Of the many missionary trips I have taken to Mexico, one truly stood out. Each year for nearly 10 years, I traveled with our Rotary group to Mexico to help in an orphanage there that was started by a fellow Rotarian and run by an amazing group of nuns.\u00a0 Ongoing crisis situations faced us throughout this particular journey and each one brought heightened fear.\u00a0 To start with, we flew out of Detroit during horrendous weather in Michigan, which continued as we traveled towards Mexico.\u00a0 The ride was turbulent and there was apparent fear within the passengers.\u00a0 As the plane rocked and swayed prior to landing, we were all told to take a crash position.\u00a0 As I later reflected on the state of mind of the other passengers throughout the journey, I noticed the cultural differences in the various groups of people in the way they handled their potential impending doom.\u00a0 It was truly enlightening!<\/p>\n
What I remember as I reflect back were the differences in how people handle fear at potential end of life.\u00a0 It was very culturally distinct in many ways, and I can still reflect upon the ways that groups of people reacted to the crisis situation, especially while on the plane during of our journey.\u00a0 Meyer tells of how people respond and react in certain situations with regards to business, leadership or even church.\u00a0 But what I saw was how people from different faith beliefs reacted with regards to fear!<\/p>\n
I noticed that Christians, as an entity, prayed not only for themselves, but for everyone else on the plane as well.\u00a0 It was not a \u2018family only situation,\u2019 but a total embracement.\u00a0\u00a0 It was powerful!\u00a0\u00a0 I also saw that people of other cultures (especially people of Mexican and Chinese descent) were very focused on their families and groups of individuals within their own culture who were traveling together.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure if they felt \u2018different\u2019 or if they just naturally leaned inclusively within only their own culture, but the caretaking and prayers were focused internally within in their group.\u00a0 The atheists were most intriguing.\u00a0 It was either exclusively about them only and their own internal fears (no one else mattered) or they were reaching out for help from others to help them find a path to salvation.\u00a0 It was an enlightening adventure, that\u2019s for sure.<\/p>\n
To finish the story:\u00a0 although we landed safely, the story certainly didn\u2019t stop there.\u00a0 After landing, we were greeted by a Mafia group, which had taken over the airport.\u00a0 As we sat and waited for the \u2018hostage\u2019 scenario to end, I felt grateful for the peace I held.\u00a0 We finally got to the orphanage of young girls (age 5-15), who had been trafficked prior to being taken into the orphanage, and we were then harassed by the local police force, as they were part of the trafficking ring.\u00a0 They wanted \u2018their girls\u2019 back!\u00a0 Yet, our Christian faith collectively helped us to feel surrounded by protection from our Heavenly Father.\u00a0 So, fear was truly a non-issue!<\/p>\n
So\u2026.I digress!\u00a0 But the question is ~ did I enjoy Meyer\u2019s book and believe it to be a worthwhile read?\u00a0 Yes, I did!\u00a0 I found it to be both engaging and informative.\u00a0 Meyer\u2019s audience is really everyone and anyone, as we all cross different international boundaries at different times in our lives.\u00a0 This is true whether we travel or not.\u00a0 Meyer\u2019s Eight Scales<\/em> were also powerful.\u00a0 Meyer noted that when interacting with someone from another culture, try to watch more, listen more, and speak less,[1]<\/a> which is a common- sense statement, but also a good reminder in everyday life \u2013 both between different cultures and within our own!\u00a0 \u00a0One of Meyer\u2019s most powerful statements is: \u201cIf you go into every interaction assuming the culture doesn\u2019t matter, your default mechanism will be to view others through your own cultural lens and to judge or misjudge them accordingly.\u201d[2]<\/a> \u00a0So true \u2013 and very enlightening!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n