Author: Amy Medina Page 25 of 231

People Are More Important Than Monkeys

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On November 13, 2020

In How Americans Think, Poverty

So apparently it’s a problem to have monkeys harvest your coconuts. Costco and Walmart have announced that they are no longer supplying a certain brand of coconut milk because the manufacturer in Thailand chains up monkeys and makes them climb coconut trees.

I must admit I’m struggling to understand this. Sure, I’m all for not abusing monkeys; no animal should be needlessly harmed. But is it abusive to make monkeys climb trees? Apparently it is, since Costco and Walmart have gravely announced that this isn’t about just better conditions for the monkeys; no, they will not sell this coconut milk until the company uses human harvesters. 

Um, have any of them ever climbed a coconut tree? Do they realize how dangerous it is for humans? Apparently these executives didn’t read Curious George when they were growing up, because they must not realize that monkeys are perfectly suited for climbing trees. So putting a human’s life in danger is less important than making sure monkeys are able to roam free? Better not tell all those cows and goats and donkeys, all around the world, that they should be standing up for their animal rights and refusing to work for humans. In that case, apparently we shouldn’t be forcing all those chickens to lay eggs for us either. 

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I Don’t Want to Waste This Emptiness

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On November 7, 2020

In Book Recommendations, Leaving Tanzania, Re-Entry to America

Every morning I would step out under the East African sun onto the piece of heaven called Haven of Peace Academy. I could look out past the palm trees onto the expanse of the Indian Ocean, enveloped in that beauty. Everywhere I walked I was surrounded by children; everywhere I turned there was someone to talk to, a parent, a teacher, a bouncing, dancing first grader. I ate lunch with a Brit and a Dane and a Zimbabwean; every conversation was alive with culture and rich diversity and perspective. My days were full of problems to solve and noise and laughter and light.

Now every day I wake up in my small apartment and take the kids to school. I sit on my couch and am bombarded by the silence. I face the computer all day and my only interactions with other people are through that screen. I fix myself lunch and eat with a magazine. I go to the grocery store and never recognize anyone. I go to church and few know my name. I am alone, and I am unknown. And inside is a yawning emptiness. 

The deaths in my life this year line up like tombstones. The death of my self-respect; being forced to leave Tanzania early engulfed my head in shame. The death of feeling competent, knowledgeable, relevant; starting a new job is like becoming a toddler again. The death of being known; the wealth of my relationships in Tanzania took twenty years to build. I lift my weary eyes to climbing that mountain over again and it feels insurmountable.

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Ideas Are Always More Important Than Battles

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On October 22, 2020

In How Americans Think, Living Like a Missionary, Race and Diversity

In 1865, soon after Lincoln’s assasination, anti-slavery Senator Charles Sumner wrote, “Ideas are always more important than battles.” The context was Lincoln’s Gettysburg address, which is now known as one of the most famous speeches of all time. 

Sumner said this:
“That speech, uttered at the field of Gettysburg…and now sanctified by the martyrdom of its author, is a monumental act. In the modesty of his nature he said ‘the world will little note, nor long remember what we say here; but it can never forget what they did here.’ He was mistaken. The world at once noted what he said, and will never cease to remember it. The battle itself was less important than the speech. Ideas are always more important than battles.”

This election feels like a battle. Both sides seek to kill and destroy. Friendships broken, people leaving churches, harsh words posted online that would never be spoken in person. 

I keep hearing the cry of, “But lives are at stake!” Ironically, both sides say this. Unfortunately neither side’s platform encompasses all the lives Christians should care about. Unborn lives. Black lives. Refugee lives. There’s also the environment, which Christians are commanded to steward well. Or the issue of poverty, where each side sees a different strategy (wealth redistribution or creation?). I see Christians drawing the line in the sand, hurling vicious accusations against the other, both sides decrying the other for being immoral, unChristian, uncaring. We are being forced to take a side, and in doing so, fracturing our values and our souls. 

We are faced with impossible choices in this election. No matter who wins, Christians lose something that should be important to them. No matter who wins, we will still have work to do. 

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I Get to Vote, but This Still Is Not My Country

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On October 19, 2020

In How Americans Think, Living Like a Missionary

I lived as a foreigner through several election cycles in Tanzania. As a foreigner, that meant I had an opinion about elections, but I didn’t expect it to matter very much. I listened to Tanzanian friends give me their view on the candidates, but I stayed relatively objective. My goal was to understand their thoughts because I wanted to understand their hearts. I was there to reach people with the gospel, not get mired down in political arguments. My purpose there was to love all Tanzanians, not take sides. 

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My Problem Goes Much Deeper Than Racism

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On October 16, 2020

In Race and Diversity

I’m white, educated, and American. Some say I therefore must be racist.

I say my problem is much worse. 

I might give a good impression on the outside, but you can’t see the number of times I’ve truly believed that I am better than you. Sometimes that might be because you are a different race or ethnicity than me, and I think my race or culture is more effective than yours. Or maybe you’re white too, and I still think I’m better because you made a life choice that makes me feel more moral than you. Maybe I assume I have a better perspective than yours.

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