And as promised, here is version 2 of my article… the one that will actually be published! (after they edit it and probably shorten it 🙁 )
By the way, I'll be home next week and cant wait to catch up with any/all of you. Feel free to call (717-669-1351) or email me ([email protected]).
Friends on a Journey 2 (remember, the first paragraph is the same as article 1, so you can skim it or skip it!)
Where I come from, the (not so free) land of freedom, America, it has become quite trendy to talk about life being a journey, or maybe a joyride. Rather than using this metaphor as a cliché for a fun and carefree time of seeing the sights along the way, however, I think we can redeem this image as a meaningful lens for viewing the journey of faith God calls us to take together in building God’s Kingdom. Sure, I believe it will be one punctuated by fun and beauty, but only because it is constructed on the wholehearted commitment of each person to a world where the holistic health of one’s community is the highest priority. Put simply, it is a journey that can only be made with friends. Not just any friends, though; this fabric of friendship that wraps a community together on this Kingdom journey of faith must be woven with the quality of thread prescribed by Jesus: “Greater love has no one than this: that one lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13).
During my 2-month project working with Malaysian Care and experientially studying the praxis of sustainable agriculture and economic development, I have encountered many examples of friends striving to make the most of life’s journey together. One of the most intriguing, albeit sincerely challenging, elements of my time here has been trying to comprehend the intersection of my own journey and that of the Orang Asli communities: my journey of pursuing a theologically informed vision of sustainable life and agriculture, and their journey of seeking a better life through holistic/economic development. Saturated with critical dissatisfaction in the fragmented, staunchly individualistic, and obsessively consumerist society of my modern and developed society at home, I have been searching in faith for living models of holistically sustainable alternatives. I’ve wanted to encounter a community(s) of friends that embrace a unifying interdependence upon one another and their local ecosystem, one on a journey resembling the ideal, community-first fabric of friendship for which Jesus advocates.
On the other hand, the Orang Asli are on a journey of economic development, endeavoring to establish a stable livelihood that provides an income and lifestyle that are, in different ways for different people, “better” than what they have. Let it be noted that I’ve met plenty, including Ladang’s manager Adidas and his family, who have tasted this supposedly “better,” modern/developed life but have found a place of contentment not completely removed from their simple and largely sustainable traditional ways. Nevertheless, many others, from what I’ve briefly seen and have learned from other staff, have aspired to much “higher” levels of development and lifestyle, sacrificing some of their long-established customs of communal unity and ecological sustainability as supposedly “necessary” costs.
Thus, what has resulted is this strange and sometimes frustrating zone of exchange and interaction where we (myself and some Orang Asli friends) have wanted what the other was trying to leave behind. As I’ve been stirred by their instinctual sharing of all they possess and willingness to help each other no matter the circumstances (like when we get stuck in the mud many times on the road to Kampung Tenau and every person that comes by, regardless of age, time, or how dirty they would get stops to help until we are free), some of them have been anxious to see what modern technology and luxury I have. While I’ve been fascinated and inspired by their ingenuity to use the jungle’s resources to make natural soap, shampoo, medicines, and delicious dishes, they have marveled at my Apple computer, Nike shoes, Camelbak water bottle, and more, most of which I tried to leave out of sight as much as possible. All of us, however, are left stuck with some type of discontent: there’s only so much I can learn from them in 2 months and less that I can realistically implement into my life back home right now, and they don’t have the money now to “afford” the luxuries by which they are enticed.
Although I don’t pretend to have all the answers to what we should, as citizens of God’s Kingdom, want and what we need to be willing to let go, I leave you with a few hanging observations and reflections. The things they have that I want and hope to see adopted by communities in America are free and lasting, ecologically sustainable and renewable, and bestow blessing upon communities journeying in friendship. Most of what they want that I have is economically, ecologically, and socially expensive, won’t last and can’t be renewed, and benefits only individuals while often fueling an attitude and lifestyle that is destructive of fragile communal bonds. What they have in their traditional culture builds and sustains friendships that engender a life of shared abundance, while what I have has been known to tear friends apart through jealousy and greed, provoking a tragic and ill-conceived outlook of competitive scarcity. Their traditional ways of life, if embodied in some form by the rest of the world, would promote and support a bountiful and joyous life for all Creation for countless future generations. Which journey we take, and which friends or no friends we take it with is a choice we all must make. Our lives, actions, consumption, our very existence on this earth have countless impacts on the entire web of life, on our neighbors, on the land upon which we live, and on the air which we breathe. Let us choose our journey, our friends, and how we walk together, wisely.
