Obelix and the Magic Global Potion

Last week, I attended a breakfast meeting of women thinking about and working on global issues. As a friend introduced me after that morning’s conversation, the main coordinator asked me “When did you become interested in global?”

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Before answering, I first had to understand the question. What does it mean to become ‘interested in global’? How does one become ‘interested in global’? I had never thought of ‘interested in global’ as being a possible attribute. I realized that I am global. I’ve never known another state. Global-ness is not a quality I acquired; it is the environment I have always known.

Like Obelix, I fell into the magic potion when I was born and received its permanent benefits of a world without borders, where I can feel at home in so many circumstances. I am a world citizen, with a family life encompassing three cultures, having lived on four continents, and, since 2000, having explored 36 countries, staying with the Warao Indians in the Orinoco delta in Venezuela, breaking down across the Sahel Desert to reach Timbuktu, discovering “non-China China” from Kashgar to Xi’an, and understanding the motivations and aspirations of rural Indian villagers.

If I had to express my interest in global, it stems from a deep realization that this ‘global-ity’ opens eyes to the beauty in our similarities, opens hearts to others’ way of life and values, and opens hands to serve or share a meal.

Also like Obelix, I can be oblivious to the powers of this magic potion and forget that others did not fall into the cauldron at birth. Many others must rely, like Asterix, on drinking the potion to receive its supernatural benefits. There exists a beginning to their exploration of the global world. Their relationship with global-ness evolves; over time, experiences close the gap between them and this quality of global.