Oleg Petrov
“In Georgia, we say a guest is a gift from God. Even if the guest is your enemy, you must break bread with them. This is not weakness. This is the highest form of strength.”
Meet Oleg. He's 52, and for 25 years he's taught literature at the same university — Pushkin, Rustaveli and Kafka in a single lecture, Russian and Georgian and German side by side. Georgia sits where Europe and Asia meet, and so does he: Georgian himself, married to an Armenian woman, neighbours to Azeris and Russians. Most weekends the family hosts a supra, the feast where a tamada raises every glass to friendship, to peace, to the motherland. Next spring his daughter marries a Korean man, and Oleg is learning Korean — so he can speak to his son-in-law's parents himself.
- Profession
- Literature professor, 25 years
- Tradition
- Supra — Georgian feast with toasts
- Languages
- Georgian, Armenian (from wife), Russian
- Wish
- Speak Korean for his future in-laws
“People from the Caucasus region are all the same — they're just 'Russian.'”
The Caucasus is one of the most linguistically diverse regions on Earth. Georgia has its own unique alphabet and belongs to the Kartvelian language family, which is unrelated to any other language family in the world, with a cultural tradition dating back over 2,500 years. Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan are distinct nations with separate languages, alphabets, religions, and cuisines. Georgia was one of the earliest nations to adopt Christianity as a state religion — traditionally dated to 337 CE — the second after neighboring Armenia (c. 301 CE).
SourceUNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage — 'Living culture of three writing systems of the Georgian alphabet' (2016).
When you hear 'Russian,' do you picture everyone from Eastern Europe and Central Asia as the same?
That's a natural simplification. But Oleg's story shows us the richness we miss when we lump cultures together. Georgia is not Russia. Armenia is not Azerbaijan. Each has its own soul.
Good. Now ask yourself: what other regions do you oversimplify? What complexity are you missing?
Oleg is learning Korean to connect with his daughter's future in-laws. What is one thing you could learn — a word, a song, a custom — to connect more deeply with someone whose background differs from yours?
You do not need to answer. Notice what feels familiar, what remains unfamiliar, and where your own experience differs.
Understanding does not require agreement. Sometimes paying closer attention is enough for today.
Learn three words in a new language
Today, learn to say 'hello,' 'thank you,' and 'peace' in a language you don't speak. It takes five minutes. Language is the bridge between souls.
Note an act of kindness — today’s or your own. This stays on your device only; nothing is uploaded or counted publicly.