I Can Hear Mexico Calling
Following the call as a YAGM through the ELCA
I’ve talked about accompaniment a few times, but here’s a new context. At Casa Refugiados, we are often asked to do accompaniments with people to banks, social services, job interviews, etc. This serves 2 main purposes: 1. to ensure that people are treated with respect and dignity as they establish themselves in their new community; and 2. to make sure they get to where they need to go in the giant and unfamiliar urban wilderness that is Mexico City. The beauty of accompaniment is that we do nothing. The focus is entirely on the other person. We are but a supporting role, someone who helps them to get to where they are going and let them know that they are not alone. Today, I had my first taste of this kind of accompaniment. I accompanied a man who is seeking asylum from Cameroon. He speaks English and French, but very little Spanish, so I accompanied him to a job interview, helped to translate the paperwork and interpret during conversations with the HR representative. This is what I expected to do, however this is only a fraction of the experience. Objectively, this day was a professional outing between an asylum seeker and a volunteer, but on a more honest level, it was a humbling, joyful, and somewhat surreal experience between two foreigners in a land they’re trying to make their home. Objectively, a shared language was the only thing we had in common, but on a more honest level, he is my brother. Objectively, the whole point of the accompaniment is the interview, but on a more honest level, every moment matters. That being said, it took a long time to get to the business (it takes a long time to get anywhere in Mexico City). During that time, we talked. We talked about why he chose to seek asylum in Mexico. He opened my eyes to a part of our world that I have been painfully ignorant of as he described the social and political climate in Cameroon, the civil war that he fled from, and the child soldiers that are still fighting there. He asked me about my taste in music and told me about his love of Dolly Parton. I heard stories about the dogs he grew up with and how he’s learning Spanish by playing basketball with the guys in his neighborhood. Religion, family, travel, joy, and suffering—we covered it all. We discussed the world as an overwhelming macrocosm as well as the peace and intimacy of living in one moment of one person’s life. So much of what we shared was different, and yet so much was the same. I never would have met him if not for coming to Mexico and working at Casa Refugiados. I never would have met him if he hadn’t decided to seek asylum in Mexico City. I never would have gotten to known him if not for this accompaniment. I have always loved the scripture from Hebrews (13:2) that says, “Be not afraid to entertain strangers, for many have entertained angels unaware.” I would like to elaborate on this: Be not afraid to entertain strangers, for many learn to see themselves in the other. Be not afraid to entertain strangers, for you are a stranger to them. Be not afraid to entertain strangers, for they don’t need to be strangers for long. Be not afraid to entertain strangers, for they may be your long-lost brother or sister or friend. Be not afraid to entertain strangers, for we are called to love and not to fear. Be not afraid to love the stranger.
1 Comment
Sam
1/23/2019 04:38:37 pm
Absolutely Beautiful.
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AuthorMy name is Kathryn Ophardt. I am spending this year in Mexico City as a Young Adult for Global Mission with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. During this year of service, I'll be working with the non-profit, Casa Refugiados. Archives
October 2018
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