Visual Ethnography Hong Kong Kevin Norwood /Stills
Landing in Hong Kong brought many surprises. One of them was that everything was clearly marked in English.
A complete new adventure landing without a real plan but a little research had mapped out a train ride, a bus ride and a Holiday Inn with a suite reserved in my name. Thank goodness for points!
Meeting up with my friends: from another cohort was refreshing and exciting. Meeting new friends and connecting quickly at the Intercontinental: priceless
Having a daily walk with an Australian, who is like a walking library, developed a friendship and closeness that only an advance could provide. Never waste the minutes you have….5:30 in the morning is worth the walk
Starbucks was an international favorite destination. Our morning walks were motivated by the ending of the physical work out and the beginning of the mental exercise with the comforts of home.
The brilliance of Victoria bay was so impressive in the early am and in the evening. Photos do not do it justice. Spending every day on this historic and famous walkway will not soon be forgotten.
Every meeting with residents of Hong Kong all started with the same story. One country, two systems. The independence of the Hong Kong dollar and political systems is granted under the law but the end is in sight in 2047.
The Umbrella Revolution shows the strain on the young people staring into the face of their independence being swallowed up by another country. They wanted to be noticed by the world and the only place they were not recognized by was China. The object of their demonstration didn’t react or respond to their work. Fruitless!
Dr. David Wong was the one speaker who most held my attention. Even though we spent the least amount of time with him, he held the inspiration for me to make changes as I returned to the USA.
David Wong, former deputy CEO of the Bank of China (Hong Kong), is currently chairman of Halftime Hong Kong, with the mission to help business leaders transit from success to significance. He had over 14,000 employs and is himself incredibly wise and wealthy.
He made a simple statement that I needed to hear. “For there to be growth, there has to be some instability in the market. Growth is not always possible when everything is completely stable.” This resonated with a leadership decision that I left on my desk to decide on the trip to Hong Kong.
I believed I would receive an answer as to what to do over the 11 days of this fantastic trip. This one little piece of secular business wisdom affected the sacred direction of my ministry.I believe there is a place for input from the secular to help the sacred to interact with the world.
The other fascinating encounter was with Jackie Pullinger. All I can say is that I have been in the presence of a world changer. Her initial conversation with us of waiting for God to speak to start the day was truly empowering.
Having an interpretation of tongues being interpreted into Cantonese and then into English, seamlessly, was a first for me and was so captivating!!
God is still at work today through people who will practice what they believe. Which brings me to the end of this conversation. As I have walked back into my side of the world and have stared into the face of my world, I do it with confidence that God still speaks and leads even today!
Chasing the Dragon was one person’s journey in faith. Mine may not be called that but the journey to Hong Kong has been life changing. Leadership will not be the same in my ministry again.
On a fun note, we met the most interesting car club in the world. They were happy to show us their cars and answer all our questions. Sad we didn’t have time to take just a short joy ride.
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