I have always believed that people are more similar than they are different. And no, I am not talking about the genetic makeup and such. Though this research publishes in Nature talks about the similarity of genes.
I am talking about the similarities in behaviors that are seen worldwide.
It is a belief that gets reinforced time and again through a myriad of life experiences. Recently I had another such encounter that left me both amused and kind of happy knowing that wherever we go, certain human behaviors are so universal.
After moving to the states, I have been enamored by the fact that there are so many coffee shops around. And people actually go and work there. As an introvert, working out in the open has always been a scary idea to me, that is until I came here. Now you can find me at the corner table of a coffee shop about three days a week, tapping away at my keyboard.
But here’s the thing. I am also big into people watching and sometimes I do that unconsciously. Then there are times when even though I do not pay any attention, my ears pick up some conversations going on around me. And something like that happened last week.
I was at my usual spot in the coffee shop, working on a few articles. The table next to me was occupied by a young lady, presumably in her early twenties. Sometime later, a friend joined her. Within the next fifteen minutes, 4-5 more girls came and joined the group. They were now covering 3 tables and settling down.
Normally, I have my earphones plugged in and so do not get to hear much of any conversations around me. But on this day, I had forgotten my earphones at home. As a result, my ears picked up the occasional wisps of their discussion. It was quite evident that these girls were gathered to discuss and prepare for a group presentation. There was some intense brainstorming about the problem at hand (something related to biology if I am not wrong). I could sense the initial frustration and exasperation and finally the “aha” moment when they arrived at the solution.
Once these ladies were satisfied with their answer, they started planning how they were going to divide and prepare the presentation slides. Finally, they parted after setting a deadline for their work and deciding on the person who would collate everybody’s work into a single presentation.
I live in a university town and scenes like these are quite common at coffee shops. Then why am I writing about this?
Well, you see, this took me back to my undergrad college days. Even though I had attended college almost a decade earlier and halfway across from here, the modus operandi was exactly the same. While these girls were arguing and talking over their presentation topic, I was suddenly under the grips of nostalgia. Our discussions used to be almost exactly the same, in a few cases, verbatim. Like the line “So who’s gonna collate everything?”- I can’t count how many times have I heard or said that in a similar setting. It was an absolute deja vu for me.
I know that this is a rather inconsequential occurrence. You might say that there’s nothing so special about it and I agree with that. However, seemingly simple incidents like these show us how people across the world are more similar than they are different.
Human instinct is a wonderful thing that cannot be ignored or overshadowed. When I had first come to this country, I was wary of how I behave and what I say, lest people don’t understand me. Now, almost a couple of years later, if I have learned anything from my stay in the US then it is this fact that whatever we might think, human beings are fundamentally the same. Cultural conditioning and geographical differences make us behave in various ways. However, deep down people are more similar than they are different.
I am sure there are many more like me who dwell on the wishful thinking that people across the globe came to this realization more often. Until that happens, I live for such nuggets of such beautiful experiences garnered at the corner of the neighborhood cafe.
Till then, peace.
Do you have any related experience or story to tell? Please share in the comments below. I would love to hear from you.
