The annual World Day for Cultural Diversity is today, May 21.

My interest in multiculturalism began in the early 1970s when I was a student at the University of Maine at Orono. As a Franco American, I enjoyed meeting the international students on campus and learning about their customs and world-view perspectives. After graduating, while teaching kindergarten in my hometown of Van Buren, on the border of Canada in far northern Maine, I married a fellow teacher who was Armenian. Our years together brought us the blessings of four children. They grew up in Waterville, left home for college, married, and further blessed us with their spouses and grandchildren.

As Christmas 2002 approached, I introduced my family to the idea of celebrating the holiday together by traveling to another country to learn about a different culture and ethnic group of people, while staying in the comfort of our own home. We could cross oceans and continents and explore foreign lands without packing suitcases and taking jet planes. They embraced the idea and, like spirited elves, helped bring the idea to fruition.

Brazil and Sweden were our first destinations. Our son-in-law created a list of categories to briefly research. Each family member chose one option: customs, foods, languages, short conversation phrases, literature, geography, religions, beliefs, music, arts and famous people. On Christmas Day, we took turns sharing bits of information, while enjoying indigenous foods we prepared and listening to regional music.

Our second travel adventure took us to Israel. Jewish people worldwide celebrate Hanukkah, the eight-day Festival of Lights. I bought a Menorah candleholder that holds eight candles. The ninth candle, the Shamash, is used to light the others. A friend dropped by to visit and shared traditions from her Jewish faith. During the following years, we’ve had “multicultural get-togethers” on any ordinary day of the year.

We voyaged to Swaziland in 2006, a country in Africa, where our daughter had completed a medical school rotation. My South African friend gave me a recipe for Bobootie, a delicious casserole traced back to Roman times. Kwanzaa, observed from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, celebrates African heritage and culture. Their candleholder, a kinara, has seven candles that represent different guiding principles to live by. After Africa, we visited Costa Rica, Cuba, Germany, Egypt and Tibet, to name a few.

In 2020, we journeyed to Russia and Ukraine in honor of Waterville being sister cities with Kotlas, Russia.

As we arrived at my daughter and husband’s home in Falmouth, she was busy at her stove cooking crepes (blini), which permeated the kitchen with a welcoming aroma. There was merriment in the air as we decorated her long kitchen bar with the entrees we all prepared from these neighboring countries … small baked meat pies (pyrizhky), Salad Olivier, eggplant caviar (ikra) and dumplings (varenyky). Dessert featured Russian teacakes and Apple Sharlotka Cake. The grandchildren enjoyed the regional crafts prepared by our daughter-in-law.

You can bring diversity to any family or friend’s gathering by preparing an easy main course and dessert from another land, sharing a few interesting facts, and saying, “hello” and “goodbye’ in their language. Today, as a 75-year-old, I cook an international dish or soup a few times a week in my home. In addition to recipes on the internet, “The Multicultural Cookbook for Students” by Carole Albyn and Lois Webb is one of many global cookbooks.

It is my hope that my children and grandchildren will smile upon the memories of our multicultural celebrations, and be keepers of the tradition. May they, with curiosity and compassion, continue to open their minds and hearts to educate themselves about the lifestyles of our co-humans in the far away backyards of the world.