Is Culture a Given ? Or a Choice ?

 

Is Culture a Given ? Or a Choice ?

Is culture a given? Or a choice. Time is up folks. The final answer is that it's both a given and a choice. Given in the sense that it's what we inherit from our forefathers and it's a choice because culture is not cast in stone. It's something for us to build-on, tweak, evolve as we transition across generations.

Why are Chinese everywhere? There are Chinatowns everywhere, whether in the west or even in the east. And not so surprisingly, they have maintained their craft, their values, their expertise, their lineage. How Chinese managed to maintain that cultured euphony across the globe is astounding to say the least.

Shift over to the Malay Culture. Where are they? Hmmm, they are those dots and dots somewhere Southeast Asia. Now, let's revisit their culture. Is Malay Culture as prevalent and as spread out across the globe like the Chinese? Shockingly, the Malay Culture is so much left out by miles and miles. And for the frustrating piece, they seem fragmented and splintered across the Southeast Asian countries. Obviously, we see much Malay Culture prevailing across Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and even Singapore. But why is the 'Malay Flame' not consistently carried across the region? That's the thing, when a country goes astray from it's inherited culture and worse, when its culture replicates a hodge-podge of superficial behavior arising from a plethora of races and cultures.

Let's shift over to the NBA. Why is the Miami Heat Ballclub so envied across the league? It's because of the Miami Heat Culture. But hold on. That culture was not an off-the shelf thing rammed through the throats by the Arisons, by the legendary Pat Riley or the well respective Fil-Am Coach Erik Spoelstra. That Miami Culture was built from the ground by the powerful troika of the Arisons, Pat Riley and Pat's disciple in Erik Spoelstra.

And to rattle off the foundations of the Miami Culture, they are the 'hardest working, best conditioned, most professional, unselfish, toughest, meanest, nastiest' in the league. And you can be one of the Top 20 NBA players in the league but if you can't stand the heat, you'll be booted out even before training camp opens up as a precursor to the regular season. That happened to this season's latest trades when the Miami Heat gave up on the hulking Hassan Whiteside, the tough James Johnson and even the mercurial Dion Waiters. When the powerful troika of Miami Heat concluded in unison that a player is not cut to live-on with the Miami Heat Culture, your time is up.

In a nutshell, the Miami Heat culture eventually shaped up to be touted as a culture of SERVICE, of ACCOUNTABILITY and GROWTH which till now have become the very rock solid foundations of the ballclub.

Any wish from hereon? Oh I am wishing that the culture of a country that has gone 'astray' be tweaked so that what shapes up is a culture we will carry on with pride no less.