(Ok, so I have a bunch of things I want to say about this month, but I let a squad mate borrow my computer since I knew I’d be in the jungle, so to tide you over I’m gong to share some musings I had while on the bus. I typed these on my iPod, so it took awhile. Enjoy for now, and as soon as I get my hands on my computer I’ll fill you in. Love you all!!)
On our way out of the jungle, we took a 6 hour bus ride to Terengganu, a lovely little beach town in Malaysia.
Bus rides are a commonality on the race, and since we are in our 8th month, I have mastered the art of killing time on a bus.
I was listening to my iPod and reading “the Wizard of Oz” when I suddenly looked up and out the window. The scenery was quite to be expected for a beach town, that being ocean, sea, palm trees and little beach houses and stores. Something struck me in that moment, as I found myself thinking, “when did we get back to Tanzania?” This place looked exactly like the beach in Dar Es Salaam. Which looked like the beach in Phuket, Thailand.
Which, surprisingly, reminded me much of home. I had even mentioned to my teammate, Kyle, “this looks a lot like Florida,” to which he immediately answered, “yeah it does!”
Which, surprisingly, reminded me much of home. I had even mentioned to my teammate, Kyle, “this looks a lot like Florida,” to which he immediately answered, “yeah it does!”
I started to ponder this for a moment, because I find It fascinating how similar these places look.
Chances are, the majority of the citizens of Malaysia have probably never gotten the chance to visit Dar Es Salaam, nearly half a world away, and I can pretty much guarantee even less Tanzanians have made it to Malaysia. I doubt either that any of them have made it to Florida any time soon. How is it, then, that all of these places seem to not only have the same infrastructure, but also the same “feel”?
Chances are, the majority of the citizens of Malaysia have probably never gotten the chance to visit Dar Es Salaam, nearly half a world away, and I can pretty much guarantee even less Tanzanians have made it to Malaysia. I doubt either that any of them have made it to Florida any time soon. How is it, then, that all of these places seem to not only have the same infrastructure, but also the same “feel”?
Then I began to consider why I thought this so strange. I can now say, with certainty, that i have been “all over” the world. Every place i have rested my eyes, so many different cultures, people and languages, in all honesty, tend to look the same.
Even in the remote jungle, where the people are nearly untouched by the outside world, have the same basic dwellings of people in the “bush” in Africa.
Even in the remote jungle, where the people are nearly untouched by the outside world, have the same basic dwellings of people in the “bush” in Africa.
Should this really have been a surprise to me? If God truly has made us all in His own image, then of COURSE we are going to have the same basic trends. We all invented the wheel. We all know how to hunt, gather, and build. The methods may differ slightly, but not enough to account for the random chances we claim brought about our species.
In my mind, had we all depended on the genes of our ancestors to propagate the necessary strengths we needed to survive, then I would guess that the people who evolved in Asia to not only have different culture than the Africans, but also different methods for building, surviving, etc. I’m not talking simply building materials mind you, I’m talking similarity in structure. A dwelling has walls and a roof and a door, whether it be made of bamboo, wood, metal or mortar. A house, is a house, is a house, and they all have windows in which to see the beauty of the outside world. Whether one considers it to simply be the musings of a naturalist who looks at the sunrise and says: “I’m so glad my ancestors evolved eyes so I can see it.” or a Christian who sees that same sunrise and responds in awe: “surely thank God for another day!” makes no difference. Both have windows to let in the light, and I think that in itself is quite telling.
It is the similarities of our race that set us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom, not our differences. Animals do not paint, write or compose. We humans do all those things, and then some. You may call me naive, but I find it terribly difficult to believe only ONE dominate race evolved without conflict from another, and I would assume there would be evidence to support that as well. I find it hard to believe the only dominate race would be homo sapiens or a hominid of some sort, ESPECIALLY now that I have seen some of the creatures that live in the jungle.
What I am trying to say is this, if WE evolved from a lower life form previously similar to us (let’s say, monkeys) then wouldn’t it be feasible that ANOTHER life form, somewhere else on our lonely planet, cut off from the primates, COULD have evolved from an ENTIRELY different species? Say, ants? Even if we “superior” primate based beings had completely obliterated the ant based species, surely there would have been evidence of their civilization? I suspect we should have seen some ant hills the size of skyscrapers, perhaps with a little monument and a plaque that says: “In Memorium of the Ant people. Sorry about exterminating your race, but survival of the fittest, you know.”
I guess that long winded explanation was simply to say this. The fact that we are so alike shouldn’t surprise any of us. In fact, it should instead inspire us to be okay with the similarities of our desires and needs. We all NEED love. We all NEED acceptance, we all need justice and mercy.
And where do we find that? We can turn and look to Jesus, the one who died for ALL of us, so that we can be forgiven and reconciled to a God who sees us ALL the same way.
And that is a similarity none of us can deny, try we might.
And where do we find that? We can turn and look to Jesus, the one who died for ALL of us, so that we can be forgiven and reconciled to a God who sees us ALL the same way.
And that is a similarity none of us can deny, try we might.
