Being sociologically mindful

When watching the videos about how the Lost Boys of Sudan traveled to America it was interesting to see their point of view on our life. I moved from Russia, so I could relate to my first experiences with them. Ever since I was little I had many friends from all over the world because I lived in Madison, Wisconsin including Honduras, South Korea, and Nepal to name a few. By always being surrounded by different cultures from a young age I considered my self to be sociological mindful. Before I even took the sociology class at my school I knew that the differences in the material and symbolic culture of America compared to Russia. But what I learned in sociology class was more in-depth including learning about folkways, mores and taboos. I realized how much folkways control our lives in our different societies. In America for example when seeing a family member or a friend the most people will do is give them a hug. While in Russia when you meet a family member or a friend there will always be hugging and kisses on the cheek no matter the gender. If the same thing happened in America that would be considered a mores. Another interesting sociological observation is the different values American and Russian cultures have. In Russia there is a lot more emphasize given on the value of respect to elders. In schools children will always stand up when a teacher or another school officials walks into class. While in the United States some teachers are barely noticed by the students and are barely given the necessary respect. And even in Russian movies the teenagers give a lot more respect to their parents unlike some American children who yell at their parents. The way I've been raised most times I am too scared to yell at my parents not because of any punishment but because it is extremely disrespectful. From what I learned in sociology class it helps me see the finer differences between cultures and be able to identify them as a certain type. In addition to having a proper reaction to it without showing any signs of disgust or "weirdness", because that is impolite and rude.