No Right or Wrong Way

We started off this week in class by playing a card game. We were given a set of rules and played within a group of 4 or 5 people. The hardest rule of all was that we were not allowed to talk-at all. We were having so much fun and becoming so competitive that we almost forgot that our teacher has a lesson planned for us-almost.
As the winners and losers rotated groups and a new game was started. As soon as it began, something was wrong. There were disputes over who was the winner, however, we weren't allowed to talk so we only made some helpless gestures.
The game was stopped and our teacher told us that he gave us different rules.
This was the intro to our cultural unit.
Each different rule represented a different culture. We were all taught different rules, just like how we were all taught different lifestyles. None of us were necessarily wrong or right. Just different.

As the week progressed we learned examples of cultural differences. For example, the toilet is different for every culture. The Japaneese value sanitation, therefore their toilet requires no contact. Also, different hand gestures mean different things. An "ok" symbol in America may be a very offensive symbol in a different country.

We learned that we must be culturally relative of other cultures while living. We need to set aside our ethnocentric minds and be more understanding of other cultures. What we might perceive as bad might be totally acceptable in a different country. For example, in Korea many streets are narrow, therefore people naturally bump into each other while walking. It has become so common that people don't apologize-just assume that it was an accident. However, in America it is almost an unspoken rule that you must apologize to someone you bump into. Many people in America have misunderstood that Koreans are rude since they bump into people without apologizing. But in reality, they have failed to be culturally relative.

When it comes down to culture there is no right or wrong way. We just all have to be more understanding.