WELCOME to The Cultural Story-Weaver!
Has your global curiosity landed you on my doorstep?
Are you interested in learning about people from other lands, languages, and cultures? Perhaps you have someone in your home or workplace from another culture. Are you trying to navigate how to peacefully “cross borders” with them?
Others of you may wish that there was more diversity in your small town. You long to rub shoulders with the nations without ever having to board a plane.
Or, maybe you wish that you could jump on an airplane today and travel around the world. You desire to learn new languages and taste authentic ethnic foods.
Some of you are “global nomads” like us—with your own cultural stories to tell. I can’t wait to hear them!
Some of you may wish that somehow the world could step into your living room and have a cup of coffee or tea with you. You want to know the “real world” . . . not the world portrayed by media.
But there are barriers, aren’t there, standing in your way?
Fears: I’m honestly afraid of people who are different from me. I’m afraid to travel with the way the world is today.
Media: Is the media telling the truth about my foreign neighbors? Is that the “real world?” Who and what do I believe?
Language barriers: How can I ever learn a new language to communicate with my foreign neighbors, either here in my country or abroad? It’s too hard! How can I understand foreigners with their thick accents that my ears aren’t tuned to?
Cultural barriers: How can I ever relate to these people who are so different from me? How can these people ever relate to me? Can I accept them? Can they accept me?
Lack of Finances: I want to travel the world, but I don’t have the money to do it!
Lack of Time: I don’t have time to travel with all my work and family responsibilities.
Lack of Experience: I would really enjoy meeting people from other cultures, but I don’t know how. I would love to plan a trip overseas, but I have never done it before. I don’t even know where to begin.
Read some of my stories that address these very real barriers: “What are the Barriers at Your Border” and “One of the Reasons People are Afraid to Travel.”
We can relate!
My French husband, Vincent, and I, along with our four sons (Timothee, Robert, David, and Pierre) and world traveling dog, Bernie, live a daily life “across cultures”! Everything about our home, our marriage, and our parenting is cross-cultural. In our home, we speak two (sometimes three) languages. Oftentimes, we don’t even realize what language we are speaking. Sometimes, we aren’t speaking any language correctly!
Our family has also had the joys and challenges of living in foreign countries for the past 26 years, crossing many language barriers and cultural divides. Learning new languages has been a real struggle, at times, and a real joy—getting laughed at a lot along the way!
Read “My Story” here.
We have also had to battle our own fears of living in certain countries and situations, places where risks and dangers were very real. My husband and I have had to learn to budget so that we can travel more—learning to take full advantage of frequent flyer points! We have also learned to tune out the exaggerated portrayals of the media about our dear foreign neighbors and friends. Rather, we have learned to get to know them for ourselves, to listen to them, to respect them, to love them.
Our life experience has taught us how to break down cultural barriers and to build cultural bridges—we have learned how to “weave cultures”!
Read “My Life as a Cultural Thread Collector.” That’s what I do—I collect cultural threads wherever I go.
Can we help you to do the same? We are constantly learning, and we would love to share our own journey with you.
As “The Cultural Story-Weaver,” I tell stories of our cross-cultural life and family, as well as stories from our global adventures of living abroad—whether here or there.
Our family is grateful to have been able to travel the world and to live among peoples of different languages and cultures. Many may never have that opportunity.
Our hope and desire are that through these stories, you will travel the world with us. Whether you are able to board a plane yourself one day or not, we hope that these stories will bring the world into your living room and give you a fresh global perspective.
We hope, too, that you will be encouraged to pick up your own cultural thread and weave it with ours and the other threads of the world. Together, we will break down the walls that divide us and the differences that separate us.
Together, we will build cultural awareness and understanding that will lead us to love and appreciate the diversity in our world—weaving together a beautiful global tapestry.
—The Cultural Story-Weaver
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Let’s Weave Cultures!
At the end of each story post, there will be a cultural challenge called, “Let’s Weave Cultures!”
We invite you to tell us your own cultural stories and global adventures—as you engage with the world, breaking down barriers, building bridges, and “weaving cultures”! Write about them in the comment box below each story post.
IMPORTANT:
In all of these cultural stories about ourselves and people from other lands, languages, races, and religions, we are not judging, criticizing, or mocking! Our family loves people from around the world, and our intention is to share our personal experiences of crossing paths with people who are different from ourselves. We want to express our passion with our readers, so that they, too, can learn to love and appreciate people from other cultures and languages. If ever there is something in our stories that is offensive (in a big or small way) to you or to someone else, please contact us and tell us about it. Thank you for your understanding!
For more information, contact me at theculturalstoryweaver@culturalstoryweaver.com or use the “contact” form.