Raising Kids with a Global Perspective Part 3 {In Which We See What The Children Think}

 Previous entries in this series begin here. 

Having a global perspective has impacted my life in countless ways. Hi, I’m Mary Hannah. I’m 16 years old, a junior in high school and ever since I was little, I’ve been taught to have a very wide worldview. I can remember many days of homeschooling where my mom taught us about Africa and about the civil unrest within many of its parts and why this was (and sadly still is) the case. I remember one day when we got to mummify a “dead pharaoh,” all the while reading about Egypt’s rich history and one of its still greatest resources, the Nile. I can remember my favorite Sonlight Core — the one on world cultures — and exalting the day that we finally moved from studying Australia to India (one of my favorite countries).

It was my favorite part of the school day. And it’s only now as I’m older that I realize what a blessing my parents have given me. In this blog post, I’ll be covering some of the benefits a global perspective has gifted me with, but in truth, I’ll only be scratching the tip of a VERY big iceberg. The benefits are endless. Here are a few:

1) Cultural Sensitivity. Learning about different countries and ethnic groups means you’ll never find me staring at a lady in a sari at the grocery store or sweating through an uncomfortable conversation with someone  because they’re Russian. I may not understand them all the time, but I DO know that varying skin color and languages don’t make a person. I’m also very well aware, due to my parents’ efforts, that some things are acceptable in some cultures and not in others (An example: In Nepal it’s not really appropriate to wear shorts, no matter the weather), a fact that can be quite helpful in many situations.

2) I know where everything is. My mom’s already told you about our beloved world map. At this time, it is rather worn, torn and poked full of holes, but it was to this map that my mom always directed me if I didn’t know where a country was. The result? Geographically speaking, I can pretty much tell you where a country is located without looking it up. Helpful? VERY. Now, the side effect of this is an image of the world permanently burned into my retina but…

3) I realize how blessed I am. Shortly after I turned ten, my dad took me on a three day mission trip to Mexico. We went with a group called Amor and our goal was to build a house for a family currently living in the city of Tijuana’s dump. The trip was eye-opening. I saw firsthand people who didn’t have homes, who lived in cardboard boxes and ate whatever they were able to scrounge from among the garbage or could earn in petty jobs. Two years later, I went to Nepal for the first time with the same result, only way worse. This time, not only did I see the hungry, homeless and lame, but I also saw the spiritually destitute. I saw people who were worshipping idols of animals and six-armed goddesses, cowering before their porcelain images as they burned fragrant incense and chanted prayers for forgiveness and healing. These were those who had no hope, no Jesus Christ to fill their lives with joy. They didn’t have the assurance that God loved them and would take care of them, nor did they have the freedom of forgiveness of their sins. Instead, they had to make due with what they knew, which was praying to false gods, giving them frequent offerings to appease them, and living in the fear that if they angered one of them or one of their priests, they could die. Long story short (too late) the global perspective my parents have given me has shown me how blessed I am. Not just in material ways, but in spiritual ways as well. I have a roof over my head,  a family who loves me and ultimately, a Savior who died for me, shedding HIS blood that I could be free. Which leads me to my next point:

4) I see the need for missions. The mission field is real. My parents have never hid that from me, instead guiding me to a greater understanding of its diversity. In fact, one of the key purposes of parenting (in my completely untried eyes) is to teach your children that it exists, so that they can grow up to be faithful disciples of Jesus. We were all given a job by Christ before he ascended to Heaven, in the Great Commission(Matt. 28:19-20). It is our duty to follow through. And although my family feels a joint call to serve in Nepal, I too feel a personal call to go out into the world of the unreached and do my part to further God’s kingdom. Being taught about different people groups, countries, etc. has shown me that the U.S. is not the only place I should be going. There are 7 billion people in the world and nearly 40% of those people live in China and India alone. And how can they know of whom they have not heard? (Romans 10:14-15) No, Jesus clearly expects us to go into all the world, not just where we reside currently.

5) It has helped me decide on my career. Let me take you back four years. I was twelve at the time and during lunch, our conversation had turned towards a recent study on the best and worst maternity hospitals in the globe (here you see an example of a wonderful beginning to a global perspectives conversation. Following questions can definitely revolve around why certain hospitals are so good or bad. Is the location the key? Resources?) To we older children’s surprise, Nepal was locked in as a pretty bad country to have a baby. Questions flew thick and fast and I was horrified to learn that Nepal didn’t just have bad hospitals, they had bad medical practices all around. In Nepal, 80% of the population is Hindu, which means that they view the birthing processes as potentially unclean. Unclean means that it is scorned and no one will help the mother for fear of  becoming unclean themselves. So they kick her out to the barn with all the dirty, unwashed animals and the filthy manure to have her baby. And  believe me, this is no Nativity story. Maternal and infant death from infection is, not surprisingly, really high and death from many other causes is too. Without someone there with even a basic knowledge of birth and its various twist and turns, anything can kill the mother or baby, from shoulder dystocia to placental abruption, from preeclampsia to fetal distress. The truth of this struck me, and after a time of prayer and consulting with my mom and dad, I knew that God wanted me to become a midwife. And you know the crazy thing? The crazy thing is, I said yes. With all the time my parents have spent, pouring into me, teaching me to have a global perspective, it was easy to submit to God on the matter, knowing that I had a really good handle on what I was getting myself into. All the years of learning about world cultures has prepared me to be sensitive and loving to all kinds and ethnicities of people, with no holds barred.

Currently, I am training to be a doula through DONA International, then moving on to direct-entry midwifery. My goal is to serve in the rural villages of Nepal where there is no doctor and the Hindu presence is very strong. I’m praying over many options to make this a reality, including amassing a team of medical professionals from all different fields, to create a clinic on wheels.

So, there you have it: the take on a purposeful global perspective from someone on the receiving end. This post has been way longer than I had at first anticipated, and I apologize if it’s been a chore to wade through. But a global perspective has made me who I am, both spiritually and mentally; it’s deeply rooted in my identity. Anyone who knows me will tell you that when I’m passionate, I’m passionate. Thank you for listening. Hopefully this series has helped spread a little light on an important aspect of training your children and you’ve come away with at least something you’ve learned. Blessings!