I never understood why so many in the world hate us “nice Americans” until I moved to Africa as a missionary. Then for the first time I was able to see how we are viewed from the outside, and it’s not always a very nice picture! Especially since most see us from the political or colonial perspective.
After having worked with a number of short-term mission teams, mostly young people, I also saw how out of touch most Americans are when they cross borders! So for years now I have thought how every high schooler should have to spend a year in a foreign country, preferably a developing country, to get un-spoiled. If they only go for 2-3 weeks, it’s still a holiday to them and they don’t do any cultural adaptation. It’s just a romantic holiday to them. If they stayed for a year, they’d have to learn to adapt and might gain a different perspective, and go home different.
Such an insightful and helpful post. Thank you.
I never understood why so many in the world hate us “nice Americans” until I moved to Africa as a missionary. Then for the first time I was able to see how we are viewed from the outside, and it’s not always a very nice picture! Especially since most see us from the political or colonial perspective.
After having worked with a number of short-term mission teams, mostly young people, I also saw how out of touch most Americans are when they cross borders! So for years now I have thought how every high schooler should have to spend a year in a foreign country, preferably a developing country, to get un-spoiled. If they only go for 2-3 weeks, it’s still a holiday to them and they don’t do any cultural adaptation. It’s just a romantic holiday to them. If they stayed for a year, they’d have to learn to adapt and might gain a different perspective, and go home different.