Inspire, Fall/Winter 2009

20 FALL/WINTER 2009 Take former Cedarville MK students Jeff ’95 and Tiffany (Trimble) Nelson ’95, who clearly remember how hard it was to spend the holidays away from their families — not to mention all the other adjustments that came as a result of their MK status. From their very first day on campus, Jeff and Tiffany realized how much their college experience would differ from that of their peers. And they also got a taste of some of the challenges the next four years would bring. Tiffany grew up in the Amazon region of Brazil. Her parents, Glen ’67 and Beth (Ziegler) Trimble ’67, were on furlough while Tiffany finished her senior year at Cedarville High School. But when she began college, her parents and three younger sisters returned to Brazil. Jeff’s parents, David ’72 and Rebecca (Hull) Nelson ’72, took a short furlough after his high school graduation to bring him to college. “They dropped me off, said goodbye, stayed for a couple weeks in New York, and then flew off to the other side of the world,” he said. Missing Home By the end of their first semester, many MKs get a broader and deeper education than the average student — not only picking up pop-culture references and American trends, but also learning that their peers in the U.S. are often wholly unaware of the culture the MKs call “home.” Even if the adjustment process goes smoothly during the first months of college, the winter break reminds MKs, once again, of how unique their college experience is. Both Jeff and Tiffany recall their first Christmas as Cedarville students. Tiffany ended up alone when all of her roommates headed home to be with family. To celebrate on Christmas Day, she invited several international students over for dinner, but only one student from Cambodia made it. Jeff’s mom had bought a plane ticket for him to fly to the Philippines. But a few weeks before he was to leave, they learned the travel agent had gone bankrupt and skipped town. With no money to buy another ticket, Jeff spent Christmas with his grandparents in New York. His mother was devastated. Unfortunately, Jeff’s and Tiffany’s Christmas stories aren’t that unusual. Many MKs, like Jeff, spend Christmas with family members in America — grandparents, an aunt or uncle, perhaps an older sibling. Often, caring churches and individuals provide a ticket or donate frequent-flyer miles for an MK to return home for Christmas, a huge blessing to both the students and their parents. But not all MKs have such a support base looking out for their needs or the opportunity to go home more than once during their college years. Andrew Arthur ’09, who grew up in São Paulo, Brazil, said, “I usually went to my grandparents’ house in Ohio for Christmas. Other than that, I spent a lot of my holidays in Cedarville studying.” And it’s not just the holiday season that makes MKs long for home. Nathan Dix ’11 As fun and exciting as living on a college campus can be, you probably remember how interminably long finals week felt right before Christmas break. Those tests and papers seemed like they would never end. Especially when all you could think about was being with your family, sleeping in your own bed, eating your mom’s homemade lasagna, and relishing all the sights and sounds of home. After all, what are holiday traditions, Advent services, and Christmas carols without family? And yet many missionary kids — or MKs — often have to accept the reality that being home for the holidays has fallen outside the realm of possibility. For MKs, “home” is often difficult to define since most consider the country where they grew up as their true home. But while MKs from Europe or the Caribbean are often able to go home for the holidays without too much difficulty, those from Asia or Africa may find it too expensive to travel such a distance for just a couple of weeks. A How can you help MK and international students? • Go out of your way to connect them with other members of your church. • Send them a letter or package. • Donate your frequent-flyer miles to them. • Ask them sincere questions about their family and culture. • Invite them to spend holiday breaks with your family. • Celebrate their birthdays with them. • Work with your church to provide funding for them to return home over the holidays. • Pray for them. Looking for other ways to encourage these students? Contact Donna Messenger at dmessenger@cedarville.edu . She can connect you with specific students and provide unique ideas about how you can make their Cedarville experience that much more life-changing.