Imagine All the People

Imagine all the people sharing all the world

You, you may say
I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one
I hope some day you'll join us
And the world will live as one
John Lennon 

I don't particularly agree with all of the lyrics to this tune, actually I most blatantly disagree to some of them but somehow see inside the idea of it all, particularly these few words I posted, exactly how I'm sure a lot of us dream the world could be. The field studies program has a lot to do with seeking out this dream, living as one in the world. We do this by coming to understand one another, not by becoming the same. Like Thomas G. Plummer quoted in the Ophelia Syndrome , "If we both think the same way, one of us is unnecessary." 

The concept of how to do this was outlined and discussed thoroughly in a class I took on Latin America. We contemplated the idea of communion throughout the class.  This is not necessarily the religious definition of communion, although that can add to parts of the understanding, but it is simply and yet so profoundly the intimate relationship or rapport between peoples and it has to do with communication.  This communication fosters understanding and does not have to be a verbal communication. The point I appreciated most from this entire discussion was how real communion has nothing to do with being the same or outward expressions or symbols that pretend to link us together, but it has to do with living in a mutually rewarding harmony amidst many differences.

I'm honestly finding this more difficult to articulate properly, so I will share an example that might help somewhat in the idea of this sought after communion.

In the LDS faith, in Utah (this having been my main experience where this is true more often than not), it is customary for men to wear white shirts and ties to church. Missionaries are easily picked out by their matching white shirts and ties throughout the world. Sometimes we like to say that we all get dressed up in white shirts and ties and now we are unified, and yet there are still miscommunications that are never settled and criticisms that detract entirely from the actual purpose of meeting together as a body of worshipers, there is no communion and for that matter unity. The great task as defined by the church is charity, the developing of charity where our differences don't matter as much as the similarity that we are all children of God on one hand, and they matter significantly on the other hand where we each can learn from our different ways of thinking.

From a not specifically church related viewpoint this would mean people in the world coming together, like me living in a Tibetan household in India, and we can live in a kind of harmony and mutual respect that contributes to and makes possible deeper understanding of others and self, growth and the expansion of view - because we are all human.  Working towards this is just that, working on it.  It is not automatically possible to live in direct harmony and may never be fully realized in some or even most situations, but that's the dream, isn't it?  To live as one. We will be one not because we all look the same or have the same politics or religion or language but because we do not and yet we live harmoniously anyway and this is a communion bringing together what each has to offer and each accepting that offering from the other.

I love languages because learning and speaking them requires one to think in an entirely different way. I think studying language is important for developing this sense of oneness and communion I have been talking about because it is what opens the gateway to understanding people throughout the world, their differences and similarities - I want to better understand my own language in the context of Tibetan, or even Tamil, by seeing how it differs or is similar to those languages. Returning to the quote from earlier, different languages are a significant aspect of why people throughout the world do not all think the same, because our languages each define things differently, place importance in different areas and highlight geography, belief systems, weather patterns, and history from entirely different perspectives and a lot about each of these can be learned by studying and learning the languages of others. My own study of a foreign language has widened and enhanced my understanding of certain principles of my faith and belief system because of words to describe these ideas that differ from my native tongue.

I'm excited about the next activity I will be writing about.  I have an interview set up and am going to be talking with a language lover and learner about their experience with languages and looking for how their identity has been shaped or their perspective on self may have been affected by these different languages.  We'll see if any of those topics come out strongly in the interview/conversation process.  It will be a good but trying experience in trying to help others define their experiences and help me to understand them at the same time.