I'm an ardent fighter for the idea that you can't learn a language at home. But, to be honest, there are cases. And recently I was thinking - is there at least something that you just can't learn at home at all? I'll tell you everything now.
Generally we live in fun times. There are online courses about everything on the internet: want to program-earn, want to write a blog and not earn. Lots of choices.
But there are a couple of skills that, unfortunately, can only be acquired by getting your ass up and leaving. And I was thinking - what did Czech Republic give me in terms of self-development?
And the first thing that came to mind is a fairly understandable skill (even you probably would have guessed):
Tolerance
Tolerance is something I cultivated in myself for a long time. When I entered RUDN University, there were blacks, Chinese and Caucasians around. And even then communicating with them wasn't in vogue. Generally, the word tolerance in modern Russian has almost negative connotation - some smartasses think that a tolerant person is such a doormat. In reality I came to the conclusion that tolerance is when you absolutely don't give a fuck.
My tolerance came in about 4 steps.
1. shaken
I first thought about tolerance in 11th grade. Until that time all I knew about Americans was that they're all bastards and want me dead. But one day some American teachers came to our school, to exchange experience, like. Well, it so happened that we exchanged a couple of phrases with them. Despite them being Americans, and also teachers, they talked to me as an equal. Which is exactly what I hadn't waited for from Russian teachers at school by that time. Basically, then my stereotypical thinking was shaken for the first time. It turned out that few people are bastards initially, even when they said so on TV.
2. blacks
And then I entered RUDN University. From the first days I managed to hang out with some Kazakhs. In the first physical education classes I talked with blacks and Chinese. As it turned out - we're all quite white in soul (or what color is default there?)
Yes, it's funny to realize that some stereotypes are quite based on reality. But, in any case, what I learned in 5 years of studying at RUDN - to stop noticing the nationality and race of people around you. You can hang out with Muslims, some blacks play basketball worse than you, and Asian girls squeal funny.
3. communists
And then I moved to Czech Republic. And here's exactly where I got the first skill that you won't get at home in any way. In Russia being a white dude is quite simple - it's the most privileged position. Absolutely everyone doesn't give a shit about you. But having come abroad, you become an object of attention. Both bad and good. You became a foreigner, and also Russian. As it turns out, you can be by default a communist, rude or stupid. And here credit must be given - Czech Republic is a very tolerant country. How did I understand this?
And I thought about what tolerance is in general. Before I thought like this - I'm a tolerant dude, which means I should treat well, for example, gays. Well, as long as they don't touch me and my imaginary children.
And here in Czech Republic enlightenment came to me. A tolerant Czech is not one who loves me despite me being Russian. A tolerant Czech is one who doesn't give a shit where I'm from. And believe me, there are an absolute majority of such people here. Glory to Jan Hus.
4. absolute don't give a fuck zen
And literally after a couple of years of living in Czech Republic I finally found my zen. Several years of life in a row in civilized society can't help but teach one thing - tolerance is when you finally and irrevocably don't give a fuck about what you can't control. Can you control that that guy has black skin, that lady has a screaming child, and some Vasya shits in your comments? Can you influence the fact that state propaganda obliges you to hate Ukrainians?
Basically, I teach you while I'm alive - if you feel that you made the choice in favor of hatred not consciously - you haven't attained zen. And if you feel the case is advanced - move, without this, apparently, there's no way.
Sense of beauty
Here the story will be shorter, but still.
One of the main, in my opinion, troubles of Russia is not fools and roads. It's simpler - it's mass absence of taste, sense of beauty.
It's exactly this, and not our officials, that causes blue paint on the walls in our entryways. Sense of beauty is such a thing that will make you go buy normal paint with your own money and repaint.
Yes, unfortunately, almost all of us formed in a culture where what was valued was precisely the art of blending in with the crowd and standing out minimally (by the way, if you're under 18 now, don't worry, you're doing very well with this). And I realize that you can't develop a sense of taste from our understanding of the world - first you need to chisel off with a chisel what's stuck to us.
And that metaphorical chisel is not just moving, and not just to Czech Republic. The only way to learn to feel what's good and what's bad is travel.
Only by seeing the world can you understand whether you're in the ass or not. Only comparison will help, and thoughtful comparison.
It's precisely by seeing the world that I learned to judge in quite polar terms - there are awesome things in this world, and there are shitty ones. For example, my blog 5 years ago was shitty, but now it's become awesome and left all other blogs behind.
And yes, the goal of this article is to touch a nerve. Because if they had told me 5 years ago that I'm intolerant and tasteless, I would have shit myself with anger. But shitting yourself with anger is the first step to happiness. Act.