CULTURE SHOCK

 Duncan Gardens Spokane, photo by Chris

The lives of my grandparents, both sets of which settled in Spokane, seemed to be well ordered.  One grandfather was born in New York State and one grandmother was born in Wisconsin. The other grandmother and grandfather were born in Iowa.  Both my parents and my older brother were born in Spokane.  The Inland Empire, so it was called, seemed to be the ideal place to dwell.  But then WW II happened.  Families were displaced as a result.

Spokane Falls photo by Chris

My family ended up in California.  We adjusted to the mild weather and wonderful growing conditions for orchards and vegetable gardens.  We were thrilled when we had snow one day.  We didn't need to change out of our summer clothes to enjoy the snow as it was all melted within hours.

Me with Evy photo by Grace

Then, due to a career change for my dad, we moved to Alaska.  That was culture shock for sure.  We wore heavy clothes almost all year round.  It was dark all day during the winter and daylight all day and night in the summer. My dad did shed down to a short sleeved shirt when the temp hit 0 degrees. 

 

Dick, Dorothy, Evy, Jay, me, neighbors. Photo by Grace

Two years later we were transferred to Washington D.C. We lived in Virginia and Dad commuted. What a shock to the system.  We were expected to wear more formal clothes, say "sir" and "ma'am,"use "white" fountains and rest rooms, attend "white" schools, etc.,etc.  I felt restricted-- hemmed in.  The humidity was heavy and oppressive in the summer.  We had hurricanes and other heavy weather. The drivers were not prepared to drive in the snow. 

Jay, Emily, Grace, Wayne, Davy, Evy, Dave, Kit, me, Rinda. Photo by Ernie

But then I met some very nice people.  At church I felt loved-- especially because of Reverend Mac and his family, and other kind people. When I attended Madison College in Harrisonburg, VA I had a roommate from southern Virginia.  Her accent was so deep we had difficulty understanding her.  When we were assigned to read "Uncle Remus" in our children's lit course she read it to us flawlessly. I then appreciated people from different cultures.

I thought of all of this culture shock I had experienced in the past after reading two novels recently.  The first book was "Frontier Lady-- Lone Star Legacy," by Judith Pella.  It involves a woman being rescued by a tribe of Indians and marrying one of the chiefs.  I enjoyed learning about the different thinking of the various tribes.  But it was a shock to me to see that they had no knowledge of Jesus or about His love and sacrifice for them.  There were some who did know in their hearts that there is a God. Because of that they chose to do what was right. 

Then I read-- "Their Eyes Were Watching God," by Zara Neale Hurston.  It is written in that deep southern dialect which makes it hard to read.  I wished I had my old roommate to read it to me. Through the whole book all I could think about was that these are little sheep who have no Good Shepherd. They were running hither and thither living but not knowing the care of Jesus.  If they had only known about God and how good His laws are they wouldn't have been so lost.  But there were some in this story who knew instinctively that there is a God and that they are accountable in the end.  

And now we have culture shock in America.  Some are so lost and have no idea that they have a Good Shepherd to watch.  God has revealed Himself through creation and through His Word.  No one has an excuse.  I pray that all will turn to God before it is too late.

How about you?  Have you ever struggled with culture shock?