A heads up - This post is pretty long, so if you don't feel like hearing about orientation, feel free to scroll to just below the picture for some interesting cultural facts I learned while in Toronto!
Sunday, May 12th, I left Montréal for a three day orientation with AIM in Toronto. I was welcomed, along with two other short-termers, Anna and Kathleen, by the most wonderful and loving couple, Diana and Murray, who hosted us and carried out our pre-departure orientation at the AIM Canada office. There are three phases to orientation with AIM: pre-departure, which takes place in Toronto, a sort of semi-on-the-field orientation at the main AIM office in the host country, which is in Nairobi in my case, and then an on-the-field orientation upon arrival at one’s final destination of service.
Sunday, May 12th, I left Montréal for a three day orientation with AIM in Toronto. I was welcomed, along with two other short-termers, Anna and Kathleen, by the most wonderful and loving couple, Diana and Murray, who hosted us and carried out our pre-departure orientation at the AIM Canada office. There are three phases to orientation with AIM: pre-departure, which takes place in Toronto, a sort of semi-on-the-field orientation at the main AIM office in the host country, which is in Nairobi in my case, and then an on-the-field orientation upon arrival at one’s final destination of service.
The two other short-termers with whom I went through
orientation were both headed straight to the field following our time in Toronto. Anna
is currently in Madagascar, where she is working in the northern part of the
country in a medical clinic, and Kathleen is headed to Northern Kenya like me, to
the village of Kurungu. The main people group in Kurungu are the Samburu, a
tribe that is traditionally an enemy of the Gabra – that is, the people I’ll be
working with, which made me laugh as the three of us became quick friends.
A lot of information was presented during the orientation. Upon arrival at the office, we began each day in prayer with the other AIM staff members in the office, and then filled the day with information sessions on everything from practical matters - finances, the history of AIM and its policies, and travel procedures, to topics such as cultural sensitivity, disciple-making, and spiritual warfare. We also had a session entitled "To Give or Not to Give", which I found very interesting. We discussed the potential negative effects of unthinking giving/handouts, and how certain seemingly kind actions can do more harm than good.
In learning about AIM's organizational set-up, one thing I noted that I really liked was how, for their short-termers, they always work to integrate the short-term ministry with what long-term missionaries are doing on the field - i.e., as a short-termer, I am going to be staying with a long-term missionary family and will be working to support ongoing projects. This has many benefits, including building into something bigger with proven effectiveness rather than being part of a shorter, more isolated effort, and providing built-in opportunities for mentorship from people with much experience.
I was hugely encouraged to be able to spend this time in Toronto getting to know new people and to witness their passion for Jesus and for sharing His love with others. Many interesting conversations were had. Diana and Murray worked as overseas missionaries in Kenya with their family for five years, coming back to Canada only a few years ago, and have extensive cross-cultural ministry experience from this and from service in other countries. It was wonderful to learn from them, and to hear their stories and perspectives.
Here's a picture of the five of us, taken from Kathleen's blog!
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| Kathleen, Anna, Diana, Murray, me |
Some interesting cultural facts:
• It seems that pregnancy is not discussed casually in the least, even among good friends. I heard one story of a missionary whose friend, a Kenyan national, asked for a ride to the hospital; at this point, it was quite apparent that the Kenyan woman was pregnant, but she hadn't told the female missionary that she was with child. So her friend dropped her off at the hospital, still not mentioning anything about being pregnant or a baby maybe being on the way; it was only later that the female missionary received a call saying that a baby had been born! Apparently this is due to the strong sense of cultural propriety regarding conversations about anything intimate, as well as to the sad reality that the chances of something going wrong with the pregnancy or during the birth itself are much higher there, making it easier to not rejoice at the coming of a child until the baby actually breathes his/her first breath.
• The title of "Mama" is one bestowed upon any woman who is a mother, and is a term of great respect. It is an honour to have "Mama" attached as a prefix to your name as a woman, as being able to bear children is highly valued. For example, Diana was referred to as "Mama Diana" in Kenya, whereas I would simply be referred to by my first name, Christina.
• One does not excuse oneself from an event, such as a dinner at a friend's house; rather, you wait for the host to "release" you. There's no, "Well, we should probably get going now, thanks for the meal!" Instead, one must wait for the host to say, "You are released!" As such, it's a good rule of thumb to leave yourself a bit of extra time for any event; there's no cramming one meeting after another into your schedule, as I know most of us are wont to do in North America, because you never know how long it might be before you're released!
But, if you've made it through this lengthy post, thank you, and you are now released, 'til next time! :)
