God's Irony, Part Two

The last several days have been really thought provoking. I'll do my best to intelligibly relate what's been tumbling about in my brain recently.

Years ago, Maynard's nephew worked with a guy named Matt, who is from Kansas City, MO. Just recently Maynard had learned that Matt was going to be in London and had an interesting story to tell and so Maynard invited him for Sunday dinner. So there was the 6'10" Matt, whom none of us really knew, sitting in the Newman house with Maynard, Joan, Jon, and Anna, Seggie (a French girl who used to live with the Newmans), and me and telling us all about his recent adventures (you'll recognize Matt in the photo as the one who looks by his size that he could be in the foreground, when really he's towards the back). Matt has been traveling around the world this year. So far on this journey he's been through Central and South America, Antarctica, South Africa and much of Africa's east coast, the Middle East, Turkey, Romania, Austria, and now London. Next stop: Ireland, Scandinavia, Russia, China, Australia... It's quite a trip.

Apparently, Matt had been visiting friends in Japan a few years ago when he read a quote by Mark Twain: "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." This got him thinking about what he was doing and what he was leaving undone. Among his goals at the time were to visit all 50 states and to set foot on all seven continents, which he is currently doing and blogging about. It was such an enjoyable time to hear his story and to catch some level of inspiration from it, even if I don't plan to travel the whole world myself.

The next day I was reading a book on God's multicultural intentions for the church. The introductory chapter is the stories, in part, of the three co-authors, each of whom has some relevant history in multicultural settings in the US or abroad. As I read, I found myself identifying with their stories as some of the unease I've felt here in the UK.

You see, a few days prior, a woman I met through Joan and Maynard asked me how I was liking England. I found myself hesitant to answer, which probably says more than what I actually said. I did eventually reply, saying that when I went to Scotland several years ago, I felt very much at home from the moment the plane touched down. I don't know why, but it just hasn't been the same with England. There's no real way to put a finger on it, but somehow you know you're not quite the same as the people all around you. In some sense this seems strange because I could easily blend into a crowd here in England. I don't look any different from anybody else and I dress about the same. Furthermore, American and British cultures are, in many ways, very similar - and all the more so as the world grows smaller and political ties between the States and the UK strengthen. But my identity as a foreigner is firmly established the moment I open my mouth to speak to anyone. I wonder if in some sense this actually heightens the tension I've been feeling. It's assumed that, as an American, I should be able to fit in quite naturally with the English, as though cultural references made in conversation don't have to be explained to me. Yet the differences are frequent enough that this assumption actually makes the differences more noticeable to me. Although the UK and the US are very similar in many ways, I'm realizing this is definitely a cross-cultural experience.

I wish I had been able to ask Matt about his experiences in light of this, but it has only been recently that these thoughts really started to come into more focus, even though I know this particular post is somewhat rambling. I should add, however, that the people of Green Street Green Baptist Church have been remarkably hospitable. I have in no way felt like too much of an outsider there (Actually, that's a whole other post about how great it is to be able to travel around the world, visit absolute strangers and still know that you can call them brothers and sisters because of our connection through Christ. Certainly that's been another incredible experience on this journey.).

Anyway, just some thoughts I've been having in reflecting on what's going on here. I pray that some of these things really get lodged in my heart. I'd hate to forget this feeling of being an alien, such as it is, and not offer hospitality to those that feel like foreigners when I'm at home.