Questions of Trust

PQT stands for ‘prior question of trust’. It’s based on the question: “Is what I’m thinking, saying and doing building or undermining trust?” What this chapter explains is how our actions can build bridges of trust upon people that have a different culture. There’s this phrase in the article that develop this topic crystal clear: ‘no matter how interesting is your story, the spinach between your teeth distracts from what you say’. Cultural differences are a fact in this mission trip, and in communication is really going to be kinda like an issue, even though that Peru is a Spanish-speaking country, there’ll be at least quiet a few differences. These are just mindsets of people from two different countries, but as we go to Mancora, we need to think constantly if our actions are really building trust. Forming relationships there is part of our goals and trust is a fact for a relationship. How can we build relationships without trust? How can we be trust-worthy if what we do may disrupt our intentions? If cultural ignorance distracts from the message of Christ, as we think in what we say, we need to learn how we say and do things in order to be able to share the Gospel.
Cultural Communication Patterns: I got a friend that told me he had a horrible experience in a foreign country (don’t remember which one) by calling a cop by only waving his hand, apparently that meant something really rude, like a curse symbol or something like that. Maybe in Peru, some patterns of communication maybe different from here and we need to be aware of that, we need to ask the senior leaders for them to guide us, and we need to be really good observers, so we can learn also by looking to other people. We don’t wanna go there and like nod our head to say yes to someone and we are saying something like: I don’t like you! :(
Humor: This maybe a little controversial for some people in the team that already went to Mancora, but as I see it, it maybe a difficulty, let me explain: In Panama when we are like in a group of friends, or in a group in which we feel very comfortable, we tend to make jokes, but we know unconsciously that we are just kidding, it depends in the trust of the group. We really don’t want to make them laugh by telling a joke that they may look at it as negative. Humor in a new culture frequently sounds negative, so here we need guidance from the senior leaders and also be very good observers.
Time Views: CBC is a chronometer :) Service starts at this time, end at this team; meeting starts at this time, end at this time. Some Panamanians lacks of this chronometer, but we are used to be on ‘time’ on CBC stuff, at least CBC is on time, indeed. We don’t know how things are with time in Peru, they may be on time, or late, we don’t know; we need to apply the Gumby philosophy here and see things around to look how they work, if they are always on time, or have the ‘elegant late’ of the Panamanians. :)
For me, the most difficult will be the frames of reference. I have many ways to express my frame of reference, in they way I see it, even the phrases in our speech determines that. I used a lot the word ‘man’ and mention some Spanglish words in my talks, and I do it unconsciously. For this I need to work my mind for general points of common understanding; general subjects that may not be an offense for the people in Mancora. I need to think very carefully the things I say so I need to train my mind!