Hate it or Love it

***narrative journal***

time: Sept. 3, 2008 5:45 PST

I was sitting on the hard floor doing a video log when the flight attendant’s voice cackled from the speakers, echoing across the hallways of the airport terminal. Her English was choppy.

“Eva Air welcomes all passengers to board flight BR 0011 to Taipei, Taiwan…”

It was about 5:45 on a Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles. I lifted my Dodger hat over my head and ran my palm across my recently buzzed hair. It was finally time to go. I was about to get on the plane and spend the next seven months in every imaginable part of Southeast Asia. No more In N’ Out burgers. I looked out the window and said goodbye to Laker basketball and goodbye to So Cal beaches.

As I got in line, Los Angeles’ diversity quickly disappeared. The passengers were all Asian and spoke their own language. While the line progressed, I gripped my blue passport and tucked my boarding pass in at the picture page. I looked around and noticed that most of the other traveler’s passports were green. I realized then that most of them were going back to their homes, while I was leaving mine.
The crowd grew thicker and more compressed as I neared the front. At that moment I noticed a new scent. It was distinct and unfamiliar. It was the smell of a new and very different culture. A culture with its own food, language and customs. In preparation, I had read enough about Asian culture to have a basic understanding of the Eastern mindset, but the scent was something that took me by surprise.

The summer before my senior year in college I took a course called Intercultural Communication. The class dealt with the adjustment process for expatriates who work in other countries. In that class I learned that people who work/visit another country develop a relationship with that culture. They can love it or hate it. They can separate themselves and maintain their old perspective. Or they can integrate, becoming a hybrid of the old and new- a fresh face in the adoptive setting.

Standing in line, I had a moment to decide how I wanted to approach my relationship with this new culture. I quietly said a prayer asking God to allow me to love the people deeply and see them through his eyes. I took a deep breath and embraced the culture, its people and its aroma. My turn in line came and I stepped forward and handed my passport to the flight attendant. She checked me in and I strode down the entryway, clutching my backpack tightly against my shoulders. The corridor was long and I couldn’t see exactly what lay ahead, but I felt expectant. I was ready…







Prayer Requests:

1) Fundraising: I am still waiting for many to send their support. The Lord has been generous in providing this opportunity and I am confident that he will supply exactly the funds I need. Pray that God would move people to support my mission monthly.
2) Persecuted church: Upon arrival I attended a staff meeting where we received updates on the work in the different countries. The persecution is intense, particularly in Laos. Pray for their perseverance and pray that God can use my feeble skills to be their advocate.
3) Thai government: is currently unstable due to an uprising. The situation has leveled off since I have arrived and it hasn’t reached a “coup” status. Pray that the situation will resolve.
4) Jet lag! I had a tidal wave of culture shock today. I need a church community and friends ☺.