People helping People

Today's Topic: The People We Meet

I have been fortunate this year to have met people from all over the world...literally. My travels this year have taken me to Texas, Las Vegas, all across Eastern and Western Ontario and the upcoming East Coast Canada trip. The family business has allowed me to meet people from Uruguay, Malaysia, Italy and Brazil...just to name a few. There is something that I just find completely awesome about meeting people from around the world, learning about different ways of life and why people do what they do.

I sit back as another year is coming to a close and I am starting to reflect on just the different outlooks of life people have. It's a proven fact that this can affect choices and decisions we make in our own lives and whether we just take it for what it is on the surface or embrace it and try to find a hidden meaning or understanding. Of course, I seem to take the latter of the two and look for a discovery or why I feel so happy talking about these people and sharing my stories with friends, family and even random people who happen to stumble across the Sunday Sitdowns.

When I was playing poker in Las Vegas earlier this year, the locals seemed to start to respect me when they realized I wasn't just a typical tourist who didn't understand the fundamentals of a game that TO THEM, is a way of life. It was because of this that the locals started to share some real Las Vegas stories, to which I was more than eager to listen to. When you start to hear about people throwing away $6,000 thousand dollars only to show up the next day with a smile on their face, you don't feel as bad for losing $20. Only guy told me for ten years, it was his profession to be a poker player, and thanks tourists for allowing him to make a living. I thought isn't it funny how the world works? Vegas and the people made me realize how insignificant money can be. Especially when you take out $200 at the debit machine, only to get two $100 dollar bills and not the usual mitt-full of twenties. In staying within America, the people in Texas were something else. Southern drawl, friendly going, kick up your boots and have a drink sort of folks. Eat until you are busting a gut and living the truth slogan of everything is bigger in Texas. To me, America is almost culturally separated by states, and every state has people that are completely different from the last state you resided in. No two are really alike.

I sat at the table in my parents house today and realized just how many international guests we have entertained over the years. The laughs, the good times, the huge meals...everything just gives you a feeling of pride for the country you live in and what is means to have a country to call home. There hasn't been one negative business deal that we have dealt with (knock on wood) where people from different parts of the world couldn't find an equilibrium or a universal understanding. I feel fortunate that I can educate myself from people who drive down our driveway, to educate myself on the inner working of the world. It's impossible to see this entire planet. Its impossible to meet every face. But when we do, we are connected through our common knowledge of what life is about: Happiness, Success, Laughter and Grasping Knowledge...the list could go on. What I'm starting to realize is that we are all in this thing together, a true people helping people scenario. What we learn, what we do, what we share all becomes a collection of what we stand for and what we understand. Ignorance is no longer an excuse to me, because it really is that easy to say Hello to a stranger, a person from another country, and share a laugh, a smile, a drink or a meal together. Enjoying the people that make up the moments, that seems to be the answer.

It's a powerful thing to learn about a different culture and people that live in it. It's even more powerful to share common interests. After all, isn't that a part of life?

To strive, to seek, to find, and not, to yield.