Culture
It's truly a funny thing how every single person comes from such a different perspective. Everyone comes to life with their own personality, experiences, set of values, family, friends, etc. I think that it is these things can define that oh so nebulous term - culture. I see it everywhere; sometimes it's big gaping wholes that separate me from someone elses culture and sometimes it's merely knowing a person that someone else does not know.
Today I saw Eastern and Western culture unite and clash in a vivid whirlwind. My friend Deepti was married today, and she is Indian (dots, not feathers). =) Although she is quite American, her parents are from India and their family still keeps many of the Indian traditions that make them unique, which I love about them. It was just interesting to this wedding bring the two cultures together. It was a fairly traditional wedding, but it also contained an Indian tradition. Deepti wore the white gown, walked down to Pachabel's Cannon in D, and what have you, but then there was the reception. (Three and half hours after the wedding, mind you.) It started about 30 minutes late, much like the wedding since Indian people have a complete disregard of time, which I love of course. Deepti and her very Amerian husband Tim came in wearing their full Indian garb, which is so gorgeous (as was her entire family and some of his.) They had the Indian music playing and the Indian food was hot!
They also had great wine at this most blessed occasion, which brings me to another culture. My parents culture. Tonight, I definately drank in front of my dad for the first time, and that was definately odd because I know it was something that could even be considered offensivie to the culture from whence he came, but I wanted him to know that it was not offensive to me. He didn't say a thing about it, which annoys the hell out of me because our family never confronts anything. It kills me it really does, and while I've some great conversations with my dad lately that have seemed to bridge the large cultural gap between us. the gap will always be there.
Another culture that I will never be able to duplicate or explain is the "Culture of the Yellow House" as I like to put. It's now just yellow house inhabitants that are a part of this culture though. I can hardly explain it, but I guess you know it if you're a part of it. (Tori, you are an honorary member in my mind.) For instance, I made some of my friends at home watch Reality Bites last night, and they liked it, but they did not truly appreciate it like my yellow house friends would. Perhaps they have not experienced "the winter of our discontent" and therefore cannot see the humour or profoundness of that statement. Although I know they have in their own way, they cannot relate to it, talk about it, or be aware of it in the same way that my yellow house friends are.