Hi, Chery.

Great post! I found that it can be very insightful too when we're in settings that turn our "normal" perceptions upside-down. Living in rural, northeastern America as I do, I regularly interact with Caucasian Americans, and rarely have the opportunity to interact with "minorities." However, during my time spent in Tanzania, I'm always amazed by the sensation when suddenly *I'm* the minority. The stares of people in the marketplace. The fascination children have with the color of my eyes and the texture of my skin and hair. The different values they grant to things...

I remember on my last trip there in 2009, a young teacher I met greeted me with a broad smile, a hearty handshake and the LOUD declaration "My! Are you FAT! Can you teach me how to be fat like you?" I quickly tried to explain to my new friend that in America, it's not nice to let people know they're fat. But he saw the whole thing from the perspective of his culture where malnutrition is the #1 killer, even beating out AIDS and malaria. I don't know that he even heard my statement because to him, being overweight symbolized being rich and never knowing want. Understanding his perspective enabled me to laugh at the whole encounter, instead of being hurt or put off by it.

While we may not encounter such extremes of diversity in our everyday lives, I think it's always important to remember that each person we encounter comes with their own set of life experiences that mold and fashion their perception and reaction to things. And when we take time out to understand how they're influenced (what makes them tick, so to speak), we stand a much better chance of being the kind of leader, friend, teacher or acquaintance we're supposed to be in that given situation.