Mistaken

Birmingham Central Market is not only a good place for shopping, it is also a place where one can meet people from all over the world looking for cheap goods and foods. Even without striking a bargain oneself it is an entertaining place just to walk around in.

Last week I saw a guy there dressed like a tramp, unshaven and dishevelled. He took a few unsteady steps before he toppled over in front of my feet. He had not seen the line that fastened a billboard to the ground. He had trouble to get up by himself, so I helped him together with a companion of his who was his look-alike in appearance. Behind me I heard a guy say: "One drink too much for sure"; and it was exactly what I had thought myself. But bending over him trying to get him up I noticed no smell of alcohol whatsoever and the same applied to his companion whose face came near mine. They were as sober as new-born babies.

The realisation jolted me, wrong again! I try so hard to be open and to do away with prejudices and preconceived ideas, but time and again I am caught out. It brings home forcefully that it is nearly impossible to erase from heart and mind what has found its way in there over many years. The only thing I can do is to keep on trying.

Since the incident I became more aware of behaviour that can often been seen in Aston, but which until now had not really sunk in as significant. Most people here in Aston are Asian and they are supposed to have come from a strongly patriarchal culture. You would expect that the roles of men and women are clearly delineated: the women mostly confined to the affairs of the home and the men in charge of everything else. It struck me, now, that in fact many men are involved in the household shopping, either on their own or together with their families, not just the younger men but the older men as well. Perhaps more strikingly, it is not uncommon (although far from general) to see young fathers push the pram while their wives are walking beside them.

I have no idea whether these observations reflect an adaptation to English society or fall somehow within the behavioural patterns of the original culture. Whatever is the case, the point is that my presupposition was wrong and needs revision on account of that.

Ton