Now all this came from a little boy who lived on an isolated farm. A weekly trip to the small village of 50, but sometimes the kids didn't go for weeks. A couple of times a year we went to a larger center (2000 people) for shopping and the odd dentist appointment. My world was on the little isolated farm. We went to one room school. Our playground was around the land we lived on.
Well, you can see the reason for thinking I lived in the center of the world. We didn't go anyplace and were not exposed to anything outside of our local area. The convenient explanation was that we were the best.
Now I did not stay on the little farm. I ventured away from the farm and village. I was completely unprepared to cope in a small urban area. I discovered that students had been to better schools. Other young people were much more socially prepared to cope in post secondary situations.
So after one year I left the urban area and went back to the comforts of the rural setting. I still had some things in my head that we were best in. Wasn't our provincial football team the best?
Now the final part of my delusion was destroyed when I first taught in a large school. We had 51 teachers. There were teachers from each province in Canada. We had many British teachers. There was the odd American. We also had a couple of Australians. This is one of the best experiences I ever had. Many great discussions were held with people who came from very different areas and backgrounds. I began to understand that the other guys had come from great systems. Once I got it through my head that I didn't come from the best place in the world, I could learn and understand how others thought and lived.
Now this was a good eye opener and there's nothing wrong with an eye opener. The little farm and village were taken out of me and put in their perspective.
How about you? Did you grow up thinking you were the center of the universe?
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| The old farmhouse |
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| Grade three |
