Serving or Sightseeing?

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It’s just about Valentine’s day again, and for most people this is a reminder to show care to those they love. February 14, also means that my mailbox will once again be filled with letters asking for funds to support teens or young adults who are ready to embark on a short term mission trip in the summer. Their trips will take them to a remote area in which they will be given a chance to show love and care to the local people of that area. Do short term mission trips really embody the command of loving others as we love ourselves? Or could the resources be used in a more effective ways? Perhaps it is time to take a fresh look at short term service trips.

I grew up in a small town in Minnesota and attended a Methodist church in Minneapolis called Emmanuel Methodist Church. It was there that I first understood what a missionary was. I remember reading the true-life Paul White series. Paul White spent his life as a medical missionary in Tanzania, Africa. The books inspired me and gave a picture of a full time commitment to serving those in need. Missionaries were wonderfully mysterious people who spent time in our home telling us their extraordinary stories of faraway lands during their “furloughs,” (a word I was forced to look up after hearing it time and time again.) When I think of a missionary I think of people like Mother Teresa or my elder sister, both who gave up lives of comfort to live full time with people who need love and care.

Today’s contemporary American church seems to be almost obsessed with the idea of short term missions. Every summer thousands of churches send their teenagers and adults to lands outside of the United States. When I was living in Chicago my curiosity got the better of me and I went on one such trip as an adult leader. I, along with other seven other adults chaperoned a group of about 20 teens as we spent about ten days in Tijuana, Mexico. We arrived in Mexico and we settled into tents that were set on land owned by larger missionary operation, whose entire function was to provide opportunities for Americans and other Westerners to experience a short term mission trip! That was one of the most outrageous facts I uncovered. The living was by no means luxurious but it was almost as though it was purposely made crude so the attendees would have the feel of a “real” mission field. Nonetheless, our living standards were much superior to the Mexicans all around us. Our goal was to play soccer with the kids, help build better living quarters and basically understand the struggles of the community in Tijuana. There were only three interpreters available and most of the teens and adults (including myself) had no more than a rudimentary understanding of Spanish. Two of the leaders had chosen to bring along their preteen children who had to be taken back over the border to a hospital in California for bacterial infections. Most of the communication was done with smiles, gestures and gift giving. Before returning to Chicago we enjoyed two days in California. One day was spent at the ocean, (since most of the teens had never seen the coast) and one day in Disneyland. I had paid for the trip with my own personal funds, but it troubled me that we had spent time and money on frivolous pastimes such as the beach and Disneyland. I had many other concerns regarding the money and effort spent to make us comfortable.

I began to read and research about short term service trips. Most of them are fairly similar. These trips are designed to provide the attendee with “a broader perspective of the world and increase cross cultural understanding, taste of culture other than their own, a transformed view of the world and its needs”(Anderson). Some trips are evangelical in nature while some are working trips. They involve fixing or building schools, homes, churches or handing out medical supplies, or providing some kind of emergency relief. Most of the people who attend will not be required to have any particular skill and even a basic foreign language skill is not required. While the mentioned goals are worthy, are short term mission trips to a far away land the best way to acquire them? Is the money that is given put to the best use possible?

On one of my visits to India, my sister and her surgeon husband who had spent over 30 years on the mission field, told me about their experiences with the short term mission groups that would occasionally visit them. I found their comments fascinating and asked them for their insight about the subject.

First, short term missionaries while good intentioned, often can be a burden to the community which is hosting them. This is particularly true for countries which are not English speaking or those that have extreme climates. Most of the time special living arrangements must be made as well as special food and toilet facilities. While those organizing the trips emphasize tolerance of cultural differences and encourage the attendees to acclimate to their surroundings, in practice this most often does not take place. While I was in Mexico, the food we ate was provided for us by an outside source and we used specially built toilet and shower facilities. We were warned not to eat the food or drink the water provided by the community we were serving. My sister relayed the difficulty in providing food and housing for the short term visitors. Most people cannot tolerate the local spicy foods, toilet and living facilities, so special preparations have to be made. These additional arrangements cost the community time, money and labor.

Second, the work that is done on site is often not as effective as perceived by the those who are sponsoring the trip. My own experience in Mexico was eye opening. I was baffled by the “building” we did. Most of the work we did was slipshod. I wouldn’t have put my dog inside and I knew it was substandard, even by Mexican standards. In countries like India where the cultural divide is so vast, the methods to accomplish a particular task are so different, that often the local hosts must make time just to serve those that have come to serve. Could not the work be done better and much more efficiently if those who understood the language and the local customs were given the resources they need?

Third, the money that is used to send short term workers to foreign countries can be much more effectively used by the local community or missionary. One person going to India will spend at least $1,500.00 for just the airfare. The current exchange rate in India is 43 rupees to one American dollar. One plane fare translates to roughly 65,000 rupees! In a country where labor is still fairly cheap, this would be enough money to pay a teacher’s salary for a year, equip a classroom in a school, or buy two laptops! Which option is the best use of charitable funds?

Granted, a service trip inside the USA, would not allow the team to experience a foreign country, but the benefits would greatly outweigh this one drawback. If we use the definition of a short term mission trip mentioned earlier in this essay, a trip to any American region would still offer a broad perspective of the world and increase cross cultural understanding. One only has to travel from Texas to the New York/New Jersey area to realize that these two regions are as different from one another in terms of culture and varied perspectives as Alabama and Argentina.

There are many ways to provide care and concern to people in need right here in the USA. I am privileged to volunteer at a free health clinic in New Jersey called Zarephath Health Clinic. Since my area of expertise is pediatrics, during the pediatric nights, I work with a volunteer pediatrician, a secretary and my son—who works at the reception desk and does office work. Together we tend to the healthcare needs of many children who have very little insurance or no insurance at all. Zarephath Health Clinic does not ask for payment of any kind and many times even the medications are free due to the generosity of pharmaceutical companies. The clinic was founded by Drs. John and Alieta Eck. The clinic is an amazing place where adults and children can find unconditional, non judgmental care.  You can donate to this worthy cause by visiting their website at: http://www.zhcenter.org/index.php

My hope is that those who have so much, think before going to Haiti or Bosnia. Instead of using charity dollars to fund a trip to a foreign country where so much of the money and effort is spent on travel, amenities or accommodations, perhaps these trips should be funded with personal funds, rather than asking others for charitable contributions to support a trip that is more about a personal experience than a trip about serving and caring for those in need.

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“Creating a World Vision,” Christian AnswersNetwork, ed. Beth Andersen, 8 June 2005,.

My Story is Mine

Mostly Fiction, 1998-2010

A few years ago I read a wonderful book called The Book of Salt by Monique Truong. In this novel, a Vietnamese servant named Binh recalls his experiences of living in French colonized Vietnam. His employers are the writers Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. There comes a point when the writers presume to narrate Binh’s life story for him. Upon discovery of this Binh becomes enraged, “My story, Madame, is mine. I alone am qualified to tell it, to embellish, or to withhold…the story, it belongs to me.”

The world is yet to hear the stories from many other Binhs. When India, the Pacific Islands, the countries of Africa and other lands were colonized the world saw them—their natural resources, foods, culture, language, value systems and governments, only through the eyes of the colonizer. Things were seen from the western point of the view. Coffee and chocolate became known as European specialties and tea became an English drink. The crown jewels in the Tower of London while drawing loud “oohs” and “ahhs” from tourists, were taken from India during the British Raj. The jewels can only be seen from inside their European settings. The British Museum and The Louvre hold treasures such as The Kohinoor Diamond, Elgin Marbles, Benin Bronzes, Rosetta Stone and The Seated Scribe—the list of such thefts is longer than anyone can compile. These treasures can only be seen in surroundings that are foreign to their origin.  If these works of art were returned to their rightful owners, would they become less artistic? My appreciation of art is greatly enhanced when it is seen in its country of origin. Anyone who has seen Italian art in Italy, Egyptian art in Egypt or Kenyan art in Kenya would say the very same thing.

Many would say to let sleeping dogs lie and that one can’t undo the damage of the past. The debate over the return of stolen artifacts goes on. But I would argue that this discussion is only a symptom of a much bigger problem:

The word does not yet recognize or acknowledge the Binhs of the world. It can only hear their voices when they are presented from a western point of view.

For example, there was a huge mass appeal for the movie Slumdog Millionaire. A movie that portrays the brash and often ugly life of poor Indians—written and directed by two British men, Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy. It was an entertaining movie, but what bothered me the most, was that it was shot completely from a western perspective. While I sat in the theatre it was amusing to hear the “Indian” and “American” reactions. During particularly graphic scenes, the Indians laughed and the Americans gasped in horror. An Indian would not have created the same movie. At the same time, movies such as Water and The Namesake directed by Deepa Mehta and Mira Nair barely created a blip on the movie radar. These two films gave an infinitely superior and authentic view of India than the Danny Boyle perspective. It was interesting when The Sixth Sense, directed by M. Knight Shyamalan, was passed over at the Academy Awards for best picture and best director. Instead American Beauty, a rather pedestrian movie about a tiresome middle aged pedophile, won an Oscar in both categories. Perhaps the Academy was not ready to see America from an Indian-American perspective.

Literature seems to be coming along at a better pace. Indian English writers such as Rushdie, Adiga and Roy who write about life in India have received global acclaim. At the same time, many do not. Rohinton Mistry is a prolific and beautiful writer who writes about real life in India. All of his books including A Fine Balance have been passed by for any awards. R.K Narayan wrote many magnificent short stories and novels but many who call themselves well-read cannot recall one of his works. It was most distressing to learn that Yann Martel, a Spanish writer who had not had much success in the literary world, had won the Booker Prize for his novel Life of Pi. He chose to tell the story of an Indian boy named Pi Patel. Pi is born in India to parents who are from Tamilnadu in South India. An Indian would have never given life to such a character. Any Indian will tell you that it is almost impossible for a native South Indian to have the last name of “Patel.” Patel is a distinctly Gujarati name. Martel uses India as the backdrop for his novel, but fails to provide even an authentic Indian name for his protagonist.

Indian music and dance have only recently become popular due to artists who have reinterpreted these traditional beats and rhythms to complement their own music. Artists like Jay-Z, uses Indian artists in his music. He worked with Punjabi MC to produce a huge dance hit called Beware of the Boys. Timbaland also uses Indian singers, words and music in his song called Bombay and another called Indian Flute. Missy Elliot’s hit Get Your Freak On is written on an addictive beat with rhythms and instruments used in traditional Indian music and Sean Paul’s single Get Busy was on the billboard top 100 for 23 weeks. In this song Paul uses a sound called Diwali. It is a bhangra infected, hand clapping rhythm and sound that is heard all over the US dance floors. Sean Paul also uses samples from Indian artists in his song, Shout (Street Respect). It seems that even Indian music must be heard through the ears of a western artist before it is deemed valuable.

While it might be difficult to turn back time and undo the damages of colonialism, it is important that all of us as consumers and lovers of art and music seek to find and appreciate those artists that provide the most authentic and genuine voice, keeping our ears and eyes open for all the Binhs of the world.