Blogger writes on missionary kids in the field.

[tabitha2]

Challenges for Missionary Kids on the Field

Missionary kids experience culture shock too. When I first got to Papua New Guinea as a 9-year-old girl, it was a big, exciting adventure. However, I do remember the strange feeling as I stepped off the plane and noticed that everyone else looked so different. They must have thought that we looked strange too. Very quickly, I had to get used to the fact that people were going to stare at me. And they were going to feel my white skin, and pinch my cheeks, and try to steal strands of my long, blond hair when I wasn't looking. They must have thought I couldn't feel it! We had to get used to the total lack of privacy. It was an uncomfortable feeling to look up and see a dozen village children peering in your windows to see what the white people were doing. I watched Seth go through some of this the first couple of months that we were in Kenya. People thought he was so cute. They wanted to pick him up and get right in his face and ask him questions. He was nervous that they looked so different, and he could not understand a word they said because of their thick English accent. We still taught him that he had to be polite in spite of the way he felt inside. But my MK heart when out to him because I knew exactly what he was going through--culture shock, confusion, and frustration. After a couple of months though, his new life in Africa became normal. Now he can understand them perfectly, and when he speaks to them in English, he uses their accent! It makes me smile every time I hear it.

Another thing that MK's face on the field, especially the older they get, is loneliness. They long for friends their own age who understand. Yes, they can play and talk with the national kids, but the culture is still very different. They can never fully share everything with their national friends because of the cultural barrier there. It is necessary to talk about things that their friends understand like pigs, gardens, walking the mountain trails, etc. Those friends probably wouldn't understand or even be interested in the good book you just got finished reading. For this reason, siblings become very close on the field because your siblings are the only friends you have who truly understand you.

Missionary kids long for letters from America. Getting the mail was the highlight of our trips to town because I had pen pals! When I would get that precious letter all the way from America, I would read it and reread it many times, and I would immediately sit down and write my pen pal back. Then I had to wait another three months till we went to town again to get another letter.

I want to emphasize how important it is to write your missionaries, AND their kids. Now that we have e-mail, it makes it all the easier. I cannot tell you in words what it means to missionaries to know that people back in the States are thinking of them, praying for them, and care enough to write them a letter or an e-mail.

Here is part of an e-mail from an MK friend of mine who has struggled with this on her mission field. Soon, she is headed back to the field with her parents. Recently, she wrote me this, and told me I could share it in my post. "For a long time I was very bitter at all my "friends" that I thought didn't care about me because two years would go by, and I wouldn't hear boo from them. I grew very resentful at teens that came to visit our family on missions trips because we would connect for two weeks; then they would go and never care to look back. I still have to remind myself that God brings people into our lives for seasons and that we must love them completely and not hold back ourselves simply because we know they won't be there forever."

I had friends like that too--great friends, Godly friends, but friends who you only get to talk to and fellowship with if you are standing right there beside them in person. Sometimes you feel like you've dropped off the "edge" of the earth. They don't understand because they have never been there in those uttermost parts of the earth alone.

I do not write this to complain or to gain pity. On the contrary, I absolutely LOVE what I am doing, and I wouldn't want to be anywhere else in the world right now. My heart's desire and purpose for my blog is simply to show the whole picture of what it is like to be a missionary, so that people know better how to pray for missionaries and how to be a blessing to them.

Seth is her 4 year old son.Her parents were Missionaries in Papua New Guinea .

[gardenvarietycitizen]

I imagine e-mail really is making the world smaller for them, at least those who are in areas where smartphones and the like are getting popular (which can include some pretty amazingly rural areas).

Being able to connect with both of "my" places at the same time (granted, both first world countries) is the #1 best thing about the internet that really has changed my life in a big way. What it means to immigrate/emigrate/live abroad/etc (apart from the missionary angle) really is different now that it used to be, just because it's so much easier to get media.

[NurseNell]

I have a friend who grew up in Pakistan. Her father was a Lutheran pastor, her mother a nurse. Her father died after 20 years there but her mom stayed there 40 years. She ran a clinic, no doctors, just her. She loved it and was devoted to the people. My friend said she had profound culture shock when she came to MN for college. To this day she's no good at 50's and 60's trivia because she experienced none of the music, movies, TV shows, etc. She attended a fairly conservative Lutheran college and thought it was a den of inequity! It was compared to growing up in a Muslim country.

[Glass Cowcatcher]

[link=http://freejinger.org/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=7744&hilit=rights+of+long+term+missionary+kids]I started a topic on this type of thing a while back.[/link]

Pimping because I explained how I feel in more detail there, but, long story short, I think it's incredibly unethical for long-term missionaries to take children to foreign countries for years at a time, especially to places where they will not have access to decent medical care and education.

They may feel like they are giving the children a better context on politics but all they are really doing IMO is locking their children out of their own culture and making it very difficult to actually interact back in the states, when they do return.

[BlackHawk]

[link=http://freejinger.org/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=7744&hilit=rights+of+long+term+missionary+kids]I started a topic on this type of thing a while back.[/link]

Pimping because I explained how I feel in more detail there, but, long story short, I think it's incredibly unethical for long-term missionaries to take children to foreign countries for years at a time, especially to places where they will not have access to decent medical care and education.

They may feel like they are giving the children a better context on politics but all they are really doing IMO is locking their children out of their own culture and making it very difficult to actually interact back in the states, when they do return.

I find that an interesting perspective. Do you feel this way only on missionaries or on other people? At some point in our life, my partner may get a kick ass job that takes us to another country... his goal is to use his degree to help people in developing nations. Right now that's not possible, but in the end, we do hope to live in other countries with our family. I don't think that makes us horrible perspective parents... no more than any other parent.

Personally, I feel that children need to be exposed to other cultures. Yes, you have to keep up their education, which is more on the parents than the nations they live in. Yes, you have to make sure you understand the implications of medical issues, and hope beyond hope nothing goes wrong... but you really do that every time you get in a car.

I don't think it locks them out of their culture... it offers them perspective. Would you say the say thing for a family that moves to Germany or England from the states? I hear things are similar there, but they are not American culture. Is that harming the kids? Does that make the parents selfish? What about parents who move to the states from other nations? Like families that move here from China for whatever reason and choose to raise their kids here. Are they locking their children out of their culture and in turn harming them?

(Edited because I had families originally, and when I went back and reread, I realized we plan to only have one family... :) )

And to add, I'm not arguing with you, merely exploring your opinion as you stated here.

[Glass Cowcatcher]

I find that an interesting perspective. Do you feel this way only on missionaries or on other people? At some point in our life, my partner may get a kick ass job that takes us to another country... his goal is to use his degree to help people in developing nations. Right now that's not possible, but in the end, we do hope to live in other countries with our family. I don't think that makes us horrible perspective parents... no more than any other parent.

Mostly with missionaries who go on long-term mission trips where their children do not have access to medical care, education, whatever. People who live overseas due to their job usually have more access to these sorts of things because the companies provide them.

I would have issues with anybody choosing to take their child into such an environment, but my ire is specifically with missionaries because I think a lot of them have a "We prayed about it, it's OK" attitude instead of really taking the effects on their children into account.

Personally, I feel that children need to be exposed to other cultures. Yes, you have to keep up their education, which is more on the parents than the nations they live in. Yes, you have to make sure you understand the implications of medical issues, and hope beyond hope nothing goes wrong... but you really do that every time you get in a car.

But many of the people who would like to do long-term mission work are NOT the kind of people who want to educate and enculturate their children in the first place.

I wrote in the other thread about the situation of one of my cousins, for example--she has lived overseas for at least half of her live, is homeschooled, and does not have any opportunity to socialize outside of her family and the mission team associates because of language differences. She's like a non-person, ignorant of American culture but unable to assimilate where she lives.

I don't think it locks them out of their culture... it offers them perspective. Would you say the say thing for a family that moves to Germany or England from the states? I hear things are similar there, but they are not American culture. Is that harming the kids? Does that make the parents selfish?

This would differ a lot situation to situation but I would say yes, it has the potential to do harm. I guess it depends on how long they are there, how open the parents are to letting their children live in two different cultures, and how well the language barriers can be overcome.

What about parents who move to the states from other nations? Like families that move here from China for whatever reason and choose to raise their kids here. Are they locking their children out of their culture and in turn harming them?

Again, it would differ from situation to situation, but I think that people who flee to the US for political reasons are in a different class as they are likely to be harmed more by staying. Also in many cases, immigrants have their own cultural enclaves.

[BlackHawk]

Mostly with missionaries who go on long-term mission trips where their children do not have access to medical care, education, whatever. People who live overseas due to their job usually have more access to these sorts of things because the companies provide them.

I would have issues with anybody choosing to take their child into such an environment, but my ire is specifically with missionaries because I think a lot of them have a "We prayed about it, it's OK" attitude instead of really taking the effects on their children into account.

I understand your reasoning with Missionaries. I however, do not agree that anyone who takes their children outside of their culture for long periods of time are bad parents. Personally, I see that as something not to aspire to, to only keep your children in your culture and refuse to let them experience other people.

But many of the people who would like to do long-term mission work are NOT the kind of people who want to educate and enculturate their children in the first place.

I wrote in the other thread about the situation of one of my cousins, for example--she has lived overseas for at least half of her live, is homeschooled, and does not have any opportunity to socialize outside of her family and the mission team associates because of language differences. She's like a non-person, ignorant of American culture but unable to assimilate where she lives.

I agree with your assessment of Missionaries who are the pray and go type. They do not want to help their children acclimate to other cultures. It's very sad. But if you are moving to move, and you allow your children to assimilate with the natives of the land, I think it's an awesome learning experience. Something I think you might be missing. I wonder if your cousin would be ignorant of American culture either way, from the way her parents sound. Doesn't seem like she'd be having much fun here either!

I don't think merely moving to a new culture and helping your children come to terms with everything and learn to fit in the new culture, and give them that opportunity, is denying your children anything.

This would differ a lot situation to situation but I would say yes, it has the potential to do harm. I guess it depends on how long they are there, how open the parents are to letting their children live in two different cultures, and how well the language barriers can be overcome.

Everything has the potential to do harm. Seriously, you cannot go on that alone. There has to be more here than this. I agree that the main aspect must be allowing the children to learn the new culture and allowing them to come in to it how they would anywhere. I just don't think, in the long run, it causes harm to a child if you are open about everything in the new culture. Different cultures and cultural experiences as a whole do not harm children... or anyone for that matter. To simply learn a new culture is probably not going to make you hate the world and never be able to fit in anywhere.

Again, it would differ from situation to situation, but I think that people who flee to the US for political reasons are in a different class as they are likely to be harmed more by staying. Also in many cases, immigrants have their own cultural enclaves.

Okay, what about people from Germany or England moving to America? Or people from Russia moving to France, or Ireland to The Netherlands?

I'm more trying to figure out if you believe that no one should cross cultural bounds long term. Should people only live in the countries they were born so their children can only grow up in their culture? Perhaps I'll read the other thread a little better to see if you touch on it there... but why should people, once they have children, never live anywhere else longterm?

[NurseNell]

My friend really appreciates growing up in a different culture. Her parents were Lutheran missionaries, they tend to offer service and not be there to convert the people. Her mother served others for 40 years as a R.N. in Pakistan. She delivered babies, took care of injuries, treated pneumonias, etc. She didn't convert people, she served them. Her children went to an international boarding school in Pakistan, some kids had missionary parents, some diplomat parents. The students came from many different countries. To this day my friend has former classmates living in all kinds of interesting places. She and her husband have had free places to stay in Moscow, Jordan, London, Scotland, Kilimanjaro, Nepal to name a few.

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Surely with missionaries (of a certain sort, anyway) their ethos of being "in the world, but not of it" would affect things? Reading Glass Cowcatcher's anecodotes it seems those parents were not wanting or expecting their kids to just mix freely with the "national" kids and blend in there, if they're homeschooled and have no friends outside of the mission staff. That's isolationism, to me, and I agree it does the kids no favors.

I can't help but wondering though, if that same kid was isolated that same way back in the US, would she really have a sense of "American culture" anyway? If there is no media allowed, and the same SOTDRT homeschooling? (Though I suppose there would at least be more like-minded families and so potentially friends, assuming her parents weren't all Maxwellian or Lindvallesque.)

The one thing that REALLY raised red flags for me in the previous thread on this issue though was the lack of visas - just based on some of the anecdotes about being UNABLE to use local facilities and having to travel out of the country every few months, it was clear that some of those families were cheating on tourist visas. Yeah, if you do THAT and try to raise kids, it's crazy. You won't get any services, because you're illegal.

I do think it's important that parents give their kids the language skills (this doesn't need to include pop culture trivia or TV shows) to live as adults in the places they will likely end up. That means that unless you imagine your kid permanently immigrating to the other country, you keep up the home language skills. But if both parents are American and speak English to each other, the kid will end up speaking English (even IF they attend local schools) so it should not be a huge hurdle.

[Glass Cowcatcher]

I understand your reasoning with Missionaries. I however, do not agree that anyone who takes their children outside of their culture for long periods of time are bad parents. Personally, I see that as something not to aspire to, to only keep your children in your culture and refuse to let them experience other people...

I agree with your assessment of Missionaries who are the pray and go type. They do not want to help their children acclimate to other cultures. It's very sad. But if you are moving to move, and you allow your children to assimilate with the natives of the land, I think it's an awesome learning experience. Something I think you might be missing. I wonder if your cousin would be ignorant of American culture either way, from the way her parents sound. Doesn't seem like she'd be having much fun here either!...

I don't think merely moving to a new culture and helping your children come to terms with everything and learn to fit in the new culture, and give them that opportunity, is denying your children anything.

I don't think living in another country is inherently bad and I tried to quantify that in my previous post. It's not specifically the living in another country that I'm objecting to. It's that the kids are basically held hostage. A SOTDT, Pearl-disciplined kid in America has people to turn to for help and can "rebel", not so for kids who are living in another country where language and racial and cultural differences keep them apart, for example.

Then there are other specific issues. A missionary kid who is placed in another country, isolated, may not have decent medical care--something that would likely be provided by the company, if employment was the drive for education.

Everything has the potential to do harm. Seriously, you cannot go on that alone. There has to be more here than this. I agree that the main aspect must be allowing the children to learn the new culture and allowing them to come in to it how they would anywhere. I just don't think, in the long run, it causes harm to a child if you are open about everything in the new culture. Different cultures and cultural experiences as a whole do not harm children... or anyone for that matter. To simply learn a new culture is probably not going to make you hate the world and never be able to fit in anywhere.

The whole point of a missionary journey boils down to telling people "You're doing it wrong, we're doing it better." Not an attitude that makes for cross-cultural appreciation.

As for danger, this is a bit different than things like car crashes, which could happen by chance. Sometimes there is a specific risk of danger on these missionary journeys, whether it be disease, political turmoil, lack of medical care, ect. The parents knowingly place their children in this situation. My aunt and uncle claim they could be in legal trouble if their missionary activities are discovered.

It's not much different, to me, than an active duty soldier or a private contractor taking their family and children into the field with them. Missionaries just get a pass because their activities are religious in nature.

I'm more trying to figure out if you believe that no one should cross cultural bounds long term. Should people only live in the countries they were born so their children can only grow up in their culture? Perhaps I'll read the other thread a little better to see if you touch on it there... but why should people, once they have children, never live anywhere else longterm?

I'll admit this is a fine line and not one that can be painted broadly.

Some kids might be fine with it.

Some kids might suffer severely from culture shock, on one end or another.

In the end though it's a bit different; parents who want to live temporarily to actually teach about other cultures are much different from missionaries who go there specifically to change a different culture and don't really care about their kid's needs.

Edit because the formatting borked.

Edit again to add: I also think this is in a different field as people moving overseas for employment/political reasons, because missionary work is entirely voluntary.

[Glass Cowcatcher]

I can't help but wondering though, if that same kid was isolated that same way back in the US, would she really have a sense of "American culture" anyway? If there is no media allowed, and the same SOTDRT homeschooling? (Though I suppose there would at least be more like-minded families and so potentially friends, assuming her parents weren't all Maxwellian or Lindvallesque.)

It wouldn't be easy, but they could debrainwash if they tried hard enough.

More importantly, in their home country, they would be able to access different organizations to help them escape from honest abuse. Not so if they were stuck overseas.

The one thing that REALLY raised red flags for me in the previous thread on this issue though was the lack of visas - just based on some of the anecdotes about being UNABLE to use local facilities and having to travel out of the country every few months, it was clear that some of those families were cheating on tourist visas. Yeah, if you do THAT and try to raise kids, it's crazy. You won't get any services, because you're illegal.

To be fair, I do not know if they are there illegally or not, but I plan to confront them on that next time I see them.

[NurseNell]

The whole point of a missionary journey boils down to telling people "You're doing it wrong, we're doing it better." Not an attitude that makes for cross-cultural appreciation.

Not necessarily. My friend's parents were providing health care. I have a friend who was a Grey Nun of the Sacred Heart. She served in Peru teaching illiterate women to read, and no, the Bible wasn't her textbook. She actually developed a system to teach illiterate adults how to read. The Maryknoll missionary women, both sisters and lay women, who served in El Salvador were working with the poor, and they were assassinated because the government didn't like them telling poor people that they had rights and didn't need to put up with abuse and low wages, that they deserved education and health care.

[Glass Cowcatcher]

Not necessarily. My friend's parents were providing health care. I have a friend who was a Grey Nun of the Sacred Heart. She served in Peru teaching illiterate women to read, and no, the Bible wasn't her textbook. She actually developed a system to teach illiterate adults how to read. The Maryknoll missionary women, both sisters and lay women, who served in El Salvador were working with the poor, and they were assassinated because the government didn't like them telling poor people that they had rights and didn't need to put up with abuse and low wages, that they deserved education and health care.

I know that some missionaries do great things--my aunt and uncle were able to do some genuinely humanitarian work when a natural disaster hit their area.

However I still think that, in many cases, there is an agenda behind the humanitarian work, no matter how it benefits the local people.

Your post also illustrates my point--missionary work can involve danger to life and limb, yet many missionary families ignore that because it's "God's Will."

[atheistjd]

This reminds me a bit of the TCK phenomenon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_culture_kid) ... It can be really hard to feel so unrooted. While I think it is a great thing to expose children to other cultures, and hope to do the same for my own kids someday, when you lose your nation of origin identity and don't really have the chance to ever fully integrate into a second home, it can have some interesting psychological repercussions. Not all bad, I don't think, but I can't imagine feeling like there is no one culture or place I identify with or feel at home. I know a number of people who have ambassador or globe-trotting parents who are having a really hard time transitioning into adulthood or putting down roots somewhere.

[fundifugee]

I grew up as a third culture / missionary kid, first in Latin America then in the US. I did not repatriate to Canada until my late 20s.

Growing up in Latin America was an overwhelmingly positive experience that I would not trade for anything. I grew up bilingual, I feel comfortable in both anglo and latino cultures and environments.

Yes, I was isolated, but I had the good fortune of being born a missionary kid, and my parents, founders of a local church, were persuaded to adopt the local tradition of godparents. My godmother is a wonderful person who, in spite of being of the same church as my parents, has a very gentle and loving perspective on life and was a constant loving support. She even confronted my parents once after my sister told her about how they had beaten me the day before. When we moved to the US, I was far more isolated. I had no idea what social services were or that the way my parents viewed discipline was wrong or questionable.

In the end, growing up in Latin America actually helped me escape fundamentalism because I knew what it was to be an outsider. I did not fear losing my social group. I got along well with folks from many different cultures when we were in the US and they were far more tolerant than my like-appearing peers, who thought I was an oddball due to my cultural and religious background. In the end, my African and Latin American friends were an enormous source of support as I moved away from the upbringing of my family of origin. Feeling comfortable with local immigrant groups also imparted a work ethic that got me into med school and into a very comfortable place in life, in spite of having a family that did not emphasize education for females. It is also a very useful skill to be able to stand outside one's culture, whether it is the culture of birth or the culture where I am living, and realize this is just one way of thinking and doing things, and there are other possibilities.

I hope to take my Canadian-born, Canadian-fathered daughter back to Latin America for several long-term stays as she grows up, to give her the same gift I had. With that aim, I gave her a bilingual name that crosses cultures like mine does. She will be tall and pale and will stand out, but I am sure she will learn enough to make friends and find her own level of acceptance.

[fundifugee]

This reminds me a bit of the TCK phenomenon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_culture_kid) ... It can be really hard to feel so unrooted. While I think it is a great thing to expose children to other cultures, and hope to do the same for my own kids someday, when you lose your nation of origin identity and don't really have the chance to ever fully integrate into a second home, it can have some interesting psychological repercussions. Not all bad, I don't think, but I can't imagine feeling like there is no one culture or place I identify with or feel at home. I know a number of people who have ambassador or globe-trotting parents who are having a really hard time transitioning into adulthood or putting down roots somewhere.

Yes, but roots are overrated. I am a nomad at heart, I get itchy feet every 2-3 years. I am managing to stay put geographically these days with the help of multiple short trips away, and instead direct that energy at looking for new intellectual challenges. I like being of no particular culture, but I get tired of answering the "where are you from?" question. I don't find it an uncomfortable state of mind, it is my normal.

Yes, I do know a few peers who got angry and bitter at their parents for putting them through this, but I would say that is a minority. Of my peer group in the country where I grew up, all but a few finished university, the majority of them in the US or Canada, and a large percentage ended up in the ivy league and/or with graduate degrees.

[atheistjd]

Yes, but roots are overrated. I am a nomad at heart, I get itchy feet every 2-3 years. I am managing to stay put geographically these days with the help of multiple short trips away, and instead direct that energy at looking for new intellectual challenges. I like being of no particular culture, but I get tired of answering the "where are you from?" question. I don't find it an uncomfortable state of mind, it is my normal.

Yes, I do know a few peers who got angry and bitter at their parents for putting them through this, but I would say that is a minority. Of my peer group in the country where I grew up, all but a few finished university, the majority of them in the US or Canada, and a large percentage ended up in the ivy league and/or with graduate degrees.

Yeah, I guess I should have caveated this with the fact that all the TCKs I know are WAY smarter than me and all in grad/med/law school (no SOTDRT for these kids - I am not referring to homeschooled/isolated missionary kids). And I am super-jealous of true polyglots and people who have the ability to fit into any culture. I've become way more of a homebody in the past few years (a slow transformation from my desire to be a globe-trotting superhero to a grassroots/change-the-world-in-my-own-city person), although I still love to travel. I think there are limitations to both perspectives, and am often jealous of my worldly, culturally savvy colleagues. Just pointing out that there is something to be said for having roots too...

[NurseNell]

I grew up as a third culture / missionary kid, first in Latin America then in the US. I did not repatriate to Canada until my late 20s.

Growing up in Latin America was an overwhelmingly positive experience that I would not trade for anything. I grew up bilingual, I feel comfortable in both anglo and latino cultures and environments.

What country did you grow up in? My sons are from Colombia. I've done a medical mission trip to El Salvador. It wasn't a church mission trip, no religion. I went with a group from the Cleveland Clinic. In 2014 I'm going to the Philippines, and hopefully Nigeria.

[NurseNell]

Yeah, I guess I should have caveated this with the fact that all the TCKs I know are WAY smarter than me and all in grad/med/law school (no SOTDRT for these kids - I am not referring to homeschooled/isolated missionary kids). And I am super-jealous of true polyglots and people who have the ability to fit into any culture. I've become way more of a homebody in the past few years (a slow transformation from my desire to be a globe-trotting superhero to a grassroots/change-the-world-in-my-own-city person), although I still love to travel. I think there are limitations to both perspectives, and am often jealous of my worldly, culturally savvy colleagues. Just pointing out that there is something to be said for having roots too...

My friend who grew up in Pakistan has the least amount of education of her missionary kids group. She has a master's degree in nursing. Her friends have M.D.s and PhDs. One has both a M.D. and PhD, and is himself now a missionary in Nepal.

[fundifugee]

Yeah, I guess I should have caveated this with the fact that all the TCKs I know are WAY smarter than me and all in grad/med/law school (no SOTDRT for these kids - I am not referring to homeschooled/isolated missionary kids). And I am super-jealous of true polyglots and people who have the ability to fit into any culture. I've become way more of a homebody in the past few years (a slow transformation from my desire to be a globe-trotting superhero to a grassroots/change-the-world-in-my-own-city person), although I still love to travel. I think there are limitations to both perspectives, and am often jealous of my worldly, culturally savvy colleagues. Just pointing out that there is something to be said for having roots too...

I see what you are saying, and true enough I am trying to cultivate that appreciation in my life, especially the grassroots concept that you mention.

I would also add that I am REALLY happy that I did not grow up around my extended family; my MK upbringing saved me from the child-molester grandfather, the loud aggressive street-preacher grandfather, their doormat/enabling wives and all their victims, I mean my other relatives. My own parents were enough to have to deal with, and given the sparsity of others in my family who have managed to escape fundamentalism, I am very glad not to have had the extra fundie family influences in my life.

[fundifugee]

What country did you grow up in? My sons are from Colombia. I've done a medical mission trip to El Salvador. It wasn't a church mission trip, no religion. I went with a group from the Cleveland Clinic. In 2014 I'm going to the Philippines, and hopefully Nigeria.

Ecuador

Also, forgot to mention, one of my favourite 3rd culture kids - Barack Obama.

It can be/has been argued that his third culture status made his accomplishments way more possible than if he, say, grew up a biracial child of a single mom in the US south.