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Hoosier United Methodist News Archives
| Hoosier United Methodist News |
May 2001 |
Mission experience leads young man to Asia
By Andrew Criss
When I tell people that I plan to teach English in Asia as a Peace Corps volunteer, considering the recent tensions between China and the U.S., I am often asked why. Perhaps the most candid answer would be to say that it just feels right.
For the time being, I offer this. The selection of Asia over the other available regions was more a matter of internal Peace Corps needs than an explicit preference on my part. My motivations for considering the Peace Corps at all, however, can be traced back to my experiences abroad.
I am privileged to have had the opportunity to experience a new culture, not just through books and guided tours but through direct interaction with local people and customs -- a rewarding and enlightening experience. My trip to Zimbabwe and Africa University was just that sort of experience.
I wouldn't say this visit is the sole reason I am joining the Peace Corps. Innumerable and immeasurable factors went into that decision. But I would say that it was a turning point of sorts. In Africa, I realized that the objects we often associate with the 'good life' have little to do with actually living a good life, and that poverty and penury are two very different states. Most important though, it was there that I first understood the value of cross-cultural exchange. By consciously engaging with someone different from yourself, whatever the difference may be, you not only discover what they value, but through comparison you find your own values.
Ideally, at the end of it all I will leave a classroom of students speaking English, thinking globally, and -- with a little luck -- living just a little bit fuller lives.
Andrew Criss was one of 70 Indiana United Methodists to visit Africa with Bishop Woodie W. White in 1998. He is a graduate of the University of Indiana.
Editor's Note: At the time of publication, the Hoosier UM News received a letter from Andrew Criss explaining that he had received his assignment from the Peace Corps in the mail. Due to a cutback in the number of requested volunteers in East Asia, Andrew will be sent to Kyrgyzstan, a former republic of the Soviet Union. Andrew will begin his two years of service in June.