Of tsunamis and bumper stickers

Eastern history was largely omitted from my grade school education. To be sure, we learned all about those brave (note: sarcasm) Europeans. As for Asia, the Middle East, and Africa? For my classmates and me, they may as well not have existed.

Today I have dear friends from Vietnam, Tibet, China, Thailand, and Lesotho, Africa. I also have dear friends who grew up in the U.S. but whose ancestors did not hie from Europe, which is my tactful way of saying they’re not White and may or may not be Christian. Troubling to hear all of the above’s stories, learn of their traditions, understand their history and challenges, and see their courage, has opened my eyes.

Funny, what that can do. As the press recalls the tsunami that devastated southern Thailand 20 years ago, I care in a way I would not have a few years ago. A “Free Tibet” bumper sticker I would have once ignored now hits me hard. I view Tiananmen Square through a new lens. Likewise the Vietnam War. I bristle when people villainize “wokeness” as if it were some sort of subversive plot.

Our educational system could do a better job of broadening horizons. In the meantime, the wider one’s variety of friends, and the more one listens, the greater one’s capacity for empathy.