1.) I served in Hong Kong, therefore I was called to speak Chinese. As many returned missionaries know, many words in foreign languages don't translate directly into English. When striving to describe the culture/food/natives to my family, I often became discouraged by the lack of clarity in which I conveyed my impressions and experiences. For example the word 麻煩 (mah faahn) is understood by all Chinese speakers, but somehow saying "troublesome" doesn't really express what I wanted to say.
2.) It is very difficult (at least for me) to write about powerful, spiritual experiences. There is a tone of sacredness about them, and I feel for another person to truly grasp the feelings I felt witnessing those moments of commitment, repentance, and spiritual rebirth, they'd need to see in my eyes and hear in my voice the impact in made on me.
3.) I had a desire to be honest with my family out of love for them, but also a sense of responsibility to not report private or unnecessary details. Whether it was the health of a companion, a traumatic event that occurred, or the past life of an investigator or less-active member, my parents could always tell that there was more to the story from the subtle indications I did give, however, I never conceded to inform them anymore than I deemed necessary.
My family still loves me, as evidenced by the fact they were waiting at the airport when I arrived, but they, and I, were frustrated on both ends trying to communicate once a week for two years through writing emails. A thirty minute phone call twice a year was appreciated, and it made me realize the difference oral interaction can make.
I like how you describe three very different things that make written communication difficult. From creating the right message through invention to telling the right way, with the right style, expressing your feelings and accounting for your work in the mission field was difficult and for good reason
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kekoa about the three different things. I also wanted to comment about how some things in different languages cannot be understood, even when there are direct translations. I feel like that is why many times the Bible can be interpreted so differently, because although we may be able to directly translate it we loose some of the cultural and linguistic meaning.
ReplyDeleteI know the feeling of not being able to express what you want in your e-mails home. I served my mission in Korea, and in e-mails home, I would try and explain to my family something that all the Koreans understood, but I would find myself writing a whole paragraph about it because it doesn't translate directly into English. I think that translating languages creates a huge barrier in writing and speaking.
ReplyDeleteThat's funny, I had the opposite experience on my mission. Sometimes it was difficult to write in English, but I got better throughout my two years. I always considered my favorite part of P-day writing my family. I couldn't wait to tell them about my spiritual experiences and hear about theirs.
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