Cultural differences affect many aspects of our daily lives. With the many different cultures rooted in the United States, it is important that everyone understands and respects the melting pot that we encounter daily in our communities, workplaces, and schools. "Culture is not an exotic concept studied by a select group of South Sea anthropologists. It is a mold into which we are all cast, and it controls our daily lives in many unsuspected ways... Culture culture hides much more than it reveals and, curiously, what it hides, it hides most effectively from its own participants. (Hall)The United States has been populated from the beginning by people of different cultures. There were Irish, German, Italian and European immigrants who contributed to the development of American culture and traditions. With the immigration of different cultures, there seems to be a common ground on what it means to be an American. “I don’t think most Americans really understand the historical changes that are happening before their eyes.” (Salines). Originally the idea was to have a common language, whereas today we have a wide variety of languages ​​written and spoken in our community. Signs in stores are written in different languages ​​for the convenience of all customers. When you enter different businesses, there are different signs, like most other public establishments. This makes us more aware of the different cultures within our community. With this growing variety of cultures within our community, it provides us with more opportunities to explore ethnic traditions. Products such as specialty food items are more readily available in our grocery stores. In our community there are more ethnic restaurants so we can experience the difference between paper and spirit and by understanding that all cultures have different beliefs and ideas we can be positively affected daily while working. with each other in communities, workplaces and schools. Our daily lives may be affected more than ever by the opportunities offered to us to discover other cultural experiences. Works Cited Booth, William. “One nation, indivisible: is this history? The myth of the Melting Pot. Washington Post, February 22, 1998. Web. February 14, 2011. “Business Benefits of Workplace Diversity.” EthnoConnect. NP, 2009. Web. February 13, 2011. Lindsey, Randall B., Kikanza Nuri Robins, and Raymond D. Terrell. Cultural competence. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press, 2003. Print. Reyes, Wilson. “Embracing Diversity: Bringing the Benefits of Different Cultures to the Workplace.” " Entrepreneur. Indiana Business Magazine, September 2008. Internet. February 13. 2011.