Two Columban seminarians from Fiji give us an insight into what it's like living in a foreign country with minimal language skills and little understanding of the culture.
Columban seminarian Antonio Seeto at a class Christmas party in the Philippines. Photo: Antonio Seeto
A new language in a new family
On arriving in Cochabamba, Bolivia I lived with the family of Maria Rene Covarrubias Arze. She was a widow who lived with her two daughters and three grandsons. My first three days with them were memorable with my Fijian and English but no Spanish. When I finally began language classes, I learnt that language was much more than words and grammar. It expresses a way of living and thinking.
As days went by, I began to learn words that started to make sense in my head. Living with the host family while studying the language motivated me in my learning and understanding of the language.
I settled into family life and took the opportunity to participate in family traditions and routines like cooking, house painting and singing. I was invited to almost all family events like birthdays, weddings and family gatherings. Maria Rene treated me as a son.
Daily conversation with my family was always the best way of practising vocabulary and familiarising myself with the context I was in. We exchanged opinions and joked during meal times. After five months of studying the language, I had a lot more confidence to converse with others.
I know that I am still trying to learn new words and phrases, here and there, now that I am in Peru. However, I owe the experience of being able to understand the language to my professors and my host family in Cochabamba. We still stay in touch through social media from time to time.
Having a second family in a different country is a blessing. They made my stay feel like a home away from home.
Columban seminarian Antonio Seeto is on his First Mission Assignment in Peru.
My “stable” experience in the “Sacred Heart” community
I joined the Columban Formation Program in Fiji in 2014 and studied for two and a half years in the Pacific Regional Seminary in Suva before moving to the Philippines in 2016 to continue my theological studies. I am now in Lima, Peru, for my First Mission Assignment Program.
Like Antonio, I went to Cochabamba, Bolivia, to learn the Spanish language. After five months of study I had enough Spanish to commence my mission experience.
It’s just a couple of months since I arrived back in Lima where I have begun to immerse myself among the people in the community of the Sacred Heart in the parish of the Holy Archangels.
The people are not well off but they are very friendly and accommodating. I admire the simplicity of their lifestyles and their way of being “Church”.
The people really treasure every little thing they have and always try their best to get together and glorify God in the best way they can. It was a graceful and enriching experience spending Christmas with the people in their small and simple chapel. It brought me to a deeper understanding of the experience of Mary, Joseph and the Magi in the stable during the birth of Jesus.
Like Mary, Joseph and the Magi, these people are always prepared to receive Jesus at any place regardless of the conditions. Reflecting on the way the people live and express their faith really inspire me to reflect on my own journey of faith.
Firstly, they remind me of the real meaning of being Christian: that Christ should always be at the centre of our lives, regardless of anything else. Secondly, they help me realize that, to be “Church” can be very simple, just like the Holy Family in the stable in Bethlehem. Lastly, to be “Church” today, I need to be a man of hope just like the Magi. This will enable me to persevere in constantly seeking Christ in the people I encounter regardless of who they are and the situations they live in.
I am blessed to be among a culture that is full of God’s mysteries and I am confident that my experience with these people will help me to be a better person and a better Columban missionary.
I now understand what St Columban meant when he said, “A life different to ours can be our best teacher.” I would like to thank my families, friends and Columban benefactors for their prayers, generosity and sacrifice which enables us to carry out God’s mission.
Columban seminarian Iowane Naio is on his First Mission Assignment in Peru.
Listen to "First Mission Assignment in Peru"
Related links
- Read more from The Far East, August 2020
