A Fence
Nancy: Perry, I am really concerned for the boys.
Perry: Yes, and I think I know why. So many kids are coming by to stare.
Nancy: Yes, that is true, and I understand that. They are curious. It is not often they see two blonde, blue eyed children. But that is only part of my concern.
Perry: Okay
Nancy: I am concerned about how many are coming and their age. Most of the kids are teenagers. I am not sure they will make good friends for John and Jeff.
Perry: Well we could talk to A and see if he can help find a couple of boys closer to their age.
Nancy: I have already done that, and he has suggested two boys A and S. They are a couple of years older but that may be a good thing.
Perry: Probably true. They will know what things are dangerous and will be able to tell us when the boys need something.
Nancy: There is one more thing. Even if we have the right friends, there is still the fact that there always seems to be a crowd of kids hanging around. I am not sure that is a good thing.
Perry: I have wondered about that myself. Let me talk to a couple of the church leaders and see if they what they would think about us building a fenced in area behind the house where the boys can play with their friends and have some privacy.
A couple of days later.
Perry: Nancy, I have talked with a couple of leaders and they have assured me that it is okay to build a fence. They shared that many houses enclose an area behind the house for cooking and bathing and for their children to play. Actually, I have noted that some houses in town have even built them out of cement block.
Nancy: Nooo, that may be too much. I don’t want people to get the wrong idea. A block wall may give them the impression we are trying to isolate ourselves.
Perry: I agree, and I have talked with a couple of our workers about building a traditional fence of sticks and leaves.
A week later.
Nancy: Perry, it looks great.
Perry: Yes, it does, although I almost created a bit of a problem with my attempts to tell them how to build the fence before I realized that I should be quiet. I was acting like an expert in something I have never done before.
Nancy: Yes we have so much to learn about how to live here. I have been learning so much from A about how to cook as well.
Perry: Once I got out of the way, the work went so much faster and more peacefully. And now that I have seen what can be done I have some more ideas.
Nancy: I have one too. You could hang a tire swing from the limb of that big tree behind the house.
Perry: And I could build (or they could) a jungle gym out of bamboo and I think we could build a bafa (small open structure) to hang hammocks. That would be great right in the shade of that big tree.
Nancy: Perry, it is already working. The big kids have stopped coming by and the kids are having more fun playing with their friends A and S.
It is a powerful and humbling lesson to learn you are not an expert. What attitudes and ideas do you have that could prevent you from learning key skills and developing important relationships? How will you know when to consult others and trust their judgment?