Several years back I went on an Overseas Community Involvement Programme (OCIP) mission to a village in Thailand. We lived in a children’s home for the duration of the trip. The home caters to children whose families are unable to support their children or children who cannot be controlled by their parents.
While I was there, I managed to interact with most of the children in the village. One of the main things that struck me was that the boys there always keep a stern face. They don’t smile much, neither do they tear. I was told they made sure no one sees them crying. I also realized that they like to portray the image of an adult and like to be seen and treated as one, for example, mimicking a grown up’s body language through their standing postures.
All the children including the village kids are very respectful to their elders and us. They never failed to greet us and acknowledge our presence. Even while in the mist of their running in games, they would stop and give the appropriate hand greeting gesture. They always maintain eye contact while communicating and maintain a polite tone. I find it surprising that even random children from the village would greet us on the streets as they know that we are foreigners.
In general, the people there are forgiving and do not show emotions such as frustrations or anger even when they have been offended. Once such instance was when my friend accidentally knocked into one of the villager’s motorcycle with his pickup, damaging it. The owner shockingly just said “mai pen rai” (it’s okay). However, we compensated him for the damage to his vehicle.
In my opinion, there is a stark contrast of cultures in the Thai village as compared to the culture in Singapore. Firstly, the children there behave really differently. Children from the village seemed to be more closely knitted, friendly and open towards others. I believe this is because of the harsh environment in which they live in. They are forced to be strong and hide their weaknesses, which I feel is why they maintain a stern look. This is the complete opposite in Singapore where children are free to express their emotions. I was also told that this forgiving and taking things easy attitude is a distinctive Thai culture. The people there often choose to adopt this attitude while dealing with difficult situations. I personally feel this positive attitude is good in general. However, it should not be applied in every situation.
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