on generosity

Almost everywhere I've traveled, I've been struck by the generosity of the people in that country. In the US, even in the south, where we are known for our 'southern hospitality', I can remember few times where I have felt so overwhelmed by such kindness. The willingness, even eagerness, to give and share is, or at least seems, much more common and widespread in other countries. Is it a cultural thing? Is it that Americans are generous in different ways? Or is it that I'm simply not observant enough of generous deeds in my own country?

Other countries have long-standing traditions dictating generous behavior. Sometimes it's a matter of etiquette; other times it's a matter of saving face. Maybe America is too young for such traditions, and therefore generosity is seen only as giving more than what the person standing next to you would give. In AIESEC, we welcomed so many friends into our country and our city. But looking back, I wonder if the welcome was ever all that warm. Often the extent of our hospitality was taking someone out for a drink or a meal, offering a phone number to call "if you need anything at all", and then going back to our own lives because, of course, the guest wouldn't impose to ask where he could buy hallal meat, or how he could get to the grocery store, or even how to buy a cell phone so he could call us for a ride. So maybe it's a cultural thing.

But that's too harsh, right? Some people are more generous than others in any country, and Americans can be generous, too. Thousands of Americans welcome exchange students into their home, treating them as one of the family if not even the 'favorite child'. Non-profits provide invaluable support and education to immigrants. For decades, members of the Peace Corps have devoted themselves to the betterment of developing nations. So maybe Americans are just generous in different ways.

It could also be that I don't pay as much attention in the US to acts of generosity, or I don't appreciate those kindnesses the same way I do in an unfamiliar place. Perhaps generosity abroad is more noticeable because we don't expect strangers in our own town to be so kind, let alone strangers in another country with a different language or religion or culture.

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I drafted the above discourse and then happened to discuss the same topic with a friend this evening. She is from China but has visited the United States for work. She refuted my observation that Americans are not as generous as people in other countries; in fact, she said that she has found more generosity in Americans than in her fellow Chinese citizens. We came to the conclusion that you can often tell just by looking at a person that they "don't belong", and people naturally tend to be more hospitable to outsiders. So an American will be just as friendly to a visiting Chinese as a Chinese will be to a visiting American. I guess the conclusion is therefore two-fold: 1) it is best to be a stranger, and 2) goodness transcends all borders.