Grow2serve partner, Velvet Ashes, is an online community of women serving overseas. They are a unique tribe, bonded by the shared journey of uprooting their lives and re-rooting in foreign soil. The Day I Decided to Become a Student of Culture {The Grove: Share} written by Kelly Delp is about how to become a learner instead of a teacher because we have so much to learn. This post was originally posted in the Velvet Ashes Blog.
When we have an intern come and join our team, one of the first things I tell them about cultural adaptation is this:
“Come here as a student. Not as a teacher.”
The benefit of having been on the field for seven years now is that I’ve learned a lot, and most people who live abroad will tell you there’s only one way to learn – make a lot of mistakes.
I walked into my life in France sure that everyone would be impressed with me for being American. (This is embarrassing for me to admit, forgive me.) I was sure that everyone was fascinated with my culture, that they… (CONTINUE READING)
Zaideh Hidalgo
For almost nine years, God has been using me in the MEDIA ministry as a short documentary film producer. I am also a visual artist; an impressionist doing mostly impasto artworks with oil paint as my main medium. God lead me to Grow2Serve where I work as an administrative assistant to our Senior Director, Mark Morgenstern.