Field Guide Vol. 270
In an increasingly interconnected yet often isolating world, the value of real friendship continues to grow. The United Nations recognizes July 30 as International Friendship Day while some countries such as the US and India dedicate the first Sunday of August to celebrating friendships. Regardless, this week, we’re taking time to pause and reflect on the ways friendships near and far can enrich our lives. Join us as we explore friendships across the globe in this week’s Field Guide, leading with the special transatlantic relationship between American literary legend Langston Hughes and the South African writer and activist Blake Modisane. And then, take an extra moment to reconnect with a longtime buddy or cultivate a budding relationship.
Field Guide examines how different cultures play with the same concepts—from voting and water access to movie-making and whiskey. Field Guide is for paid subscribers—thank you for your support!
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Did you know?
In 1982, Ukraine was gifted a rainbow-shaped arch by the Soviet government as a symbol of the relationship between Ukraine and Russia—the installation was named the People’s Friendship Arch. Standing underneath the arch is a Soviet-era sculpture of Russian and Ukrainian workers dedicated to Ukrainian-Russian unity.
Amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv’s City Hall ordered the removal of the statues and they renamed the arch, the Arch of the Freedom of the Ukrainian People. Photographed above is a Ukrainian soldier stepping on the head of the Russian worker after it broke off from the statue while his friend takes a photo.
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A Friendship Through Letters
By Dr. Siphiwo Mahala
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