Goer Updates | GoCorps

John

Class of 2015

Arabic Language Study in Middle East

Track: Languages - Linguistics track

Region: Middle East

Hello everyone! Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog. My hope is that God speaks to you through what I have to say, and that you are able to get a real sense of what my life is like in the Middle East and what God is doing there.

Along with traveling and languages, my interests include sports (like soccer and Ultimate Frisbee) and reading (poetry and prose, both). I'm super excited for the chance to use my interests to connect with the people I'll come to meet. An interest in soccer comes in handy anywhere I go, as it IS the world's favorite sport, after all. Poetry and the beauty of Arabic are extremely dear to the hearts of many people in the Middle East, and so I hope to connect with people through that, as well!

I'm really looking forward to see the things God brings about in the next two years. Thanks again for reading and praying, and I hope my posts are interesting and edifying for you!

Hermit Crabs

By on May 22, 2016 Track: Languages - Linguistics Region: Middle East

I was thinking the other day, and the thought hit me that I'm basically a hermit crab. Now, please, hear me out... the sun here hasn't baked my brain just yet (I don't think). We are creatures that desire comfort, particularly those of us that are lucky enough to live in countries where we have relatively high amounts of it. Shelter is a basic human need, but we crave comfort to the point that it robs us of the opportunity to step out in faith in our faithful God. So what does that have to do with hermit crabs? Or living overseas? Allow me to explain. It seems to me that if hermit crabs… Read more >>

An Open-Handed Life

By on March 31, 2016 Track: Languages - Linguistics Region: Middle East

One of the coolest things about living in a culture so radically different from my own is learning to grow from the points where the way I'm used to living comes up hard against the way of life here. Take possessions, for example. We learn from the time we're in kindergarten to share with others, but how often do we still hold tightly on to those things that are "ours"? I'm seeing here that people don't hold so tightly, or at least they pretend not to. The other day, I went on a boat with some friends to celebrate Easter, and there was an older guy that was piloting the boat… Read more >>

I'm a Goldfish

By on February 26, 2016 Track: Languages - Linguistics Region: Middle East

They say that when you're the minority in a place, it can feel a bit like being an animal in a zoo, or a fish in a fishbowl. I am certainly the minority where I live now, both in what I believe and what I look like, and there are many days where it feels like I am a goldfish. People tend to look a bit too long on the train, or the taxi driver might charge me a bit extra because I'm obviously not from here. I try to remember that the people around me might see me and I'm assume a Christian, or at least assume I'm from the west, which to some people are essentially one and the same. People here… Read more >>

Why Are You Here?

By on January 31, 2016 Track: Languages - Linguistics Region: Middle East

A legitimate question, I must concede, especially in a city where you're about as likely to see a donkey-driven cart as to see a blonde head. The question doesn't come so point-blank, though; that would be rude, shameful, especially to an apparent guest to their country. But it is there in the subtext, lying behind their questions about why I would want to learn Arabic, why I would possibly want to leave a place where they imagine things are better. I fumble through a reply in Arabic about how I want to help their people back home, whether refugees or immigrants, and I can do that better if I… Read more >>

Patience, Silence

By on December 20, 2015 Track: Languages - Linguistics Region: Middle East

Americans don't have the greatest reputation for patience. We are used to having what we want, when we want, which doesn't translate well to many other cultures that are much more at home taking their time. I would consider myself a fairly patient person by American standards... and this continent just looks at my "patience" and laughs. I'll give you a "for instance". My friend and I went to a wedding reception last week and foolishly arrived on time, only to find that the room didn't fill with people for another hour, and the wedding party didn't even arrive for two more hours after… Read more >>

John - Middle East Updates