Internationalmatt's Blog

1 Weekend + 4 Celebrations + 3 Different Cultures = A Lot of Fun

What a great weekend!! Had the opportunity to celebrate 3 birthdays and join in on a 1st worship service in a new building. It began on Saturday morning when my young friends from Vietnam and I shared some birthday cake with Nancy who helps with my Saturday morning group.

On Saturday evening I went to a birthday party for a 3 year old boy Chris. His family is from Syria. I had fun taking pictures and making people laugh in the process. Chris’s grandmother was there and three of her friends. I got them to wear the party hats and took pictures for them. There was plenty of good food and laughter. The best for me was seeing some old friends I have not seen for a while.

Sunday morning we said Happy birthday to our friend Lien in my Sunday morning class. We had lunch at Mongolian Grill after  class. Lien has come a long way from new to America to now waiting for her Nursing Program to begin.

After lunch I joined my friends at Ministerial Manatial de Vida for their 1st worship service in their new building. It was awesome to join with them and see the excitement they feel about having a place of their own. I will write more about that tomorrow. It was a great way to cap off a weekend of celebration with my international friends.

The diversity of cultures here in Lincoln is rich. Sharing celebrations such as a birthday or a milestone such as a church getting a building of their own makes me realize how we have many things in common. If we take the time to actually get to know those who are different than we are, we can have a pleasant surprise and have some meaningful friendships. Fortunately after a weekend of celebrations I have a morning off to relax a little before getting back to my busy schedule

October 17, 2011 - Posted by internationalmatt | Cross Cultural, Cultural Ambassdors, Experiences of international friends, Hispanic friends, International Friendships, international students, Internationals, Middle East friends, Vietnamese friends