It was just an informal visit to our missionary friends in Timor Leste, and for the eight of us women, our one project was to speak to a class of 16-year-olds about dating. So over three afternoons, we spoke to the Timorese youth about dating from a Christian perspective. They laughed shyly, tittered and giggled when we first introduced our topic, which was shared in English and translated by a local into Tetun, the dialect of the region.
What you see if you were sitting at one of the desks and looking out the louvred windows. I couldn’t take my eyes away from the deep blue sky. You could also hear the occasional barking of dogs.
Some of the youth posing for a class photo before heading down to the sea for an afternoon of games and snacks.
The Timorese youth played team games on the black sand beach 10 minutes from the school.
This ice-breaker employing the use of masking tape was a winner.
Using a mix of Bahasa Indonesia, a smattering of English, and Tetun phrases, it was not hard to connect with the Timorese youth. There is a hunger to learn, they copy everything down into notebooks, they seem to listen intently even if they can’t comprehend everything. And they smile so very easily.
My next post: Part (3)–The Beauty of Timor Leste
Related posts
- The Adventure of My Life (featherglass.com)
- A Whole New World (featherglass.com)
- Seven Days in Timor Leste (Part 1): A Day At The Market (featherglass.com)
Tell me what you think.