On Saturday, Sep. 29, a multicultural global festival called the Celebration of Nations visited Franklin.
The festival took place at the O’More College of Design in downtown Franklin, and the atmosphere was one of an open-air market, complete with food sampling and live music.
“Going to the festival was definitely an eye-opening experience in many ways. As a dietetics major, it was awesome to try foods from different countries and to hear stories from all the different kinds of people,” said Trish Stocker, a Lipscomb freshman from Latham, New York. “Personally, I love getting to know new people and learn about cultures all over the world, and I can’t wait to get into the field of nutrition and see how food can tie all cultures together with a common love.”
The festival featured a stage with live cultural music and performances placed in front of rows of shaded seating, while booths from different countries and cultural organizations encircled the chairs and the stage.
When you first walked onto the small college square, the first booth you would see would be a booth promoting everything Norwegian. A very friendly Norwegian-American family ran the little shaded kiosk and welcomed anyone who passed by to step inside. An older man sat in the corner, cracking jokes and whittling a wooden spoon with his switch knife, while an older woman hospitably offered up traditional Norwegian treats (sweet, bread-like desserts and a cup of fruit soup). A younger woman stayed in the background, busily making up more tasty morsels so they wouldn’t run out throughout the day.
After the Norway booth came the “Compassionate Nashville” group’s stand. This organization is all about supporting compassion in every area of Nashville. Their goal is to inspire and encourage people to simply live every day of their lives with a higher awareness of others and the gift of feeling compassion. Their ministry also includes a “Community Coffeehouse,” which is an event that happens once a month and is always hosted by a different venue (a church, coffee house, event center, etc.). It is simply a get-together of everyone who is a part of the organization, and welcomes singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, dancers, storytellers and anyone who wishes to share their inspirational stories about compassion through different creative expressions of music and art.
The next kiosk was run by a Tibetan refugee and was all about Tibetan religion. The man was dressed in traditional Tibetan Monk garb and told everyone who came by a little about Tibetan mediation and how Tibetan Monks traditionally find serenity and inner peace. With everything for sale from prayer books to meditation gongs, he seemed eager to share his culture. He explained how freedom is nearly nonexistent in Tibet nowadays, and how he had fled the country to get away from the governmental oppression.
An organization known as TFLI (Tennessee Foreign Language Institute) was in charge of the next booth. This institute teaches native English speakers (namely, Americans) how to teach English as a second language, either here in the U.S. or abroad. Their goal is to promote global togetherness.
Then came WCCAC (Williamson County Cultural Arts Commission). They promote cultural arts in Williamson County through lessons and exhibits.
A Christian-based organization called Exile International also welcomed visitors to their kiosk. They work with former child soldiers and rape/abuse victims in Congo and East Africa to offer them hope, healing and love.
After that, an Indian lady had a booth set up selling traditional Henna tattoos and authentic Indian jewelry.
After visiting an olive-oil tasting booth, guests came upon the Israeli booth. The family running it was American but had visited Israel many times in the past because of some relatives they have currently living there. They explained things about Israel that the rest of the world tends to overlook, such as their humanitarian efforts and globally-used medical inventions.
Finally, a table was set up by two Chilean women that were selling traditional Chilean souvenirs. They were friendly and eager to share their culture with Middle Tennessee.