Most people know about culture shock, but culture stress is something different. When my family first moved to South Asia, we often experienced culture shock. It gradually decreased, but for a few months to around two years, we had new experiences that felt either captivating or startling. Eventually these experiences became normal parts of our …
Continue reading Culture Shock vs. Culture Stress
Sharing this again because we unexpectedly lost a family member a few days ago. Loss is something everyone deals with. Dealing with loss can be tough when you are living as an expat. So I am sharing this again. Thanks for reading. I hope this encourages other international workers who have experienced sudden, unexpected loss. …
Continue reading Dear International Worker, You May Grieve From Far Away
Christmas Past: South Asia. Nearby mountains. Cold. At our community's Christmas gathering, our Fijian friend wrapped chicken in banana leaves, then roasted it in the ground while his wife made fresh bread and prepared for the guests. Around a huge bonfire in their yard, we all ate and sang the evening away while our children …
Continue reading Christmas Past. Christmas Present.
“It is your birthday. You are bringing us this cake?” “Yes. Because I lived in South Asia for a long while. On birthdays there, it is common to give candy or small gifts to friends on your birthday. I did it for seven years there, and it became part of my birthday tradition. I’m not …
Continue reading Free to Change
Here is the 2nd half of my post from last week. ____________________ When our family first moved to South Asia, we had good plans. Some were our own ideas we wanted to see happen. Some were things we strongly felt God wanted to do through our family. (Perhaps there is a little bit of both …
Continue reading Expect Change. Live in Hope. Part 2
Dear International Worker, When it comes to your life and work, plan well and be wise. Continue your training. Draw from your experiences and resources. Do all of this. It’s smart. But don’t forget that change, transition, and the unexpected will increasingly be part of the lifestyle you’ve chosen. Even though you’ll never know …
Continue reading Expect Change. Live in Hope. Part 1
A few days ago, my new friend grabbed my hand to lead me on a tour of her work place. The familiarity of this gesture recalled several memories of holding hands with friends in South Asia. Occasionally the sights, smells, and sounds here come close to what I knew in South Asia, but with the …
Continue reading Third Country or More
"I'm not one of those people who... learns languages easily." God has gifted in languages." memorizes things easily." is brave enough to practice language in public." I started hearing statements like this when I began studying my second language. I still hear similar things and I'm on my fourth. If I'm having a bad day sometimes I …
Continue reading I’m not one of those people who…
Yes. For so many reasons, learn the language. When I reached proficiency in my second language, many people expressed how excited they were for my new skill. "You'll be able to help other people and share God's love around the world!" was a commonly expressed sentiment. True. But my own life, understanding of God, people, …
Continue reading Dear International Worker, Learn the Language
