MY GIFT TO YOU—GET YOUR FREE EBOOK—“THE 5-DAY JOURNEY TO CULTURAL AWARENESS”!
My son was lounging on the couch in the early morning hours—wide awake from jetlag.
“Mom, did you hear what happened in Morocco?” His voice sounded alarmed.
“No, what happened?” I inquired.
“Two girls, two tourists, were killed by terrorists,” he replied.
Deep Grief
My heart sank. Sadness flooded my mind and heart—sadness for these two girls and their families—sadness for my dearly beloved Moroccan people.
FEAR—this is one of the reasons we are afraid to travel.
I realize that this topic has the potential to disturb. It has the potential to stir up controversy. However, we can’t avoid it. We can’t pretend that this stuff isn’t happening. It is the sad reality of our world.
This is one of the reasons people are afraid to travel, and that saddens me.
Closing Our Eyes to the Truth
I almost didn’t read the article. I almost didn’t want to know the news.
But, I did. That evening, before going to bed, I read the story.
Sometimes, it’s easier to close our eyes and ears to the reality—pretend that we live in an ideal world.
But, we don’t. We live in a sad and broken world with sad and broken people.
When I read the article, I felt sick. I literally felt waves of nausea come over me.
“Bledi”
Morocco is “my country” too—“bledi,” as we say in Arabic.
Although I don’t look Moroccan, I don’t sound Moroccan, I can’t cook Moroccan—something deep birthed inside of me when my feet first touched the Moroccan sand. Something awakened in my soul when I began to learn the Moroccan language and the Moroccan culture . . . and especially when I got to know and fall in love with the precious Moroccan people.
To my Moroccan friends, I always say, “Morocco is forever in my heart. It is ‘my country’ too.” They always smile.
There’s a proverb that says, “You can shake the sand from your shoes, but it will never leave your soul.” That’s what Moroccan sand did to me. It’s stuck on my soul for eternity. The Moroccan people are stuck in my heart forever. I think I still have some Moroccan sand stuck to some of my shoes too.
Like Family
Our dear friends and neighbors adopted our family almost immediately when we arrived in their country. It was unfathomable for them that we could be living on the other side of the world from our family, from our community. They quickly became “family” to us, always making sure that we were welcomed and that we felt safe and cared for. We had lots of “Mamas” and “Babas,” “Sisters” and “Brothers”. . . terms of endearment in Arabic.
In our seven years in that country, we always felt protected. My husband and I talk about this often. We actually felt safer living in Morocco than we did in France or in the U.S.
We didn’t worry about our kids’ safety. Our children would run and play freely. We never worried about them being harmed.
Our Protectors
One time, our American friends’ two-year-old son had been playing alone in front of his house. He eventually wandered off into a field, quite far from his home. A Moroccan man showed up on our doorstep with the happy toddler in hand. The man knew that we were a foreign family and thought that perhaps the young boy belonged to us. This man cared for the boy—protected him—until he was safe again with his parents.
Our Moroccan friends took great pride in being the ones to shield us—the foreigners. We also took great pride and comfort in knowing that our “Moroccan family” was always watching our backs.
We love the Moroccan people. Our children love the Moroccan people. They grew up there, spending their formative years in that country, with those amazingly hospitable people.
A Broken and Sad World
When my son told me the horrific news that morning about the two Scandinavian tourists who were killed, there was sadness and disbelief in his voice. Morocco was “his country” too.
FEAR—this is one of the reasons people are afraid to travel.
This is a tragic event, an isolated event. It is an act of terrorism—an
These tragic and isolated events, unfortunately, take place in every country—among every people group and among every religion. It is our sad and broken world.
Separating People
While living in Morocco and in France, our local friends always wanted to make sure we knew that they “were not like them.”
“That’s not us,” they would say. “We are not one of them.”
We could hear in their voices and see in their faces the same disgust, disapproval, and indignation that we were feeling.
Whenever there was an isolated act of horror and terror where we were living, back in their home country, or in a neighboring Arab land, they always wanted to talk about it. They always wanted to reassure our family—make sure that we weren’t afraid of them, afraid of their people, or afraid of living in their country. Well, we weren’t, and we aren’t.
We are able to separate people—separate events—always careful not to “lump them all together.” Reassuring our Muslim friends, we tell them that we still love them and that we still feel safe in their country.
Their land is still “bledi.”
Stirring Up Fear
I know that hearing news of these types of devastating events doesn’t encourage us to travel— the violent protests of the “Yellow Vests” (“gilets jaunes”) in France, the catastrophic tsunamis in Indonesia, the street crime in American urban cities and the deadly shootings in our schools, the political unrest around the world. This whole world is a scary place!
These incidents don’t encourage us to jump on an airplane to go and explore these foreign lands and meet these people.
This type of news stirs up fear deep inside of us.
The reality is—there is risk.
There is risk in everything we do. Every time we get into a vehicle, there is risk. When we play a sport, there is risk. At the very moment a wobbly toddler learns to walk, there is risk. When we drop our kids off at the entrance to their school, there is risk.
There is risk in everything. That is life. Life is risky.
Worth the Risk
But the risk is still well worth it, and we can’t allow fear to cripple us.
When I think about my life—the breathtaking places I have visited, the beautiful people I have met, the rich cultures I have experienced, the amazingly delicious ethnic foods I have tasted, the insanely difficult languages I have learned—I honestly can’t imagine if I had let fear be a barrier in my life . . . keeping me from all of this.
I can’t imagine if I had never seen, never met, never experienced, never tasted, never learned. Certainly, I would not be the same person. I wouldn’t have known what I know now. I wouldn’t have known what I would miss.
Thankfully, I didn’t miss it. Thankfully, I won’t miss the opportunities and dreams of tomorrow that will take me to new lands to meet new people.
“Do It Scared”
Let’s take the risk today and conquer our fears. “Do it Scared,” as Ruth Soukup says in her new book and podcast.
It’s been the motto of my year, and I wear a worn, faded rubber band bracelet to prove it. Ruth says, “Courage doesn’t mean we are never afraid, courage is simply daring to take action, despite our fear.”
I will be the last one to tell you that I’m a fearless traveler.
If I didn’t have to board my hundredth-some . . . airplane . . . I wouldn’t. I actually hate turbulence. However, to see the world, you often have to push through fears and conquer unknowns. I will forever “Do It Scared,” and nothing will stop me.
That’s what drove me to hit “publish” for my first blog post. That’s what got me on that first airplane to France when I was nineteen—and all the others that have steered me around the globe since. That’s what empowers me to “release” my “big kids” to travel to the other side of the world.
So, go ahead . . . book that ticket and plan that trip today—the one you have been dreaming of. “Do It Scared!”
Let’s CONTINUE to Weave Cultures—In Spite of Our Fears!
—The Cultural Story-Weaver
MY GIFT TO YOU—GET YOUR FREE EBOOK—“THE 5-DAY JOURNEY TO CULTURAL AWARENESS”!
Let’s Weave Cultures!
Have you ever been afraid to travel—afraid to take the risk? When you hear horrific news on the media, how do you conquer the fears that stir within you? How do you push past your fears in order to keep seeing, keep meeting, keep experiencing, keep tasting, keep learning . . . ?
Where have you dreamed of going—but haven’t—because of fear? Will you take the risk today and “Do It Scared?”
We invite you to tell us your own cultural stories and global adventures . . . as you engage with the world, breaking down barriers, building bridges, and “weaving cultures!” Write about them in the comment box below.
