sto·ry·tell·ing
/ˈstôrēˌteliNG/
noun
- 1.the activity of telling or writing stories."the power of cinematic storytelling"
Her voice trembled, like a mouse being hunted by a hawk, as she inhaled deeply and began her story. A young Vietnamese girl, with ruby red lips, wearing angular frames and a pixie bob hair cut, volunteered to share her testimony. All eyes shifted towards the center of the hastily pushed together dining table. Her story, like so many brothers and sisters, echoed a similar testimony of the Campus Crusade for Christ members sitting around her, amidst nods and sips of smoothies. You might be wondering how this situation came to be. It's rewind time.
"That's hella sus," I piped up. (To no one's approval) Our taxi "Uber," aka Grab, careened to a stop in front of Thien Thao hotel, and we spilled out like a bag of oranges. Boxes upon bags were quickly sorted and sent up to our corresponding rooms before the day's ministry events were to commence. Without missing a beat, Pastor Tony initiated the team's arrival: Missionaries! Assemble. We gathered together to head to MS Nhan's home church, overseen by his wife, Co Nguyet. It was a sight to behold as we brought out the bags of chocolate to gift them, man. I wish you guys were here to see them. One dining table, with trays of food piled on top and sitting on adjacent stools facing each other, were children sporting beautiful smiles and waving hands. The second Grab car soon arrived and the team sat down to have lunch with Co Nguyet and her staff that ran the home church.
Chi Trinh, Thuy Van, Tu My, and Ngoc Van were graciously hosting us the luncheon, which consisted of sliced watermelon, an Ube soup, fried fish sauce chicken wings, drums, and fish. With a thanksgiving prayer of safe travels, food, and fellowship, everyone soon tucked into the meal and calamity ensued. Alright, "calamity" is a strong word but you'd use it too if you tasted these wings- HOT DIGGITY! The clatter of dishes and sound of slapping soles on tiles soon faded as they were replaced with the squeaks of chair legs as we sat down to discuss the CCC's schedule of the upcoming retreat. As we were the third missionary group to arrive on the scene, after two Korean churches located from Los Angeles and Boston, this meant that our role as follow-up was absolutely critical.
The schedule was discussed per the following:
- On July 25, our team would be able to complete the day's objective, to go and purchase brand new shoes for the foster children.
- Afterward, a short lunch and a return back to Thien Thao to prepare for the sleepover at the church.
- The following weekend would consist of the actual retreat, in which games, testimonies, and campfire stories would highly encourage curiosity about the Gospel and the overall purpose about why we do what we do, when and how.
WIth that finalizing conclusion, Co Nguyet sent us off with words of encouragement and thanked us for coming. We Grab-bed a couple more cars to head back; however, the night was still young. Not only Elaine, just the night. We headed to Jireh Coffeehouse to meet with our comrades in arms, the Campus Crusade for Christ team. Chi Loc and Tri were among those who greeted us at the airport and made a comeback cameo (okay, they're returning characters, not filler.) A coffeehouse like no other, yet quaint, Jireh proved to be of utmost utility and provided spectacular service to us. Here's their Facebook handle: @jirehcoffee80 HAHA you've been duped into thinking this was a blog post; it's a customer service hype post! Just kidding~ Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.
Dr. Hoang and his wife Huong had been serving with Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC) for over 19 years in Vietnam and Chi Loc soon took the reins in leading this bold endeavor. As I looked around the room, expectant faces beamed back at me. "I'm about to learn a whole lot of monosyllabic names real quick right now," I thought. Was I right? Of course, I was right. ;) After a round of introductions, giggles, and another round of introductions for latecomers, dinner was served. During this time of breaking bread, and I say breaking bread specifically to take notice of what fellowship began to look like to me. Food is an integral part of every culture but specifically, in Vietnamese culture, family-style food was practically a default. We were served individual dishes yet everyone poured out their personal testimonies like gravy and generously ladled out laughter. To me, this was what a meal should be.
I just had a smoothie and a couple of deep sighs for dinner though. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
As our evening was drawing to a close, Chi Loc wanted to make a final announcement. "Thank you, Thanh Le Church, for coming and interacting with the youth, who, like so many friends here, have little to no accountability with the Gospel after becoming believers. You are a step in making this happen, thank you." she (probably) said. "Now, [Redacted] would like to share a story with you all." Chi Loc looked expectantly at the girl sitting across from her at the table. With a sheepish grin, she began.
Does this sound familiar? "I was born and raised in a Christian home." In Vietnam, so many youths do not have this story but rather, a conscious choice made when a third party, external force has given them this story of an absolutely amazing timeline. The story that has endured, inspired and won the fight against the tide of evolving change: the Gospel. It's what has made all of us united in the face of the enemy. It's what's given us our "why." With our upcoming retreat, our team has placed at stake the future of Vietnam's youth and yet, it's not really a gamble...when the result has been made clear.
"You wanted more?",
Justin H. Nguyen
Works Cited:
"STORYTELLING: Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Cambridge Dictionary, dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/storytelling.