Visitor in a Foreign Place

Accepting Others and Fitting In

Aug 24, 2024

Some years ago, we took a vacation to the U.S. Virgin Islands. We then took a small plane on a trip from St. Thomas to St. John. There we had the once in a lifetime to have a beautiful get away beach all to ourselves, including a secluded party with locals—it just happened to take place because a recent hurricane had kept travelers away.

Back on St. Thomas, we stayed in the city of Charlotte Amalie. We try to never miss a Sunday and church and this day was the same. Unsure of where we would go we left the hotel and jumped into a taxi and asked the very informative young island girl driver, with her African heritage evident, where would be a good place with Episcopal services. While chatting away and keeping our attention about other places we could go later in the day, she dropped us off at a church. Service had just begun, and we snuck in to the back rows.

Looking around, the whole church, we could see the entirety of the walls were neatly whitewashed concrete and bricks and very attractive with many green bushes inside and out. There were long and narrow open windows along the whole perimeter just above eye level.

A familiar format and words came from the service, with the preacher, who had a dark black complexion, standing in contrast to his lily-white priest’s dress.

The church was large in length and width, and was completely filled with the enthusiastic congregation. Periodically some eyes caught ours. We suddenly realized that we were in a completely black congregation, hundreds of like-skinned, black skin, members enjoined in the preacher’s words.

At the normal time for such an announcement, the preacher asked “do we have visitors here today with us?” At this call, immediately every head in the building, hundreds of them, turned and put their eyes upon Ginny and myself.

At that moment we were stunned. We were called out, being singled out from all the others. We were noticed, distinctly and without fail. At this moment we realized what it is like to be a minority, one who can be noticed and cannot hide. A person who stands out and cannot make an excuse.

After a timeless pause, smiles came upon the congregation’s face, grins and head nods. An eruption of sound that said “welcome!” All were clapping and joyous.

At the end of the service, we were inundated with people willing to say hello and ask us about ourselves. While we were two who contrasted from the many, we were accepted as the same members under God.

For this reason I consider those Christian members who welcomed us on our visit to the church in the Virgin Islands to, in total, a Portrait in Character, a way to treat others and to help make the world a better place.

From then on, I have sincere hope that that experience, that the welcoming we had, could be replicated at all meetings of unlike peoples. The spirit of brotherhood is a warmth that we should all share, and that we all should impart upon others when those occasions happen upon us.

As a single person, or a member in group, we all can make the world a better place by being welcoming, being appreciative of others, giving each person we meet the benefit of the doubt that they are well-intentioned and worthy of our friendly hello.

This humble and inviting way of greeting is such an easy way to make the world a better place.

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Inspiring History is a compendium of people we could recognize for their good traits: knowledge, skills, abilities, and intentions that amount to qualities that have made our world a better place. These Portraits in Character offer us examples that we could emulate ourselves for us to also improve the human condition and the world around us.

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