{"id":950,"date":"2017-10-25T09:25:41","date_gmt":"2017-10-25T09:25:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana\/?p=950"},"modified":"2018-10-19T19:08:39","modified_gmt":"2018-10-19T19:08:39","slug":"youre-welcome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/2017\/10\/25\/youre-welcome\/","title":{"rendered":"You’re Welcome"},"content":{"rendered":"

Blog at the bottom, after the pictures :-) \u00a0Thanks again for the encouragement and blog comments and prayers.<\/p>\n

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Director Peter Spielberg explaining the photo…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The Jesus Film riders<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Ray and his riders<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Joshua and Ray<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Auntie Grace<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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A woman drawing water from a well<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Elisabeth at the microphone<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Close up of woman at the well<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Each time we enter someone\u2019s home, village, or church, we are greeted with a smile and \u201cYou\u2019re Welcome\u201d. At first, it takes you by surprise \u2013 why would they say that? What did I do?<\/p>\n

In English, we say \u201cyou\u2019re welcome\u201d after someone first says \u201cthank you.\u201d We hand someone an ice cream cone, and with a polite nod they quickly say \u201cthank you.\u201d We respond by acknowledging their politeness — \u201cyou\u2019re welcome.\u201d It is synonymous with \u201cit\u2019s my pleasure,\u201d \u201csure thing,\u201d or \u201cno-problemo.\u201d It is an expression that comes from old English, and over the centuries, has been reduced to a robotic response.<\/p>\n

But here in Africa, \u201cyou\u2019re welcome\u201d is a statement from the heart. It comes from deeply rooted tradition, part of the culture of Africa, a reflection of an ancient ethos of hospitality. When spoken to you, it means you are accepted, warmly welcomed, recognized. Whether from an elderly village chief or a young school teacher, it transforms the interaction. You will be, and are, welcomed. It is remarkable that such a simple greeting can reflect so much.<\/p>\n

A broad smile and an openness to receive another can cross any barrier, any ocean, mountain range, or language. Our walls can be dissolved.<\/p>\n

Every time I travel, I learn many things about myself and about the rich wonders of this world. For many, it is hard to imagine walking along a dusty road in Africa, being so exposed \u2013 a tall foreigner with milky pale and dripping wet skin \u2013 everyone staring, everyone wondering why you are here. But walking among the ruddy mud huts, with scrawny goats and dirt-covered pigs scurrying across the path is not something to fear. If we can shed our false pride, the dishonest haughtiness brought by western riches, we can become students, and learn from our new friends.<\/p>\n

Thank you Africa for welcoming us. Teach us your smile. Teach us your passion for Christ. Teach us warmth, dancing, hospitality, and new songs. We are your pupils. Africa, when I return home, remind me to be welcoming. Encourage me to accept others as I have been accepted, to cross barriers by adjusting the posture of my heart.<\/p>\n

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Blog at the bottom, after the pictures :-) \u00a0Thanks again for the encouragement and blog comments and prayers.   Each time we enter someone\u2019s home, village, or church, we are greeted with a smile and \u201cYou\u2019re Welcome\u201d. At first, it takes you by surprise \u2013 why would they say that? What did I do? In … Continue reading You’re Welcome<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-950","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-10"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/950","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=950"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/950\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1066,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/950\/revisions\/1066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=950"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=950"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leopardshark.com\/ghana-trips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=950"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}