The Ubiquitous Stare
“The Ubiquitous Stare” Collection. India, 2023. Delhi has fewer starers than Kerala. Everywhere we go in Kerala we cause surprise and awe when we appear on the scene. Work is halted, conversations are interrupted, family gatherings are paused….all to have a look at these strange white people who’ve suddenly appeared. The unspoken questions: “Who are you?”,; “Where are you from?”; “Why are you here?” We’ve come up with 4 levels of responses:
Ignore the stare and continue about our business, pretending we don’t notice they are watching our every move.
Give a big smile and nod - this is a great icebreaker at least 99% of the time.
Say a couple of basic responses: “My name is Melanie. I’m from America.”
Get out the phone and open up Google Translate to attempt to have a longer convo.
Most often, our response is #2. . . . Except when we’ve reached the end of patience for the day.
