Blind Spots

Here is an interesting thing about being a relaxed observer in a foreign country - you get to see yourself in a whole new light. It's almost like going to the theater where you can be caught off guard  seeing your blind spots revealed.

I was prepared to see a different perspective on news. We have lived near Canadian media long enough to know that the rest of the world sees us as Americans differently than we see ourselves. I was surprised to see a headline on the TV at one of the restaurants recently read "US bombs Islam." I won't lie - we aren't following the news, but I did need to look it up after that lead-in. An interesting interpretation of what is happening in the Middle East.

But, where I got called out was with our taxi driver. We took a long trip to the orang utan rehab center with a driver. People become relaxed about their prejudices when they think they have a sympathetic audience, especially taxi drivers. He started bashing the Chinese and how they are only out for money, and they clog up the streets, and they should go back home. We mumbled things about how lovely our hostess was, who happened to be Chinese, but I did not want to upset the man who held our lives in his hand in Malaysian traffic.

We got home and I started on a little sermon about how disheartening that was in a land claiming to be a melting pot to hear such blatant discrimination. And here is why you have to love family. Sophie pipes up with a, "Mom, sometimes you sound like that about the Mormons." Smack.

I don't mean to, but she is right. If I am in a safe and somewhat sympathetic setting, I might not be the most affirming person. Eek. And that's what I sound like to my kid. Mea Culpa. Thank you taxi driver for a good smack.