You Need to Talk About Thier Dog

     "So we had this ESL teacher called David", Indy said with a smile, reminiscing.  "He said to our group, newly come from refugee camps to Canada, to make friends here you must talk about their pets first!" .  The people around the table, giggled and thought about Canadian conversations.  "Yes, so I saw my neighbors and talked about thier dog, or cat or whatever they had and it worked!  Except when I meet my Phillipino neighbor, they spoke broken English, I spoke broken English, we couldn't go back and forth!".  Our giggles became a little more louder, as Indy himself broke into a huge smile and laughed with us.  "In Burma, we don't care about our dogs like that", he kept on, "it was so strange to hear that, Canadians care more about dogs then people."   Wow, that one took my breath away.  What a commentary on our present society...what would he say at how much we spend on pet food (just the right kind), vet bills, toys and trinkets?  How much we actually talk about them at home to family members...one of the first things the kids do when they run down the stairs in the morning is give Cyclone a hug and kiss, and "Hi Mom!" after. 

     Anyways, Indy and I had been at a meeting of our West End Christian Collective group.  He had told about his recent trip to the Thai-Burma border in refugee camps of up to 50,000 people.  Children have grown up in these camps, never leaving its boundaries and are now youth with really no past and no future.  10 churches in one camp try to meet needs, but they woefully fall short of resources and tools to help people spiritually and physically.  A hill of humanity, with no where to run to or go if the Burma militia decides it's time for a raid.  Indy is a co-pastor of City Church, an immigrant and refugee church of 250 just a half block from our little church.  Asian, African, Caucasian worship there in unity and purpose...trying to heal from the past and struggle through a difficult present in the inner-city.  Many youth at this church are still searching for hope and a purpose, and love youth group every week but are faced with inner-city realities that bond them tight against gangs and racist neighbors.

     Will I talk about my pets with neighbors when I see them next (after the blizzard threatening this evening)?  I might, for that connection, but remembering a refugee's, an immigrant, a fellow Canadian's need for relationship, hopeless hearts and minds, a neighbor is one who stops at the side of the road to heal, understand and nuture (any smackings of Jesus' parable?? Of the Samaritan who stops....), I will follow the thread to get-to-know and to-be-known.  A little more like the surprising concern of the guy in the parable.  Perhaps this is a simple "how to" of neighborhood (and world) transformation?