The One

Faithful, Honest, Ever True,

Just the Same and Always New;

Joyful, Open, and Secure,

He's the One, his Heart is Pure.

Love and Care are in his Eye,

Lis'ning Ear for Those Who Cry;

Strength and Might are in his Arms,

In his Hands, Fear Dis-Alarms.

Multi-cultural Experiences

Cultures.
Multi-cultural experiences.

Ethnicities.
Multi-ethnic experiences.

I was recently asked to list all my multi-cultural and multi-ethnic experiences for a scholarship application. Simply list the experiences. I laughed.

I started, and it took a while. A long while. With only bullet-points and sub-points, I had over 500+ words to cut down to less than 200. How do you decide what parts are "more" multi-cultural than others?

The "multi-cultural and multi-ethnic" experiences "only" comprised my entire life story. Cultural and ethnic experiences happen everywhere, across the globe, within the United States, and even inside one specific city. When I moved to and from Eleuthera. When I moved to rural Nebraska. When I moved to China. When I worked in a nursing home. When I worked in downtown Chicago. When living with mono-culturals. Each place I lived and worked glowed with different races and ethnicities, cultures and mindsets, thinking patterns and actions I didn't know.

There are some things I need to say.

1. Life is multi-cultural. Each place has a different culture, therefore everything is a multi-cultural experience. Seek with understanding.
2. Life is multi-racial. It is. Look at the globe, and what people look like. Black, Hispanic, White, Asian. See with understanding.
3. Life is multi-ethnic. Every person I have ever talked to comes from a special ethnicity. Colors are great... but there's different ethnicities within colors. Bahamians and Jamaicans, Puerto Ricans and Mexicans, Germans and  Scandinavians, Chinese and Filipinos. Enjoy with understanding.

What is multi-cultural in your life? How has it influenced you? 

Culture Clash: Rabbit, in the city, sleeping by a window with people.

Mixes

"It's Too..."

My dear Customers, Chicagoans and Americans,


Do you know that each year, there are four seasons?

Do you know that each year there will be a summer, fall, winter, and spring?

Do you know that each place on the map has a unique climate, that though it is not specifically exactly the same, summer will be similar to past summers, fall will be similar to past falls, winter will be similar to past winters, and spring will be similar to past springs?

Do you know that we even have people's who's job it is to look at current weather patterns and give us a pretty good idea of what to expect for the next few days -even down to hours? 

Do you know that you have a choice as to what clothing you wear during these  seasons?

Do you know that you have a choice to move if you do not like the current, or coming season wherever you are living?

Do you know that you have a choice in how you respond to the weather around you?

Do you know that you can respond well to things that aren't your favorite or things you simply don't like?

Do you know that all these questions are rhetorical, and the content found within is true?

If you did not know these many things, you do now!

Expressing yourself is one thing. Complaining is another. Complaining about what you cannot change doesn't change it. But it often changes you, and eventually our relationship.

"Its too..."  Let's think about that phrase. The person using it, is saying that they are the judge as to what is good, bad, hot, cold, colorful, happy, rainy, etc. These are adjectives, meant to describe, not to be a standard set by each individual. If you don't like it, admit it, and own your own likes or dislikes. 

The issue goes deeper. When giving up the phrase "it's too..."  a feeling of control is lost. No longer is the speaker in control of what should happen. They are now a bystander that is being affected by something. From the very beginning, people wanted control, to know and judge what is good and bad. It is a bit unsettling, even scary to not be in control. Even a twinge of fear comes in when we acknowledge we are not in control -because aren't we supposed to be in control of everything according to culture?

No. We are not made to be in control. We are made to have responsibility and authority. We have a God who is sovereign over all aspects of life. That means He is all loving, and all powerful, and together, He does only what is best for the overall glory of His name, which is the best thing in the world. We don't need to control things or people; He can do that if He needs or wants to. It is a hard truth to swallow, yet it releases a freedom from fears. Fear of not being in control, not measuring up... and even fears of not enjoying my day because of lots of rain, or lots of hot sun.

So, if God wants it to be cold a lot in a specific part of the country and then really hot and you don't like the cold or the heat-then move your attitude or your location! It's not snowing or sunny too much in a place if that's how much God wants it!

And please, purdy please don't tell me that it's too hot on the first warm days we have, when all winter you've complained about it being too cold, too snowy, and too dreary.  

Love,
Laura Lei Lou


~This author continues to not enjoy unasked for complaints about the weather from customers as she makes their lattes, cappaccino's and frappuccino's.