A little bit about me:
I grew up in Western culture. Western culture is obsessed with time. “Time is money.” Many of the products available today involve doing something easier and faster. Many others promise to reverse the effects of time. Our days are dictated by our schedules.
My family of origin is keenly aware of what you communicate through punctuality. I can’t claim to abide by this all of the time, just ask my mom. But if you ever have met my dad, then you understand the importance of being somewhere when you said you would be.
For those of you with whom I have not had the opportunity to become acquainted – I am a Type A, mildly (undiagnosed) OCD engineer.
Now you know a little bit about me. I don’t say any of this to be good or bad, simply statements of fact. Because of the culture in which I was raised, the family from which I come, and my own internal wiring, I work very well with schedules, structure, and clear expectations.
Latin culture – not so much.
A few illustrations:
One day we were taken to ministry at 1600 because it began at 1600. The next day, our host came in at 1530 and told us that we were heading to ministry right away. Because we did not leave until 1600 the first day, we were not expecting to leave until around the same time the next day, so when he came in 30 minutes earlier and insisted that we depart immediately we were caught off-guard.
We went to purchase water at the store, only to find that they were closed for siesta. Later we asked the proprietor what times the shop was closed for siesta each day. He didn’t understand the question. When we finally conveyed the idea, he responded that there is no schedule, the shop is closed when he wants it to be closed. Can you imagine that in the States?
(Background: we are tenting in the sanctuary, so on Sundays we have to pack up our things. The morning service is at another location, so we were told that we didn’t have to pack up until 1400-1500.) When we returned from the morning service, we were told that there would be band practice in the sanctuary, so we had 10 minutes to pack up and move our things.
On Sunday, we were told that the service would start around 1800 or 1830, so we were ready at 1800, in plenty of time for the service to begin at 1845.
Again, I don’t intend for these things to be bad, simply statements of my experience. Several of these things, if isolated incidents, might be considered absentmindedness, or simple mistake, but as these things occur daily it becomes clear that it is a way of life, and not the exception.
Initially, I was really irritated with all of these things. It was (is) so frustrating that no one adheres to the schedule that we have agreed upon, or many times that they have given us.
As I began to recognize my frustrations, I began to search for the lesson in all of these things. When I asked God about it, He chuckled and said “this is an excellent lesson in so many things.” Well, great.
- Patience – we all have heard the old cliche “patience is a virtue.” This most certainly is an exercise in patience and grace.
- Relinquish control – Oh man. The Type A hulk inside of me gets all kinds of bent out of shape at this idea. I have this mindset that my life is my own, to do with as I please. The reality is that I am a steward of the time that God has granted me in this world. Having to relinquish control of my schedule in S. America is a metaphor for what God has been asking me to do with my life.
- Flexibility – In life I have found that things often play out differently than we planned or expected. Sometimes in extreme ways. If I am rigidly attached to things going a certain way, then when they change it could cause me to react negatively. In order to go through life without being in a constant state of anxiety, I have learned to be flexible. On the World Race, things always play out differently than planned or expected. Flexibility must become second-nature.
- Appreciation of another culture – It is one thing to experience a culture that is different from your own, but does not challenge you. It is a different experience entirely to be in a culture that directly challenges a deeply rooted tenet of your own culture, and to be able to appreciate that culture enough to say “this is very different from my culture, and that’s ok.”
- Challenging productivity – Josh made an excellent point the other day: Western, Capitalist culture places considerable weight on productivity. (Good or bad could be argued, this simply is a statement of fact.) That has not been my experience here. Whether that is a characteristic of Latin culture or if it has more to do with the demographics of our town is inconsequential, the fact is that I have been forced to confront one of the most foundational values in my native culture.
Throughout the Race, as well as my previous travels, I have experienced several different cultures. Sometimes differences are more extreme than others. Sometimes the differences are imperceptible without deep inspection. I believe this has been one of the most direct challenges that I have faced. Whether I want to admit it or not, I am experiencing culture shock.
