I Know What to Do!

Every month, the ladies in my neighbourhood gather for a meeting. Actually, it is the married ladies who gather every month, for a government-prescribed meeting. They sing a couple patriotic songs and read a couple constitutional summaries, collect a small due from everyone, read the minutes from the last meeting, and share pertinent neighbourhood news/announcements/information. Then there is often a special presentation made to impart information about health (ex. the benefits of breast-feeding) or to persuade everyone to buy a certain product (ex. an amazing ironing-board foam layer that is completely heat-resistant). This is followed by a draw to see which lady will host the next meeting and another draw to see who wins a sum of money. Then the hostess serves tea and snacks to everyone before they head home. 

Even though my roommates and I are still single, we asked (and received) permission to attend these meetings so we could have a greater connection with the other women of the neighbourhood. 

Last week the MC asked me to read a short document during the opening exercises of the meeting. This document outlines five foundational values of the nation (one God, a just humanity, representative government, social justice for all, and...I forget the third one). When she asked me to read it, I felt a thrill of pride & pleasure when I realized that I knew what to do!

If someone had asked me a year ago to read this...well, for one thing, I would not be able to read it in an understandable manner. But putting the language barrier aside, I would have just started reading at the top & read through the thing, point by point, without listing the numbers that go beside each value. 

But now, I know the proper procedure:

- Read the title

- Pause so the other ladies can repeat the title in unison

- Read "One"

- Pause so the other ladies can repeat the number in unison

- Read the first value

- Pause so the other ladies can repeat the value in unison

- Read "Two"

...and so on, until all five values have been read & repeated. 

This is just a small thing, which took about three minutes of my day. However, it was a meaningful three minutes because it was proof that I had learned the culturally-appropriate way to read this document in this setting (and, in fact, in other settings too) -- not to mention that I had learned how to read and understand these values in another language. What a good feeling when I know what to do!   :)