The Nature of People

Customs and cultures vary widely based upon where in the world you are, and even distinctly within the same place. I can travel to the United States and see a significant divide among people from Florida, compared to people from California. On a similar note, I can travel to a single state for example where I am from, Washington State, and see a significant divide among people from a big city like the capital Olympia, and a more rural town such as Concrete. Even within a city like Concrete you can find a dfference among people, whether a split among political affiliation, sports teams, affluency. There are countless divides among people, both small like sports teams, and large such as political affiliations and social beliefs and ethics. I have witnessed this to a lesser extent during my time in Hua Hin, I am sure I will witness this on a greater extent the longer I remain here. The biggest example of this that I have experienced was last week while in a skewer shop called “To Steak“. While we were dining the National Anthem began playing on a tv in the restaurant next to us, no one within earshot stopped eating, people continued on with their life. We were taught that anytime the anthem plays we must stand at attention and pay our respects by stopping what we are doing. In contrast we went for a run yesterday down the beach. We passed a Navy base just as the anthem began to play we saw runners stop to stand and watch the flag being raised, we stopped as well to pay our respects. Being in Hua Hin a more tourist centered town we are able to see the divide among tourism and paying respects to the anthem.

On a much grander scale is the difference among people within Thailand, versus my experiences within America. I have seen extreme kindness in nearly every facet of Thailand, as well witnessed the influence Buddhism has on peoples demeanor and actions. An example of this is the countless dogs and cats roaming the streets. This unfortunate circumstance is partially due to the fact that euthanization goes against one of the 8 precepts of Buddhism. If a family can no longer afford vet bills they are often turned to the streets as opposed to euthanizing the sick and dying dogs. Furthermore theft is such a rarity within Thailand that in the malls most items are simply covered up with a tarp, or sometimes not at all. The belief that people won’t take those nice pair of shoes, or those fun looking toys is astounding. So much trust is placed in people that they won’t steal from the malls, from stands on the side of the road. I could never see something like this happening within the United States.

One thing that has been universal throughout is the kindness that people have to offer. I have experiencecd an immense amount of generosity from people in the short time I have been here. A group of friends and I visited 65 Cafe and Bistro where we practiced our Thai language skills while ordering… naturally we botched hard. The owner was incredibly helpful and corrected us, and furthermore taught us the names of our drinks in Thai. He asked if he could take our picture, placing it on the cafe Facebook page. After we finished eating we asked if we could take our picture with him. He gratefully agreed, also posting this photo and stated on the photo “the seller is shy… the customer came back to ask for photo”. I commented on this photo saying thank you for your kindness, immediately recieving a response saying “if you ever need help with your Thai, message me”. We have passed by him many times and he greets us every time. On the same street is a restaurant we went to another day for dinner, we pass by it every other day or so and one of the waiters greets us, shakes our hand and asks how we are. In Thai culture it isn’t normal to ask everyone how they are like is done in America with the standard response being “good, and you?” even when not. When someone asks Sabai Dee Mai it is much more personal, it means that they actually care how you are doing. Getting asked feels so good to know someone cares enough about you just from frequent interactions in passing by.

Outside of the people we have met by visiting restaurants, there is a lady at the corner of the street we live on who has two dogs named Bully and Cheetah. The dogs are 1 year, and 1 1/2 years old respectively, every day we walk past Bully pushes his way into the bars of the gate to say hello. Each time the lady is walking them she brings them over for us to love on. She is extremely friendly and always goes and grabs her hose for us to wash our hands if needed. Today when I walked by she showed me a trick she has been teaching Bully. When she says hello (in Thai of course, sa wat dee) Bully shakes your hand. She has been so kind in bringing her dogs around to us every day.

Continuing this trend, Leah met a wonderful lady at the mall the other day. After having a conversation about being teachers she told us she would ask around about teaching jobs. I have been blown away by the generosity and kindness that people have shown. Thailand is a collectivist society, seeing the differences in interactions due to this has been shocking, rewarding, and had such a positive impact on my outlook on people. It is quite easy to lose faith in humanity when you see all the crime, theft, and lack of consideration for others. Being here and witnessing this side of humanity has re-established that faith.