Cultural Bonding

"When I was 16 years old, I had the privilege of going on a month-long mission trip to Taiwan. For a long time, it was the highlight of my life. I was enthralled with the people, the work, the culture...I loved it with every molecule of my being. Ten years later as I prepared for our family's one month stint in Kenya, I expected the same exuberance, the same love, the same cultural bonding. What I have discovered however, is that time -and responsibilities- have a vast effect on one's cultural bonding! As Joe has been able to dive right into hands-on ministry here, teaching and preaching, visiting different villages, I have been -for the majority of the time- at home mopping the floors, playing with the children, and cooking food. So needless to say, I was at first having a hard time discerning how to bond with the culture and people here." I wrote this in July of last year- in our studio apartment overlooking the main road of Diani Beach, in Mombasa Kenya. I was trying to verbalize my thought processes....not sure if it came out right or not! Obviously I never finished my writing on this- but the idea remains the same. Cultural bonding is a process that takes time, and a lot of it. A lot of people (so I am told) struggle with it so much that it never happens, or even debilitates them in ministry. I wouldn't know since I haven't had the time yet to experience this phenomenon- but it is my hope and prayer that one day, I too will be culturally bonded with a people not originally my own!