|
Being away from extended family |
Andrew Visser |
31 |
France |
|
all the good-byes we have to say to family and friends |
Jill (Peters) Watkins |
30 |
São Paulo, Brazil |
|
The traveling on furlough |
Michael Reeves |
48 |
Alaska |
|
My dad is out of the country a lot. |
Rachel Kerr |
20 |
Bibles International |
|
Having to always be the “example” and the volunteer for various Sunday School and youth activities. There were no other Christian, born-again, children that I grew up with. I was always the outsider in that respect. This, however, did not hamper my social life. I was still accepted and had many close friends that were Finnish. I had no American friends nor did I have any English-speaking friends. I was completely bi-lingual and unless I told my friends that I was an American citizen they would never have known. I was somewhat of a novelty and I had to explain that I was a daughter of an American missionary family which wasn’t always easy because there are no other missionaries in Finland (“only Africa, right?!”. |
Karin Ruhkala Sicoli |
32 |
Finland |
|
Moving so often, not being able to go to a regular school and the lack of friendships |
Rebecca Smith |
15 |
Londrina, Parana-
Brazil |
|
Moving and going to a dif church each Sunday on furlough
the lack of friends(we are at a new work) |
Rachel Smith |
16 |
Londrina, Brazil |
|
Saying good bye like every 4 years then saying goodbye again after a year. |
Abigail Jewell |
16 |
Sorocaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil |
|
Socially isolated and being out of it when we came home on furlough |
Mark Seymour |
53 |
Chad, Africa |
|
Never really fitting in anywhere we went. When we were in Italy I was the American. When we were
on furlough I was the Italian kid! |
Joshua Whitman |
27 |
Italy |
|
My least favorite thing was being away from our family. We pretty much had to grow up without grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. This was a very big sacrifice. |
Jon Price |
31 |
USA (Indiana) |
|
Living outside your native land and associated mild persecution for being American, Christian. |
Daniel Ruhkala |
31 |
Finland |
|
Feeling out of place and away from home. Lack of strong Christian friends. |
Clinton Ellis |
17 |
Germany |
|
Little old ladies in supporting churches exclaiming (with or without a pinch in the cheek) on how much I have grown since the last time she saw me. (Mom, who is this lady???).
Transferring to a US school for furlough - especially after Grade school. |
David Boyd |
49 |
The Netherlands |
|
Never fitting in. In Australia, I was looked on as “different” because I was thought of as American. In America, I was “different” because I was from Australia. Although I liked the cross-cultural upbringing that being an MK gave me, I often felt like I was not really part of either culture—neither fully Australian, nor fully American. Particularly in my teenage years (the age when everyone is so concerned about fitting in), I often felt like a misfit. |
Anna Beth Wivell |
25 |
Australia |
|
What I struggled with more as an mk was not being able to spend as much time with my parents as I wanted to because they were always involved in ministry. |
Sarah Darling |
25 |
Venezuela |
|
I’m on a pedestal, I can’t get mad or have family problems, if I do anything that is wrong, people start talking. |
Hannah Stilwell |
16 |
Peru |
|
Watching people treat my parents badly. |
Holly Syroteuk |
20 |
Canada |
|
There always seemed to be an expectation by the churches and individuals that the MK should be has holy and spiritually developed as the missionary. It always seemed like a lot of pressure. |
Daniel Darling |
26 |
Venezuela |
|
-lack of stability, difficulty to make and keep long-term relationships due to frequent life change |
Lisa (Brammer) Bolton |
27 |
Taiwan/New Zealand |
|
not seeming to fit in with kids your own age in your supporting churches |
Leah Ronk |
20 |
Brazil |
|
As I mentioned above, I really missed having extended family around. We had close friends that we called Aunt, Uncle or cousins, but we knew they weren’t. And, I also felt just a bit different from the Puerto Ricans like I didn’t quite belong. |
Michelle (Stinedurf) Williams |
36 |
Puerto Rico |
|
Interesting diseases and long car drives on furlough. |
Philip Harris |
37 |
C.A.R.
|
|
Not having had close High School friends as I moved 3 times in the 4 years. |
Joy Spieth |
62 |
Brazil
|
|
Not many friends |
Christopher Armstrong |
14 |
Russia/Siberia |
|
My biggest challenge is all the traveling during furlough. |
Corey Armstrong |
12 |
Russia/Siberia
|
|
Learning a second language |
Caleb Armstrong |
10 |
Russia/Siberia |
|
I don’t like riding in the car all day. |
Coleton Armstrong |
6 |
Russia/Siberia
|
|
Doing home school in the car. Finding good Christian friends (especially during my teen years). |
Lisa (Richter) Armstrong |
35 |
Alaska (as MK) |
|
Going on furlough. Although I enjoyed all the travel, I always felt like a fish out of water--especially in my youth group and at school. |
Mark Swedberg |
43 |
Brazil |
|
Returning to the states every 3 – 5 years and trying to figure out the culture here in the USA and trying to find friends all over again. |
Victoria Lynn (Elmer) Meerman |
31 |
C.A.R. |
|
My least favorite AND biggest challenge was furlough. Never felt like I "fit in" with the US people, didn't like leaving my friends in Brazil, didn't really like anything about the US. |
Darlene (Reiner) Smith |
54 |
Brazil |
|
The expectation to be different. Sometimes, I really did just want to fit in with the crowd. At the same time I also realize that--though at the time I didn't enjoy those feelings--it was a way in which God was protecting me from the bad influences.
The ironic thing was that when I went to college I left Holland with the expectation of fitting in with the other Christians at college... I quickly found out that I didn't really fit in there either (I was caught between two cultures). |
Daniel Boyd |
26 |
The Netherlands |
|
Time spent away from parents to go to school in another city. |
Bill Griffin Jr. |
58 |
Brazil |
|
The difficulty of adjusting and not feeling like you fit in when you return to the U.S. |
Tim Lankford |
38 |
Manaus, Brazil |
|
When people do not recognize you when we go into a church for a meeting, people ask if I play the piano as good as my dad even though I can not. |
Karis Giegerich |
15 |
No. America |
|
Travel, calling on us to stand up during a service. |
|