#519 Xenophobia

 Xenophobia

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According to Wikipedia, Xenophobia is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. My first encounter with foreigners was the visitors that I found on the beach of Puri during my childhood days. I would often wonder where they came from, what they ate, or why they looked different from me.

            When I moved to a different city with my family from my native place because of my father’s job, I came across people from a different culture or state which provided exposure to different cultures of India. It increased my adaptability. I remember when I was traveling to Hyderabad for training after my graduation, advertisements written on telugu language on various walls gave me a sense of unfamiliarity as I had no idea about that language. All I knew was Hindi, English, and Odia. I was wondering how I would be able to survive without any friend/acquittance from my school or college day but eventually, everything fell into place and I was able to make friends in my journey. Some of the friendships that I made there continue even now.

            There were several instances when I had to travel alone for my studies and job because I didn’t want to trouble my parents. Initially, a sense of discomfort would originate from a sense of unfamiliarity but that would vanish in no time in due course of time. When I took my first international flight to Hong Kong during the COVID era, Mar 20021, little did I know that I would be well taken care of by stranger foreigners to come out of COVID. I remember to have been traveling to the place of my first interview in Hong Kong, I felt lost in an unfamiliar crowd in the metro. Later, that route became the route of my daily commute and that sense of unfamiliarity was transformed into a sense of gratitude when I bid goodbye to my colleagues at the office.

            I’ve been living in Finland for almost 22 months, and it has started to feel like home. It’s so safe to travel here at any time of the day by public transport. Finnish people are too shy to start any conversation. Surprisingly, this country has turned a complete introvert like me into an extrovert. I don’t hesitate to start communication with any stranger, be it someone waiting at the bus stop or in a queue at the cash counter. I absolutely enjoyed interacting with colleagues during lunch break. We discussed culture, interests, practices, learning language, science and technology, and other geopolitical issues. I feel that I am now more open to people from different cultures, religions, or ethnicities. Interacting with people and being open to receiving their ideas or viewpoints on certain matters has improved my adaptability. It has made me realize that the world is a great place to live when we shed any form of inhibition or prejudice based on language, religion, ethnicity, etc.

 

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Swati Sarangi

28.04.2024 

 P.S: This post is a part of #BlogChatterA2Z 2024Challenge for Alphabet ‘X’