"But the kind of love that God created and demonstrated
is a costly one because it involves sacrifice and presence.
It's a love that operates more like a sign language than being spoken outright."
-Bob Goff, Love Does
Villages have this thing going for them, it's called simplicity.
They most certainly are not the easiest place for this transplanted American girl to live but I find that visits do wonders for my soul. At my core I crave simplicity even if that includes sweat dripping off my forehead, dirty clothes, and unpleasant smells.
I realized how much I miss the tranquil village life when our team traveled into the jungle recently for a visit.
We didn't carry on scintillating conversations.
We didn’t have conversations at all.
It was more of a charade interaction where words are spoken with a hand gesture…
“you are beautiful,”
“you’re going to grow up to be an upstanding father and husband,”
“you are precious,”
…in hopes that their heart understands.
Smiles are the indicator the villagers at least know they are delighted in. Our day was full of smiles.
With no translator, no knowledge of English on their part and no Malay on my part you’d assume we’d be a disaster for communication. You’d think it would be awkward not to be able to talk. It wasn’t. It was actually a beautiful exchange. We said things. They listened, soaking in the attention. The kids "sang" along to the silly songs my fantastic teammates Allie and Courtney led. The kids didn't have the slightest idea what they were singing but they loved it. And they loved the goofy dance moves.
By some standards I suppose we didn’t do much. We brought balloons, colored pencils, and snacks, which cost us five dollars. Yet somehow it amounted to a whole lot of fun and meaning to those kids and mommas. If our visit were featured in a MasterCard commercial the moment the kids were running around squealing as they smacked the balloons around would be when priceless would appear on the screen.
On the car ride home I was reminded of how love is not always a grand gesture and does not require any speaking.
It can be as simple as sitting on a dirty floor playing with kids who are left daily to entertain themselves.
Love is entering someone's life and offering of yourself. And it can be done right where you are as easily as it can be in the jungle of Malaysia. Except they might actually understand what you are saying 🙂 Oh, and you might not be as sweaty!
