The struggle continues….

It’s sad; hard to get my mind around. It’s the culture. It’s acceptable (in Peru!) It’s common to hear the Americans say…..after all, we are in Peru! Or English speaking missionaries might say….welcome to Peru (with a little tongue in cheek)! When something we as Americans find very extraordinary and possibly unacceptable in our way of thinking happens, we try to stop and remind ourselves to think Peruvian. It’s very difficult.

One of these things has become part of our lives and we deal with it every day. Let me share a little of it with you. The concept of time: being on time, making appointments and keeping them, allowing enough time, hurry up and wait, why even hurry, morning, afternoon and night. They all are challenging for us as we try to understand and work with our Peruvian friends.

For instance, when a friend calls and asks if they can come over in the morning, it could mean any time (and I mean any time!) from 800 am until noon. They don’t usually give a specific time. But if you do settle on a time, say 900 am, I guarantee you will not see them before 900 am and may not see them until 1000 or later. You see, to a Peruvian being an hour late is socially acceptable.

Very seldom does anything start on time. A concert, church service, party, meeting appointment, all start when they start and not before!

When we have been invited to a home for dinner or to a party and the invitation was for 800 pm, we arrive at 800 pm. We are always early (according to them) and possibly the decorating is still taking place, or the hostess still plans to shower and change before the event begins.

If you have an appointment with a Peruvian friend (not a business associate) for the afternoon, it can be anytime up until 600 pm. Since the meeting may run a couple of hours, and it may start an hour or more late, you can see where the timeframe gets out of hand, meals are missed, and our judgment has not yet been accurate on how to plan many of our days’ events!

People arrive to church anytime within 45 minutes of the start of the service and it’s perfectly acceptable in their opinion. I asked why and the answer I was given is that only at your job or school do you have to be one time, or you may get fired, or not be allowed into class. Church is considered a social affair I was told. Interesting!

Other cultural examples are very difficult to accept and one in particular we observed today confirms what we’ve been told more than once and for which we must be very careful. Many Peruvians consider whatever it is they can put their hands on, belongs to them.

For instance, when a friend of ours planted a tree outside by her front door a few years ago, she was warned it may not be there in the morning. Seriously! If someone wanted it, they would take it. Thank you Jesus, the tree is still there and has flourished.

We also have friends who are fortunate enough to have vehicles. When they visit, they get up from their seat, meander over to the balcony, take a peek over, just to be sure their car is still there and not being tampered with, all while holding a conversation with us! This will happen every 30 minutes or so throughout their visit.

The local water company is doing a major construction project the length of one of the streets in our neighborhood. They have been laying a new pipeline for quite a distance over the past few weeks. The site has been blocked off with security fencing. Traffic has been rerouted and people walking are using the sidewalk with caution. The motortaxis don’t want to take the detour, so they just drive on the sidewalks leaving those on foot to watch out for their personal safety. After the construction crew left today, we observed three men removing all the construction materials from the site for several blocks and carrying 16’ 2x10” pieces of lumber and 16’ poles, and even the company ladders (!) back to their home and locking them up. We even watched a police truck pass them as they crossed the street with their treasures! It took about 30 minutes to get everything of the worksite.

For us it is very hard to stand by and watch. But many other Peruvian neighbors sat on the sidewalk with a beer and some friends and never seemed to bat an eyelash. For our safety we need to be careful what we say and do. Again, if this is culturally acceptable….I just don’t get it.

Another offensive to us, but culturally acceptable to Peruvians, is the invading of personal space. People cut in front of us all the time because we are in the habit of allowing a little space between each other. Whether it be at the clinic, lab, grocery store, Mercado, church or even waiting for someone to dismount the bus, I seem to get pushed aside because I haven’t closed in close enough to the person in front of me. And by close enough, I mean, so close that we are physically touching one another.

All this to say, the learning curves are never-ending! Believe it or not, I am not a fan of learning curves. But God continues to teach me to see things with His eyes, to hear the things He wants me to hear, and above all to do what it is that is pleasing to Him.