During a busy day at Ouachita Baptist University, it’s quite easy to forget that there are another 195 countries in the world, each with different people, cultures and landscapes. While studying at a liberal arts university is a great experience to personally grow and give you a greater outlook on life, being in a small town in Southern Arkansas at a private Christian university doesn’t give you quite as many opportunities to look outside the box of daily life and routine. To compensate for this, I think it’s a great idea to take advantage of opportunities that expose us to the world around us, teach us to think differently and broaden our worldview.
The Olympics is something which I really feel is underutilized as an opportunity to broaden our world view. It’s an event that brings the international world together, beyond just sports. It’s a mixing of cultures and talents, where people realize how different, yet similar we all are, as inhabitants of the world.
A lot of people watch the Olympics on the television every time it comes around. In fact, it is one of the most watched events of the year all over the world. In light of its wide-spread popularity, the Olympics should really be used as a way in which you can broaden how you see the world. It would be a tragedy to blindly witness such an amazing occurrence, and walk away unchanged.
One of the first ways you can broaden your worldview is by watching an event that you wouldn’t normally watch. This teaches you about other sporting activities that are out there, and the creativity and talent of the people who partake in it. You could also look beyond the sporting events and watch some of the Olympic documentaries and feature stories. These are great insights into what happens behind the scenes and how much work really goes into this quadrennial event. It also shows how each different culture approaches the same sport. They each have different ways of getting to the same level and it’s so important to learn that that is possible.
Instead of just supporting your country and counting how many medals you win, look past the great achievements and cultural divides. Look at how an event such as the Olympics has brought people together for so many years. Use this as a guide in your own life and try and see if there are events or activities you could get involved in that expose you to different people and ways of thinking. An example of this could be intramural activities to get involved in at OBU, or a club that you could join.
Lastly I would suggest using the Olympics as an inspiration to get involved with other cultures and see what you can learn from them and what they can learn from you. There are quite a few international students at Ouachita, and investing your time in learning about their way of life could be a great opportunity that you are missing.
These are just a few of the ways you could use the Olympics to expand your world view. I urge you to try them and any other ideas you can come up with to open your mind and your life from your usual way of doing things.
By AJ Stambolie, Student Writer
