Pickin' & Grinnin'

Culture is often times the thing that tells us what is right or wrong, appropriate or inappropriate. This little Pekal boy is not just being a little boy. Culturally speaking, it is perfectly okay to pick your nose in public. It is not unusual to see grown men AND women with their fingers up their noses to the first digit. Digging for nuggets in them thar hills can be serious business here in Sumatra!

The men in Sumatra have elevated blowing snot out of their nose to a high art form. Driving down the street it is not out of the ordinary to see a man lean out the window and blow an incredibly large wad of snot to the pavement. One worker envies this ability, but he is afraid to try it for fear of ending up with snot all over his face or shirt or both. Some things just take a lifetime of practice, and aren’t worth trying to pick up later-in-life.

The point of this article is not to advocate for nose picking or blowing in the United States. The point is that cultural norms vary, and cross-cultural workers are constantly finding themselves in situations that stretch their cultural sensitivities. By the by, they think it’s gross that we blow our noses into tissues.

On the downside, it’s very rude on Sumatra to pick your teeth. So if you get something stuck in your teeth while eating in public, you have to make up your mind if you are going to be rude and give it a quick dig, or just suffer! It’s actually okay to dig as long as you use your hand and cover up while you’re digging!

Pray for workers on Sumatra to have wisdom and grace to deal with cultural differences.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to grant favor and grace to workers when they break cultural norms without knowing it.

Pray for workers to have courage to challenge cultural norms when those norms violate the Word of God.