Context and Perspective

Context and perspective are two very powerful elements that play into how we interact with people and deal with situations. They play a role in our expectations and this determines how we treat people  and how we deal with situations. Ethnically I am mixed. I'm half Puerto Rican and half Korean. Culturally I am more American than anything else. I have checked off the 'other' box on test forms and demographics sheets my entire life. It's always been fascinating to observe how most people need to categorize me before they can determine how to interact with me so that I can be put into context of some sort. This is confusing for some because there is uncertainty about what box they feel I belong in. I doubt many people are too mindful about the box they are dropping me into. This is normal and something we all do but it can sometimes backfire and this is why it's important to be aware of when we are actually doing this. Our expectations determine how we treat people and how we treat people plays a role in their behavior towards us and people's behavior towards us determines our behavior towards them and so the cycle goes. This has implications for all the relationships we have with one another whether it's your significant other, your children, your friends, colleagues etc. In the United States I'm a minority of a minority, in most of Latin America I could be white or chino, in Europe I would be an American, in California I would be a New Yorker. If we become mindful of our perspectives of people and situations we can then play with the context to create productive outcomes for ourselves and others.