So, the next time I find myself eating guacamole from a Japanese rice bowl, maybe I'll turn up the Celtic music and celebrate the joy of being human, 100%.
Through the ages, society has prized the absolutes: the whitest of white steeds, the perfect purebred dog, the matching set of dishes, or the untainted noble lineage. We aim for the flawless lawn, as evidenced by the number of dandelion killers on the market. Superlatives and homogeneity are the ideals. This narrow scope, the concentration of acceptable qualities, means perfection, and society always clings to the purity of what is "ours". It is an ancient prejudice, this preference for "us" and mistrust of the "other".
Anything less than 100% makes people uneasy. Even here in the United States, home to immigrants from all over the world, there are still groups that squabble over the validity of a lineage, branding only those who came over at the start, and on the right boats, the truest of Americans.
BUT
Nature loves diversity. Variety and adaptation are the rules. They are the keys to survival and progress. Even the most boring patch of mud or grass teems with a variety of life if you look closely enough.
However much society has frightened that love out of us, deep in the wild parts of human nature, there is still something that's drawn to the exotic. It may not feel as safe and comfortable to most people as the culture of their birth. They may retain that fear of mixing at the same time as this distant appreciation for the "other", but there are some lucky few who fully embrace the natural instinct for diversity, and their lives are enriched by it.
I certainly don't suggest we should all reject our own culture or the culture of our ancestors. If you're 100% something, by all means, celebrate it. Celebrate who you are, not because it's better than everyone else, but because it's you. It fits. The palette of the world has an infinite variety of colours, and the true and blended hues are equally beautiful.
I often hear the statement that Americans have no cultural identity. It seems to be an accepted fact that our wide variety of immigrants prevents it and dilutes the original native cultures of the immigrants as well. Usually, it's said sadly with a head shake for those poor lost Americans. Sometimes, the remark is spit out angrily by Americans who are lobbying for homogeneity - English only, or some other senseless stripping of freedoms. "If they want to be Americans," it seems to say, "they had better be my kind of Americans."
But, I contend that diversity is our cultural identity. The ideals we claim to embrace are freedoms to think and act as we please, so long as it does not impair the rights of others. We are a collection of states rather than just a single unit because we recognize the right of groups to think differently. Our openness to variety is our strength. We move forward because we have this great pool of ideas to choose from. We let ourselves mix, discuss, distill, and discover the best from all there is on hand.
The same applies to cultural matters. Not being 100% one thing leaves you free to pick the elements that suit you best. As Americans, we are fortunate to have access to that palette of world colours and to each have the freedom to mix the colour of our choice. We don't need to be bound by the expectations of tradition. We can create ourselves from the best that we know and leave what doesn't suit us behind.
Does that dilute the spirit of the original? Who cares? So what if American pizza isn't the same as in Rome; Taste it! Our St. Patrick's Day celebrations may not be authentic; Don't worry about it, wear your green proudly (even if there's no Irish in you!) Some of our music entwines threads from traditions hundreds or thousands of miles apart; Dance just the same!
Not a weakness.
No less valid than the absolutes.
And, if you're not 100% American, even if you're not the slightest bit, there's nothing to stop you from embracing this philosophy, too. We are all heirs to the wide range of human experience, all entitled to be who we are, even if it's not easily defined by what is traditionally "ours".
So, the next time I find myself eating guacamole from a Japanese rice bowl, maybe I'll turn up the Celtic music and celebrate the joy of being human, 100%.
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