The art of getting in the way of others is not lost in this country. It goes side by side with how-to-be-a-moron-in-twenty-easy-steps. It used to be a cultural thing in London where people would also cue up to catch a bus, but this can no longer be relied on. Londoners do not line up they pounce on the bus entrance when it turns up. When doors on a train automatically open they don't let the people off first, but would rather barge on while people are still trying to get off. To add further insult to injury Transport For London (TfL) do not announce on the train platforms, bus stops or radios the necessity of passenger etiquette. As if it is a taken and accepted thing. But it no longer is.
I'd like to put on my hedgehog suit. The one I made while at metal classes. It is covered in six inch spikes, they are sharpened to a fine edge, if someone decides to push too close then I am not to be held responsible for their self impalement. The suit is black and I have a half mask not unlike Batman. I will put in on when out shopping at the supermarket or going to and from work. I'm not sure what the reaction will be to it, but of course there is likely to be pain, not mine, other ignorant people, people who probably deserve what they get. Some just stand still and do nothing, they stand and they talk but are in the middle of a busy pathway. It doesn't seem to matter what these commuters and general public think, but this could be the thing, they don't think. They only think of themselves and do not consider they are surrounded by people. Just as the MP3 junkie with popped in earphones which leak more tinny music than the stuff which echoes around in their little mind's. Culturally it is now accepted London has changed. The proportion of ethnic grouping is so high in some places that it is higher than the indigenous population of yesteryear. It has become the new indigenous population. One which at times is even unable to communicate with itself. English used to be the medium by which everyone could understand each other, but this is not a guaranteed assumption. There are people who in London and have lived here for years who can not speak English. I feel sorry for them, they can not make friends so easily. Although we have a population of 7 million it can be a lonely population. People everywhere, but no friendly attitude. They just don't mix these different cultures, they mingle every once in a while, but it is evident cultural segregation becomes a self imposed norm.
My Turkish neighbours keep themselves to themselves. They've been here for about two years now. A family of four, mum, dad and two boys. The father avoids eye contact. It's odd, I view it with suspicion. It's the mark of someone who doesn't want to engage and alerts the senses no matter what culture you're from. Otherwise, they are a lively family. I hear them shouting through the walls, and the small boys run up and down the stairs while their dad runs after them yelling out. I chuckle and wonder what they have done this time. They are boisterous and I'd love to know them more, but it's not going to happen. Perhaps it's that kind of fear people hold about getting to know strangers. Maybe they see me as one of those English people, as if we are a typical kind of people and not to be befriended. If I see them I'll say good morning and do my best not to take Dad's tacit nature offensively. Even if it's offensive. The smallest boy who must be about three years old, gets himself into trouble constantly and I'll hear him crying. Awwe poor thing, what did he do this time round? He has a cheeky smile and is shy, he just wants to have fun. I offered once to take the family to our local park, but they never took me up on it. I couldn't understand keeping young kids in a claustrophobic house when they should be outside using their batteries up. They are Turkish Muslims, which is different from other Muslims. It seems like Christianity there are different versions.
I've got to learn accepting other cultures is just as much a thing as tolerating them. Then understanding your intolerances. OK I might not like Turkish delight, but I really am sure my neighbours are OK. Otherwise I would be putting on adapted spiky clothes every day. It is difficult at times to judge people in this world, and misanthropy can easily kick in. I am not a fish in a bowl, I am also a social animal. Think I'd better go and stick corks on those spikes. Afterall I don't want to be seen as a hedgehog, not really.
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