Over the holidays, try talking to your relatives like an anthropologist

Fri, 6 Jan 2023 05:19:44 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/over-the-holidays-try-talking-to-your-relatives-like-an-anthropologist-195637>

"How is it possible to spend so much time with your parents and grandparents
and not really know them?

This question has puzzled me as an anthropologist. It’s especially relevant for
the holiday season, when millions of people travel to spend time with their
families.

When my parents were alive, I traveled long distances to be with them. We had
the usual conversations: what the kids were doing, how the job was going, aches
and pains. It wasn’t until after my parents died, though, that I wondered
whether I really knew them in a deep, rich and nuanced way. And I realized that
I’d never asked them about the formative periods of their lives, their
childhoods and teenage years.

What had I missed? How had this happened?"

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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