WHAT IS CULTURE

Culture is the sum of all knowledge that people have internalized and live by. Until when people are subjected by circumstances to another set of knowledge, and people are still capable of absorption, then, there is such a thing as variation and development. For example, The most common culture that most people in the 19th century have begun to appreciate is formal education in formal settings. People attend school from graders to college education. They eventually earn academic baccalaureate degree after completion of a set of subject taken and passed. Now, this does not mean that people do away with what was learned before schooling. People have added and improved from that scale. The outcome is developed personality according to the current societal standards that mostly find employment in the service sectors of some societies.

In contrast, there are people who do not ride with the currents of time. They may have found a satisfactory niche under the heat of the sun. So, their culture is largely based on interactions outside of the formal education settings. They call it real world. For example, my friend neighbor barely finished grade two. She can not read well but, she was good at earning. So, she grew rich and never thought about going to school. Some of her children though, finished post graduate studies, but never got rich as she was. Some of her grandchildren adopted her strategy. Entrepreneurs in their own way. This is how values can also be inculcated and become a culture among some sectors of a society

BACK TO SCHOOL TIME

It is back to school time again in the West. These are mostly exciting days for my nephew and niece. When summer was almost over, they were already getting their stuffs together for the days in school ahead. They had always looked forward to going back to school again. Largely because once more they will be with their classmates and friends. It seems that beeing with peers makes their days full of glee and events that they can not have anywhere else. But, there seems to be also some who abhors school. They consider school time as their nightmare. This could have something to do with sad experiences in their past. Nonetheless, shool time should always be an occassion to look forward to especially among the growing and still developing age groups of people. Here is one creative and fun to use software. A perfect gift for a brainy child.

SELF-ESTEEM CLUE

The style with which people respond to constructive criticism is the precise clue to the intensity of their self-esteem. This is a clear-cut index to their family, education, and social upbringing. This is concrete evidence that people are anchored at the feeling of scantiness at whatever, that at the slightest stroke of a censure, they are wiped out to their feet. This could be because people tend to cart along near to the ground baggage of ideas from their past. Scorn from their parents, derision from siblings, mockery from classmates, scoff from teachers, and sneer from estranged friends. Is there a way to get over it?

GOD GIVEN GIFTS

Modesty aside, I used to say, I am blessed. Indeed God is true to His promises to those who strive to be obedient and live humble lives. Humility, perseverance, and frugality continue to be practiced in the family. In the farm which is our inheritance from grand dad and grand ma, everything is very simple. When we have to stay up late in the night, we have to kindle a kerosene lamp. If we need water, we go to the well. If we like to eat seafoods, we go and catch some from the fishpond or from the coral reefs at the beach front. If we like to eat some fruits, we climb trees for fresh young coconut juice or meat if not mangoes, and a line of many other fruit trees in season. Seldom do we buy coffee, sugar, and cocoa. Some trees were planted to give us enough supply the whole year round. We also planted some organics for the table. Others said, how crude. But, when we are bored with city life we have somewhere to go and enjoy the simple life, simple needs, and simple living, afforded me and my family. Which is also our oun way of appreciating the God given gifts through our grand parents Sixto and Juanita.

RICH AND POOR

I was in a friend’s house this morning. Their children were watching ‘Cinderella”. While watching the movie, the eight years old son was playing with his toy car on the side. Suddenly, he bursted with a big question saying, why is Cinderella poor, and why is her aunt rich? Why are there rich and why are there poor? Why did not God allow everyone to be rich? See mom always tells us we are not rich. We were all stunned and did not respond immediately. My brain was responding, but, it took me sometime to break in and say what was in my mind, anticipating that the parents would say something. I called the boy to come near me and I said, see, if there are no rich people, then there will be no poor people. The poor people are the justification of the rich. They have more work to do than the poor. The wealth that was given to them by God is meant to be distributed. So, the best among them are those who did well in allocating God’s wealth on earth. The poor are luckier because their only task is to account for how they spent what was given to them.