The Easy Way and The Hard Way

It is a cliche from Hollywood cop movies. A policeman is interrogating a suspect. The policeman leans forward and says; “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” We have experienced this when it comes to learning about and living in a new culture. We experienced doing things the “easy” way, by reading, watching and spending time with friends. We have also experienced that sometimes we learn the “hard” way.

Our hearts sank as we approached our parked car and saw yet ANOTHER ticket on the window. Just as in the three previous occurrences, we had no idea what we had done wrong. (Would you know, for example, that you cannot park across from a T-intersection??) Finding out is completely humbling – we show our ticket to a Latvian friend or colleague and ask him/her to explain what it says. Then we take the ticket to the post office, where we pay all of our bills, and smile politely as the clerk processes our payment. We can only imagine what is said after we leave!

We have some American friends who were publicly chastised for letting their children run on the grass in the park. Who knew that you were supposed to keep your children on the sidewalks, in a park, with wide expanses of inviting green grass? So, in an urban environment dominated by apartment buildings, where ARE children supposed to run and play if they can’t run on the grass in the park? We still wonder about things like this and are so grateful God provided an apartment outside of the city center so Nate can run in the woods behind our apartment building.

We had arranged to meet some friends for dinner on New Year’s Eve at a local complex with a huge restaurant and amusement center. We were surprised by the lack of traffic which enabled us to arrive a half hour early. As we walked around while waiting for our friends, we noticed the lights were being turned off. Everything was shutting down at 6 pm! We called our friends and they suggested we meet at a nearby McDonald’s. Two minutes later our friends phoned back and said that McDonald’s was also closing, so we should rendezvous back at their apartment. These folks have been here nearly 10 years and they had no idea that most establishments closed so early on New Year’s Eve.

It was Christmas Eve and we had intended to go to the only English Christmas Eve service in the city. Our hearts sank again as we approached our parked car, in our secure underground parking facility, and saw that the car had been vandalized. The front passenger window was gone and shattered glass was everywhere. Our plans immediately changed once we saw the car. How do you handle things like this here? What police bureau do you contact? In this culture everyone celebrates Christmas with their family on Christmas Eve, so how do you even find answers to these questions when you don’t want to intrude on someone’s holiday?

Yes, sometimes we learn about culture the hard way. Many times this happens through some violation – either by us or to us. In either case, it is a rough way to gain knowledge. However, God continues to demonstrate His grace in even these situations. This was evident on Christmas Eve when Paul went back down to the car to take photos and an inventory of what was stolen. An English-speaking neighbor, who happened to be down there at the same time, noticed him doing this. It turned out that her car had also been broken into. She had already contacted the police, officers had already been on-site, and had noted the damage to our vehicle. She provided the police station phone number and said the police were awaiting our call. Sure enough, when Paul called and got an English-speaking person, he heard, “Oh, you’re the owner of the Honda!” An English-speaking police officer came with the detective to lead us through the reporting process. With both the neighbor and the police officer Paul was able to demonstrate God’s grace and forgiveness as he focused on the blessings of the season.

These experiences remind us of our walk with Jesus Christ. We often have opportunity to learn and grow the easy way, through reading the Word and taking to heart the example of others. We also have the opportunity to learn the hard way. Sometimes this is due to our own ignorance or foolish choices. Sometimes this is due to actions and circumstances beyond our control. Whether easy or hard, we must strive to remember that in every circumstance, in every situation, God will “cause all things to work together for good, for those who love Him, for those called according to His purpose.” Not every situation or event will be good but we can confidently claim God’s sovereign grace in them all. This allows us to be joyful and thankful in, and in spite of, all that this life brings us.