Celebrating differences.

I really admire people who go to a different country where they don't speak the language and finding a way to make it. That would feel so isolating, maybe- or freeing, I suppose, depending on how you at it.
There was a time when travel didn't sound good to me at all. In general, it would still be very taxing on me emotionally. I'm a wuss. I bloom where I'm planted, and do best planted somewhere familiar. That's why travelling by RV will be SUCH a growing time for me. I'll probably have a harder time than anyone else.
Anyway- People do it all the time.
My neighbors across the street left a completely normal to them culture. Can you imagine living in the Phillipenes? I can't spell that either, looks like. Anyway- everything is SOOOOOOOOOOOOO different there. Everything, different. And to come live here where we're rich, but completely different- WOW. Raising kids is different, ...well, everything is. The cultural differences are so vast, not to mention the language.
Delphin and Ophelia have learned so much in a year. When we first moved in it was very, very broken english. They could understand more than they could speak, and they couldn't speak much of it. It was adorable because the kids - MY kids- could understand what they were trying to say. Kids ROCK- the way that they just roll with it instead of freaking out, trying to understand, you know?
Delphin just came over to ask me if I wanted him to pick Julia up from school, because he did it yesterday. She and Josh are staying home today, because I'm FUN MOM today and offered them the option. We won't discuss what it means that CJ decided he better go to school. ;) I gave him a starburst for a good choice, and the rest of us are going to woodlake to eat up this day. Anyway, Delphin came over and used his nice calm deep voice and we had an entire conversation about why the kids weren't going to school and that he'd be happy to pick up Julia on Monday and going forward for me.
How awesome for....all of us. It must feel good to be able to actually communicate with others around. When I imagine being in another country and being able to mostly effortlessly communicate- AWESOME! SOOOOO many people come here, not being able to speak the language. I'm in awe and proud of them.
Someone I know and love gets frustrated with the people who come here and don't speak English. They will be able to. It's not cool to think that every country in the world should learn THIS language anymore than a particular way of believing be forced on everyone. "They should have to speak English before taking a job here." That would be easier on US, but they are the ones struggling to understand us and answer us. There's only one way to learn and that's to do it. Maybe we should be happy we aren't fleeing our country in search of "better" which sometimes would land us in a strange land where a language is spoken that we can't understand. I'm so thankful I don't have to start at zero and try to figure it out.
Anyway- YAY for all the brave souls who have done it, either on vacation, a years stay, or permanently move somewhere completely different where "foreign" barely scratches the surface.