The Mission Experience

The Mission Experience

“Deep into the darkness, long I stood there, wandering, fearing, doubting, and dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.” My thoughts have often reflected on Martin Luther’s speech, “I have a dream”, which certainly speaks to many of the reality of dreams and the possibility of speaking them to life. It however seemed as though fear and doubt were always the thin line between the dream and the reality. A dream echoed by a young native of my motherland would have always seemed far fetched as compared to fellow natives of other privileged lands. The dream in this context however was realized and was coupled with a mixture of ultimate possibilities and choices which had to be made. Indeed there is beauty in every choice, and certainly a great beauty in the mission experience.

Beautiful scenery, hills, plateaus characterized the wonderful landscape.  The streets were very clean, the weather seemed picture perfect .This was indeed a land of a thousand hills and a thousand possibilities. Though the history of this land was tragic, one would have confidently reiterated or concurred with the sentiments of others that the land was ready and was quite prepared for the message we had been commissioned to share with them.  Some few decades back a genocide had happened in this land and thousands of people had been exterminated as the world watched. Ours was a message of hope and healing, yet it would seem that I was also in great need of that healing. I was involved in a great battle of thoughts which used to find their way in my reflections. Here I was sharing a great message of truth and yet I was oftentimes uncertain about my future and the reality of achieving my other dreams I had. I had a dream to get an education and to become and to be someone of influence in the world. I wanted to be a voice for the voiceless .I knew the decision I had made was for a good cause but the question still daunted me, had I really made the right decision to be here. Deep into the darkness, I stood there and wandered. 

Time is  relative one once said and is a masterpiece which always  changes along with the tides of change. The painting always seemed real, natural, mixed with shades of darkness and shades of light and happiness. I later found myself in the land of boiled bananas.

Such was true for me in the land of boiled bananas. The first time I arrived here I was excited and at the same time at awe with the new norm. This land was at the center of the equator and their climate was always painted with shades of rain and hot sunshine throughout the year. For the most part the temperature would get very hot and this was attributed to the green landscape and the abundant availability of bananas. The boiled bananas were quite a delicacy to many and soon became a delicacy to me. The uniqueness of their culture was certainly evident in their food. The thoughts about an uncertain future would often fade away because of the healing effect of culture and their food.This would seem like a bizarre fact.  Though this land had a different story than the land of a thousand hills , the threads of culture would seem to connect and had great similarities.

Mixed feelings overcame me the time I was about to conclude my mission experience . It had been my dream to serve a mission , yet during the reality of my mission I felt like it was all a dream. I felt perplexed by my other dreams I had. I however felt great having been a part of the mission experience. Though the future is still blurry and there are still quite a number of milestones to walk . I am confident that my identity and the very same message I had shared in both lands can continue to guide me and you today.  I have a dream.

Tatenda Felix Mukaro

Sister Elisabeth Thomas

Eng 150-Personal Essay

12 July 2021