mish (mih-sh): adjective
Anything that is comparable to or associated with being a missionary; that which is missionary-like
Anything that is comparable to or associated with being a missionary; that which is missionary-like
The summer after I graduated high school, I went on a mission trip to the Amazon jungle. My memories from that summer include evenings sitting on the steps of a church watching the sun sink into the jungle horizon, swimming in the swampy water of the Amazon River, and chasing around a soccer ball with kids from the village. Somewhere in the midst of dinners lit by headlamps and nights sitting under the stars, I learned many lessons that forever transformed me.
I discovered what it meant to tangibly experience the Love of God. I learned what it looked like to participate in Kingdom-advancing ministry on a daily basis. And I began to understand what it meant to be a loyal, Godly friend. That summer I also learned what it was like to live as a missionary.
There was this other girl on my team who, for one reason or another, became my best friend that summer and consequently, we’re still soul sisters to this day. Together we trapezed the crazy missionary life, trying to find the balance between embracing the idea of having rice for every meal, but also desiring substantial nutrition in our diet. As we learned what it meant to live as missionaries, we adopted the word mish to describe our experience.
Sleeping on the ground under a mosquito net? Mish.
Taking bucket showers by headlamp? That’s mish.
Washing your clothes in the river? Definitely mish.
There was this other girl on my team who, for one reason or another, became my best friend that summer and consequently, we’re still soul sisters to this day. Together we trapezed the crazy missionary life, trying to find the balance between embracing the idea of having rice for every meal, but also desiring substantial nutrition in our diet. As we learned what it meant to live as missionaries, we adopted the word mish to describe our experience.
Sleeping on the ground under a mosquito net? Mish.
Taking bucket showers by headlamp? That’s mish.
Washing your clothes in the river? Definitely mish.
(Left): Washing dishes in dirty water? Mish; (Right): Katie and me dressed [painfully] mish
So, that was the Summer of Mish. We used the word until it drove everyone crazy, but Katie and I found endless entertainment in the new addition to our vocabularies. Though we eventually left the jungle, we did not conclude our usage of the word. To this day, I use the word mish on a regular basis.
And now, it is my duty to pass this word on to the rest of the world. There is no doubt that the World Race will be filled with mish moments, and I’ll be sure to chronicle them along the way. That’s why I wanted to write this blog. Feel free to adopt the word mish into your daily vocabulary! It can easily be used in America, just so you know. In any case, you’re now informed about what mish is, so you won’t be confused when I blog about it all year.
And now, it is my duty to pass this word on to the rest of the world. There is no doubt that the World Race will be filled with mish moments, and I’ll be sure to chronicle them along the way. That’s why I wanted to write this blog. Feel free to adopt the word mish into your daily vocabulary! It can easily be used in America, just so you know. In any case, you’re now informed about what mish is, so you won’t be confused when I blog about it all year.
