Hybrid Funnies :)

Hello Readers,

This last week I returned to Jerusalem on Saturday night with my mother (she took the bus with me!) The experience was a very classic one: running like a maniac to arrive breathless and panting a second before the bus pulls out, prolonged traffic because of  car accidents made by Israelis who haven't yet mastered the skill of winter driving, and then watching our transfer bus in Jerusalem pull away in front of our very eyes by seconds. When we caught the next bus to our event (a birthday party of a dear friend) we managed to get seats just past the back door, and then watched in fascination as the bus became more and more loaded until passengers were standing just about on top of each other. As we progressed along the route, people started disembarking and we returned to a more acceptable amount of passengers again. When my mother and I alighted, I made sure as I usually do to thank the driver, raising my voice a notch so he could hear from the back door of the bus. As we started walking towards our party I pridefully inquired of my mother if she noticed how polite I was, thanking the driver. "Aren't you proud? You raised me to be so polite and American!" I boasted. My mother's response was akin to "well yes, although I don't know if I would have 'shouted' "thank you" all the way from the back. I mean, you had to shout for him to hear." I reflected for a moment and realized Mum was truly on to something. I had shouted a nicety. I was doing the polite thing, but in a somewhat less polite manner. I began to laugh, and so did my mom. "Mom, this is exactly what it means to be a hybrid! I would think to do the courteous thing, but loudly since I'm half Israeli! Yelling "Thanks!" seemed quite natural and expected for me. My mother informed me that the proper way to handle the situation is to alight from the front door of the bus and wish the driver a "good day and thank you", in a normal tone.

Being a hybrid is a balancing act of trying to take the good aspects of both cultures while simultaneously being mindful to not glean the bad from either culture. My aim is to be bubbly and mannerly, not surly and rude. I want to share a funny meme I saw and the response my friend who is a fellow hybrid had:

This whole scenario is perfectly humorous and when I messaged my friend asking what he would do in the above situation (because he is a hybrid) he responded immediately with something like: "I'd be sitting, while talking on my phone, of course." This is us. We are the hybrids and we do our best to do both our nationalities proud. The bar is set high for us as we try to bridge the gap (or perhaps with these two cultures "chasm" is more appropriate) between two very different nations. As more and more of us "mutts" interact with each culture we are hopefully able to show that the other side is not quite so bad, and people can accept this from us because it comes in a form of communication they are accustomed to. I can loudly tell Israelis about the nice Americans I know, and I can also quietly share with Americans some of the crazy things Israelis do for fun. Hopefully at the end of the day, we all feel just a little less hostile towards one another.

I remain yours etc,

Shira

P.S. Sorry there is no Hebrew in this post. I really need to get Hebrew stickers for my laptop...