Global Citizens

Victoria, Shane and I are on our way to South Africa. In mothering my children, I have always maintained that I am rearing citizens of the world, and have endeavoured to bring them up that way. When the opportunity for me to visit South Africa this summer came up, I was determined to find a way to take them.

And now, as I sit in an airport hotel in New York, readying myself for the 18 hour flight to Johannesburg later this evening, I muse on what it takes to be a global citizen.

Our world is indeed one place. It is a place that operates in real time. It is also a place that operates in all-time. So much information is available to us about what happened eons ago, as well as what will or is likely or possible to happen eons hence. I find it fascinating. This dimension of time has been collapsed and made more comprehensible and accessible for us by the internet. This is the world my children are growing up in – the cyberworld. This is their real world. And it is mine – for me to raise global citizens, I must also be a global citizen. This journey is mine as much as it is theirs.

So, what is required to be a global citizen?

Recognizing that we live in one world, and that borders are articifial, man-decreed things. Yes, we do recognise things like immigration and customs when we travel, but we take them in our stride as they are surmountable hurdles on our journey around our world. Knowing this, we also know then that we are one people, brothers and sisters, regardless of minor differences like colour, race, gender, religion, etc.

The ability to observe dispassionately and with a fresh eye. My father was an avid amateur photographer. Whenever he travelled, I would always be amazed at his perspective – he saw things through his camera lens that others did not. It is this ability that helps us to see the beauty in what is different, and, to the unopened, jaded eye, ugly.

A sense of wonder. “I wonder if/what/how/why ….” is the opening of new worlds for us. This is what moves us beyond our boundaries and takes us to places and spaces that we never knew existed. This keeps us on our endless journey of becoming. It is what keeps me reading, searching the internet, talking to people and introspecting, always wanting to find out more what, how and why.

A willingness to explore and experience – being a citizen of the world requires an openness to explore new places and experiences. It is no place for the timid or faint of heart. Everything is an adventure when you are a global citizen!

Openness and tolerance of that which is different. This, along with our knowledge that we all are not really that different, helps us to open to new people and ways of being.

It is indeed an exciting time to be on this planet! I treasure this time with my children as together we discover worlds new to us. For me, this trip to Africa is a long-held dream come true. For them it is a dream happening as they are awake – it was never on their list of things-to-do, but as they are present to the experience, it is their dream happening right now.