from Snyder's The Practice of the Wild:
"The lessons we learn from the wild become the etiquette of freedom. We can enjoy our humanity with its flashy brains and sexual buzz, its social cravings and stubborn tantrums, and take ourselves as no more and no less than another being in the Big Watershed. We can accept each other all as barefoot equals sleeping on the same ground. We can give up hoping to be eternal and quit fighting dirt" (Snyder, 25-26).
I enjoy that Snyder phrases the lesson from the wild to be the "etiquette of freedom." It seems so paradoxical. One definition of the word "etiquette" from Dictionary.com is "conventional requirements as to social behavior." And yet, with the word "freedom," I feel that there is no convention necessary, that people are able to make decisions independent of any expected social behavior. I suppose he is trying to say that the conventions of freedom are exactly that---to be free, and accepting of all beings. We are all "barefoot equals sleeping on the same ground" (Snyder, 26). The whole picture set up in my head is of jovial people letting loose and dancing around outside somewhere in the wildnerness, barefoot, not worrying about dirt or mosquitos but just enjoying life and the company of others. Why can't we always just accept other beings, no matter how different they are?
The discussion in class today about tourism and the staged authenticity reminds me of this acceptance of others. Yes, we try to accept other cultures, and yet we are not really seeing the true culture since we are simply buying modified versions of what they think we want to see. My advice to those trying to truly experience other cultures is to simply go, don't plan things out, just go and see. Skip the touristy bus and touristy markets. Last winter, my family went traveling around some of the Caribbean Islands. My sister and I got absolutely SICK of the commercial glitz and glam that was constantly being flashed in our faces. One day, as we landed on the island of St. Thomas, we decided to experience the island on our own, skipping everything touristy. We explored the island by foot. After a nice long hike, we eventually found a little cove of paradise. It was so silent, away from any tourist-combed beaches filled with things to buy. It was a simple little beach, white sand and clear blue water. Tropical plants and living creatures crawling around. We swam in water so clear we could see the fishes nibbling on our toes, under a vast beautiful sky of warm caribbean sun. There was a family nearby, enjoying the nice day just walking along the beach, and picnicing. We saw a flautist playing into the wind. Eventually the sky clouded up and as we were leaving this haven of beauty, the clouds tore open into a torrential downpour. My sister and I headed towards the side of the island where our boat would be waiting, braving a long walk in the warm tropical rain. A local drove up beside us and offered us a ride. It was incredibly harmless; I know parents teach us not to talk to strangers, but this lady had every good intention. She showed us around the island in her car, telling us about her day and asking us about ourselves. She dropped us off near a marketplace when the sun came out and the torrential rain stopped. My sister and I walked some more and found a delicious little vegan restaurant, where we sat and ate a satisfying meal prepared by wonderful loving people while talking to the flautist we saw on the small beach (who just so happened to be in this restaurant.) We spent almost the whole time talking about jazz and music, because he was a jazz flautist. This excited my sister and I because she plays flute and I am studying jazz, and we both love music in general. Anyways, my point of this whole story is that we had the most amazing experience just going by foot and spontaneous whim, conversing with people and having a true cultural exchange simply by accepting each other as human beings sharing this world with us, rather than as beings who are selling or buying something commercial. As Buber would put it, we had I-you relations with the locals we came across rather than I-it relations.
If you want to experience the world for what it really is, you must accept everyone as your "barefoot equal." You just might discover that you have a surprising amount in common with a vast assortment of people.
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