Secondhand stories
I heard a story recently which underscored the need for awareness of cultural context. It really is secondhand - I heard it from the guy myself. It goes like this:
He ships out for a west African university to help them set up a computer network at their school. His excess baggage on the plane consists of some 30 computers. He arrives at his destination, and within two weeks he has the whole thing set up. Huzzah.
Of course, a network with no one who actually knows how to administer and maintain it is useless, so he decides that an internship program would be perfect for training students to use the computers, administer the network, boost usage, and ensure long-term viability. So at a faculty meeting he pitches his idea to the chair, and concludes by saying "So I think an internship program would be perfect. 12 interns should be just right. Six men and six women."
The chair nods slowly, and drawls out a "Yes," which, as the fellow said, is African for "no." Everyone else in the room is silent, and remains silent. Seconds tick by. Eventually someone lets out a giggle. Soon everyone is laughing uproariously, the chair included. The fellow has no idea what’s going on. He thought it was a good idea.
At least in that west African country, students who want to learn a new skill are first "attached" to an instructor. If they’re interested enough and good enough, they will then become "apprenticed" to the instructor, to eventually become independent with their skillset.
The only "intern" they had ever heard of was Monica Lewinsky. And he wanted twelve!
—-
I also happened to watch the movie Secondhand Lions last night, which centers a lot on secondhand stories and trust, although it does also have a secondhand (used) lion in it. Not a bad movie, except for some overly mushy parts towards the end. It’s kind of an oddball movie, maybe a little discombobulated as far as style goes, but if you find it on TV and have nothing else to do, I recommend it.
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