I received this message tonight from Susan. I have shared some of the painful and critical messages, it’s only fair I share one that almost brought me to tears. I don’t really have words for how much this hopeful message means to me, or for so many others, so I’ll just post it.
“I have lived in “Amish Country” for about 20 years. Other than interacting with them for business purposes at the local feed store or furniture shop, I have had little contact with the Amish. I had always been under the impression that they wanted to have as little to do with the “English” as possible. I have been fascinated about your ability to build a relationship with Moise and his family. Perhaps inspired by your efforts, I had a lovely conversation with an Amish man who was behind me at the market. He had three very well-behaved boys, and we mostly spoke about his children. Prior to reading your articles, I probably would not have spoken with him. I am a friendly person and I do tend to chat with people while waiting in lines, but I probably would not have spoken to the Amish gentleman had I not read your articles.”
– Susan
What goes around comes around. This is the way we heal. Blessings on you both.
Jon…
In the 1980’s, I worked for an international consortium for automation development. I learned that a sponsoring company was sending a visiting engineer to our Texas-based office. His company was in Japan.
I knew that some representatives from our USA sponsor companies were from families of WWII veterans. Also, this was a time when Japanese competition was costing USA jobs. I was concerned.
But our common technical backgrounds first led to a curiosity, and then to a friendship. I invited him to play tennis. He showed us the city’s best Japanese restaurants. We attended technical courses together. After he got married in Japan, he returned to the USA with his wife. Then, our wives began a friendship. And he began to participate with other sponsor representatives.
Several years later, our consortium began a new project that involved my travel to Japan. There, he hosted me with an unsurpassed hospitality. I believe his kind words with the Japanese sponsors helped the project to succeed.
All to these suggestions: don’t risk losing the opportunity for a friendship. Don’t make assumptions about people or cultivate misjudgments. And keep an open mind – you never know where it will lead.