Girls, Boys and Beer

One thing that I have learned to appreciate over the years is that everyone looks at the same thing differently. A lot could be learned simply by taking time to figure out the context of one's viewpoint or paradigm. This is why I usually read books from cover to cover, including the introductions and prefaces, boring as it may be sometimes.

There was a time when I would be dismissive of any "wayward" opinion by some other person, meaning that if they don't subscribe to the same line of thought or outlook as mine, then they must be stupid. Of course, now that I've realized that one must take these things into consideration, I've come to believe that I'm the dumber person on occasion.

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Let's take the book I'm currently reading as an example. I can't recall the title exactly, but it has something to do with the rise and eventual wane of the trade routes and economy of the Sulu archipelago during the 17th to the 19th centuries. It was written by an Australian scholar, published in the 1980's and commits itself to the recognition of the Sulu peoples' valuable role in the Sino-European trade during that period.

Frankly, I find that it fails to catch any particular interest on my part but then again, having roots within this part of the world, I feel compelled to at least know a little about the going-ons of "my" people. So anyway...

Unless the author was an Australian aborigine, which from the picture he has at the back of the book has been adamantly disproved of to say the least, he is essentially a European. Thus, he places great emphasis on the role of Europe in the nature of the trading of the Sulu peoples. It would seem from his standpoint that the markets of the Asian region back them was dominated by a European (particularly British) taste for tea, which can be procured in large quantities in China, if only the Chinese would let them. And since there was no other commodity that the British East India Company possessed that interested China except silver, the Sulu archipelago, together with the rest of South East Asia, became a vital cog in all trade with China.

Okay, I got lost there... anyway, the point is that rather than finding a more ethno-centric study on the Sulu peoples themselves, I am presented with a story of these people who by virtue of their strategically unique political and geographical situation then favorable to Europe, found themselves "lucky" to be on the map. On this point, I'd like to differ, owing to the fact that trade with China and the rest of the region was healthy even without the European interests in the mix, and the existence of these people did not rely solely on the colonial advances of Europe.

But rather than writing an angry letter to the author for taking some measure of pride from my ancestors, I'd have to accept that this is one man's opinion, and he has a right to it.

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On to more illustrative and personal, albeit superficial examples, Nolan, RJ and I were having drinks just last night (mine, non-alcoholic, of course) and were neck-deep in a discussion about what was deemed "right" and "wrong" in terms of how we each viewed the dynamics of a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship. No condemnation took place, as we all found ourselves understanding a bit more about ourselves. Turns out that RJ is not really a girl, Nolan is not really a man and I am probably gay for not drinking beer. Drats.