My Family Culture

In my new ECE masters course we are studying and learning about culture. This weeks assignment took a lot of critical thinking on my part which I didn't expect. I really enjoyed the exercise and have sense shared it with other family members to get their input.

Imagine the following:

A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. You are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently. You are further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, you can only take 3 small items with you. You decide to take three items that you hold dear and that represent your family culture.

• A description of the three items you would choose

The three items I would definitely chose are my grandmother’s bible which houses family history and information inserted in her handwriting throughout the bible. I would also chose the family photo album which has the most current pictures of our family dating back 4 generations. Last I would choose my grandmothers recipe book. This has all her recipes some in her handwriting, and others my cousin and I have typed out.

• How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you

I would explain the significance all these pieces play in not only my culture but my families history and traditions. The bible is something that is extremely sacred to my grandmother and something she shares with all her grandchildren. Its been in our family for many years. The photo album is also a very important part of our family as it has pictures of majority of the members of our families and some include a brief paragraph of their personal history. Last, the recipe book is also important as this will help past down traditions and valuable family history, which for us includes food.

• Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you

I would be totally devastated to give up 2 of the important personal items but I would chose the bible. I definitely feel faith, and the word of God can get you through anything. My grandmother has taught me so much about my history I would just hope that I could serve as the vessel to pass the information on.

• Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise

This exercise really made me stop and think about things that are important to me. I’ve always had faith in God but the thought of being faced with an adversity I thought of the first thing my grandmother and grandfather have always told me…turn to God when in need. This assignment has also made me realize how important it is to me to preserve my families history and overall culture. Its something I really want my children and generations to come to know and understand.