Me and my Mom show up for a confusing game of football!

This little Bitstrips illustrates a basic human condition… The idea that preconceived notions or ideas sometimes lead to misunderstandings. This cartoon is a cute illustration of this. But in my case, until I moved abroad I didn’t realize that to most of the world what they call “football” most Americans would describe as “soccer”. My mom is an avid football (American football) fan, and would be quite put out if I showed up in a soccer uniform to play her beloved football! It’s a humorous little cartoon, but it happens.

After we’d been living in ET for a little more than a year we had a friend, who helped with the housework and cooking. After returning from furlough I learned she was expecting and the baby was due around New Years. This is late summer so I’m planning to give her leave in January. She’s a hard worker, a really hard worker! September rolls around and she asks me to ask one of my friends to come because she had something she wanted interpreted. This friend spoke both Amharic and English, so we’re sitting in the living room, and my friend begins by saying, (we’ll just call her “L”)

” “L” warned you that the baby was due at the beginning of the new year, and that she would be taking her leave then.” So I’m nodding, yes I know, I’m so excited for “L”, you know it’s her first.

My friend smiles at me and says, “well it’s the New Year now and she’s taking leave ASAP, she’s about to have the baby any time now.” I’m totally confused! Wait, she said in the New Year, and that’s not for several months, this is only September.

My friend says “no Felecia, it’s the Ethiopian New Year, September 11th.”

My brain does a kind of somersault, and I rehearse all the things I’d had “L” doing over the past few days. I was undone, this tiny pregnant lady could give birth any minute and I was clueless. She’d clean these tall windows and just made an extra market run! Good grief! My next thought, of course was, she could deliver here in my living room right now! OMG, I couldn’t believe it! Today her daughter is 4 and it’s funny now, but at the time I was really worried that she could have been hurt! Another instance when preconceived notions can result in crazy misunderstandings!Even innocent misunderstandings can have long lasting and profound effects.

This Christmas season lets make an effort to be at peace with one another, let’s lay aside those things that divide us and cause friction in our relationships. Jesus is why we come together this time of year, and most of the world celebrates the birth of our King… Let’s do all we can to rejoice in what unites us, JESUS! That’s how the World will know that He is our King, because of our love for one another. Mistakes and misunderstandings happen whether we intend them or not 😃