Member-only story
Bridging Worlds: My Lesson from Cultural Surprise
We’ve all heard the phrase, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” But what happens when Rome feels like a different planet altogether? That’s where my story begins, in a small town not in Italy, but in Japan.
Having grown up in a small American town, sushi to me was a fancy dinner out, not an everyday meal. But when work called for a brief stay in Japan, I packed my bags and excitement, not realizing I was also about to pack in some life lessons. The first shock? The bustling streets of Tokyo weren’t filled with sushi bars as I’d naively imagined, but with a plethora of food choices, from ramen to tempura, and more. It made me recall the words of Mark Twain:
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”
One evening, as I tried to navigate the vast Tokyo subway, I found myself lost. The symbols on the signs were as alien to me as the constellations in a night sky. That’s when a kind-hearted local, noticing my confusion, approached. With a mix of broken English, hand gestures, and a translation app, he guided me to my destination. This simple act was my first lesson: kindness transcends language.
