As I stare at the orange fish, I realize its significance. The two fish"isms" that come quickly to mind are the fish that symbolizes "I'm a follower of the Fisher of Men/Christ" and the belief that "if you give a man a fish he eats for a day, but if you teach him to fish he eats for a lifetime". I'm struck by how profoundly these two fishisms and my orange fish connect. . .
On Monday afternoon I had the joy of spending time with the Somali/Yemen refugee family Gateway is helping to resettle here in Austin. This was the first of our Monday tutoring sessions where I am supposed to help them learn English. But so much more took place there.
First, I have to admit I was nervous and would not go unless I had a partner -- Ericka. I just couldn't figure out how I was going to help this family learn English when I can't speak Arabic. Going to the driving class (see previous post) last week helped. But still, I wanted someone English speaking with me to help me muddle through. And Ericka did some tutoring with the Burundi family we resettled last year.
Anyhow, my perception that we'd just stare at each other was completely wrong. This family is soooo lovely. They wanted us to feel at home. Miriam, the 13 year old daughter, brought us each a glass of diet soda. Jamilah, the mom, made sure we were comfortable at the table. Abdulah, the 8 year old son, was at first shy and standoffish.
As we went through the lesson (a worksheet with words for clothing that I was able to create using an online tool -- very cool!) it became obvious that Miriam is doing quite well learning English. She is a really smart girl already getting 95s on her math papers and being honored for her good work during the first part of the year (have I mentioned they only arrived in the US in September?!) with other students at a breakfast next week! And her smile can light up a room. I can't tell you how much I came to adore her in just an hour. I will get the privilege of taking her and her mom to the breakfast she'll be honored at next week and I am already really excited.
Also, as we went through the lesson Abdulah began to get interested. At first shyly staying by his mom's side, he worked on his own worksheet and smiled as we complimented his work. When Jamilah got up to get us tea and dates (did I mention how wonderfully hospitable she is?), Abdulah began to get more comfortable with us. But what really did it was when Ericka showed him the photo on her cell phone of her dog, Jacko. Abdulah really like that. And, of course, I couldn't let my kitties get dissed, so I took out my phone and showed Abdulah Gizmo (my boy cat). Turns out, Abdulah LOVES cats! He got very excited, took the phone from my hand and showed it to his mom. Then I showed him the photo of my girl cat and he anxiously asked her name and shared that with his mom. He was beaming.
What I didn't realize was that as Ericka and I enjoyed tea and dates with Jamilah and Miriam, Abdulah still had my phone! Suddenly, I became aware of the sound of the camera function repeatedly resounding down the hall. The entire table erupted into laughter as all saw the surprise on my face... turns out Abdulah took 30 photos in about 3 minutes! It actually became quite fun and educational as we looked at the photos together and he told me, in English, what each was.
It was curious to see what Abdulah was taking photos of -- things. His closet, dresser, window, mom's bed, sister's bed, ceiling light, and this orange thing that I could not distinguish. They started saying "fish" but I could not figure out how this orange blur on my phone was a fish and was also wondering "do they have a fish?" Abdulah ran off to his room and quickly returned, face beaming, with a 2" orange fish (stuffed animal). I laughed and we moved on to other things.
A short while later it was time for Ericka and I to leave. We shared big hugs with each family member --already looking forward to our next visit. Then Abdulah handed me the fish. At first I didn't understand, but he and Jamilah made it clear that Abdulah was gifting this to me. It was such a shock. I had brought some props over for our lesson and this shoe key chain had been a big hit, so I tried to offer it to Abdulah in "exchange" for the fish. But he wouldn't take it. He wanted me to receive the gift.
I may not be able to fully express why this was such a poignant moment for me. But I will say that when I brought the props over to the apartment that evening I assumed, having worked with a variety of children, in the US and abroad, of various backgrounds and ethnicities and social classes, that the kids would try to keep something or make it clear they'd really like to have something I brought -- I'd actually picked things that I intended to leave or give as rewards or let them have if they asked. But as we were going through the exercise I just didn't feel it was necessary. There wasn't a single insinuation that they thought they should or would get to keep any of it. Then Abdulah gives me a gift. A young man who came to the US only 8 weeks ago with only a small suitcase to his name. And he gave to me something of his.
The beauty of that fish is a powerful representation of the intersecting of the two other fish'isms I referenced at the start. Christ died so that we would receive the gift of life -- He gave His life for ours -- He was a fisher of men. No one was out of his reach or beneath him or beyond him. He calls us to be fishers of men. He also calls us to teach men to fish -- throughout the bible we are called to care for the least of these and provide for their needs. And, we are called to be teachers as well as preachers.
That orange fish represents the work that is happening through Christ followers as they fish for men and teach those men to fish. I believe this because I have seen the beauty of the resettlement team at Gateway. Their hearts for serving refugee families and becoming their friends are just so beautiful! It is through this that they build relationships that enable them to be fishers of men while they teach men to fish. And the result is an amazing connection to people of different backgrounds, faith, ethnicity and life experience.
But my experience with the orange fish is also a reminder to go humbly and without expectation and ALWAYS willing to learn. Because, Abdulah is a little Muslim boy who doesn't care that we have different beliefs or how much money we have or what our approach to ministry is. He just loves cats, gives great hugs and has a huge heart. Wouldn't it be great if as we fish for men and teach them to fish, we have a bit of Abdulah in us -- that we serve willing to give something that we value just to show our love for someone else?
On Monday afternoon I had the joy of spending time with the Somali/Yemen refugee family Gateway is helping to resettle here in Austin. This was the first of our Monday tutoring sessions where I am supposed to help them learn English. But so much more took place there.
First, I have to admit I was nervous and would not go unless I had a partner -- Ericka. I just couldn't figure out how I was going to help this family learn English when I can't speak Arabic. Going to the driving class (see previous post) last week helped. But still, I wanted someone English speaking with me to help me muddle through. And Ericka did some tutoring with the Burundi family we resettled last year.
Anyhow, my perception that we'd just stare at each other was completely wrong. This family is soooo lovely. They wanted us to feel at home. Miriam, the 13 year old daughter, brought us each a glass of diet soda. Jamilah, the mom, made sure we were comfortable at the table. Abdulah, the 8 year old son, was at first shy and standoffish.
As we went through the lesson (a worksheet with words for clothing that I was able to create using an online tool -- very cool!) it became obvious that Miriam is doing quite well learning English. She is a really smart girl already getting 95s on her math papers and being honored for her good work during the first part of the year (have I mentioned they only arrived in the US in September?!) with other students at a breakfast next week! And her smile can light up a room. I can't tell you how much I came to adore her in just an hour. I will get the privilege of taking her and her mom to the breakfast she'll be honored at next week and I am already really excited.
Also, as we went through the lesson Abdulah began to get interested. At first shyly staying by his mom's side, he worked on his own worksheet and smiled as we complimented his work. When Jamilah got up to get us tea and dates (did I mention how wonderfully hospitable she is?), Abdulah began to get more comfortable with us. But what really did it was when Ericka showed him the photo on her cell phone of her dog, Jacko. Abdulah really like that. And, of course, I couldn't let my kitties get dissed, so I took out my phone and showed Abdulah Gizmo (my boy cat). Turns out, Abdulah LOVES cats! He got very excited, took the phone from my hand and showed it to his mom. Then I showed him the photo of my girl cat and he anxiously asked her name and shared that with his mom. He was beaming.
What I didn't realize was that as Ericka and I enjoyed tea and dates with Jamilah and Miriam, Abdulah still had my phone! Suddenly, I became aware of the sound of the camera function repeatedly resounding down the hall. The entire table erupted into laughter as all saw the surprise on my face... turns out Abdulah took 30 photos in about 3 minutes! It actually became quite fun and educational as we looked at the photos together and he told me, in English, what each was.
It was curious to see what Abdulah was taking photos of -- things. His closet, dresser, window, mom's bed, sister's bed, ceiling light, and this orange thing that I could not distinguish. They started saying "fish" but I could not figure out how this orange blur on my phone was a fish and was also wondering "do they have a fish?" Abdulah ran off to his room and quickly returned, face beaming, with a 2" orange fish (stuffed animal). I laughed and we moved on to other things.
A short while later it was time for Ericka and I to leave. We shared big hugs with each family member --already looking forward to our next visit. Then Abdulah handed me the fish. At first I didn't understand, but he and Jamilah made it clear that Abdulah was gifting this to me. It was such a shock. I had brought some props over for our lesson and this shoe key chain had been a big hit, so I tried to offer it to Abdulah in "exchange" for the fish. But he wouldn't take it. He wanted me to receive the gift.
I may not be able to fully express why this was such a poignant moment for me. But I will say that when I brought the props over to the apartment that evening I assumed, having worked with a variety of children, in the US and abroad, of various backgrounds and ethnicities and social classes, that the kids would try to keep something or make it clear they'd really like to have something I brought -- I'd actually picked things that I intended to leave or give as rewards or let them have if they asked. But as we were going through the exercise I just didn't feel it was necessary. There wasn't a single insinuation that they thought they should or would get to keep any of it. Then Abdulah gives me a gift. A young man who came to the US only 8 weeks ago with only a small suitcase to his name. And he gave to me something of his.
The beauty of that fish is a powerful representation of the intersecting of the two other fish'isms I referenced at the start. Christ died so that we would receive the gift of life -- He gave His life for ours -- He was a fisher of men. No one was out of his reach or beneath him or beyond him. He calls us to be fishers of men. He also calls us to teach men to fish -- throughout the bible we are called to care for the least of these and provide for their needs. And, we are called to be teachers as well as preachers.
That orange fish represents the work that is happening through Christ followers as they fish for men and teach those men to fish. I believe this because I have seen the beauty of the resettlement team at Gateway. Their hearts for serving refugee families and becoming their friends are just so beautiful! It is through this that they build relationships that enable them to be fishers of men while they teach men to fish. And the result is an amazing connection to people of different backgrounds, faith, ethnicity and life experience.
But my experience with the orange fish is also a reminder to go humbly and without expectation and ALWAYS willing to learn. Because, Abdulah is a little Muslim boy who doesn't care that we have different beliefs or how much money we have or what our approach to ministry is. He just loves cats, gives great hugs and has a huge heart. Wouldn't it be great if as we fish for men and teach them to fish, we have a bit of Abdulah in us -- that we serve willing to give something that we value just to show our love for someone else?
