Ninja-Death-Striking Stereotypes
I have a problem: I’m asian.
But you see, that shouldn’t be a problem. But it apparently is. And it makes me very, very sad.
And… angry… … just kidding. A “story” after the jump.
My family just moved into a new neighborhood and we’re going through the typical “meet your neighbors” stuff. One of the coolest things is that we were actually prayerful (this time) about where we wanted to live and part of the location was so that we could be as missional as possible with our neighbors.
Sure, we wanted some good amenities, a good price, etc, but those were not actually at the top of the list. We wanted to be impactful, and we want to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
So, we chose a place 3 miles away from where I worked so that invitations to goto our Church wouldn’t cost an arm-and-a-leg in gas.
We’ve found that this particular community is what I would consider a “I am about to head to the geriatric-ward for management and support” community (gosh, that sounds mean, but it’s true). Most of our neighbors are the elderly because this neighborhood has been around for a long time.
So……… Enter the-old-lady-who-drives-a-ford-taurus (tolwdaft for short).
I was walking to get my mail yesterday when I spotted her. She had just gotten out of her car to get her mail. Then, she saw me. Visibly frozen for a second, I could see the mental cogs begin to turn as she began to calculate if she could get to the box, open it, grab the contents, and then run back before this ninja thug would loot her for all she’s got and her puppy in the back seat.
She made the call and dashed as only a true tolwdaft could.
I slowed down a bit but called out: “Hello!”
No response. I tried again: “Hi!”
Nothing but a cold shoulder and apparently a renewed fervor to get her mail and bolt.
I thought I’d throw her a question (because I did actually have one): “Excuse me Miss? I have a quick question…?”
She, at this time, had managed to get one foot back into the car, peered over her shoulder with a look of paralyzed fear. She, obviously out of breath, managed to snort: “I don’t have time, have to go, don’t have time.”
I asked anyway: “Excuse me, has the zipcode here in Alpharetta always been 30004? or 30009?”
tolwdaft said: “Always 4″ and with that she hopped in her ford and drove like a bat out of h-e-double-hockeystick.
“WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPENED?!?” was all that I could muster.
And then it dawned on me. Perhaps I’ve just been a victim of the asian/ninja stereotype. I say “perhaps,” because it’s quite possible that I’m dead wrong and that I’m being oversensitive…
But that’s what happened. Lesson learned. But what to do now? How shall I overcome this “potential” stereotype as being a scary asian man when I come in peace to deliver the best news on the planet?
Prayer is probably the best place to start (and some good old strategeryyyyy).
So, if you could pray for tolwdaft and that we can engage her wisely (for she is our neighbor) that would be great.
Have you ever been profiled, or something similar happen to you? What did you do?
I have sometimes been labeled as intimidating, but they soon figure out that is not the case and get over it. I did, however, want to mention that I have seen a few scary people in my days and the pic at the top of this post does not represent any similarities to those folk. Then again, I'm not an old lady, nor do I drive a Taurus
.
Here's what you do man. Watch back-to-back skits of Dave Chapelle imitating white people. Then go down to your local Wal Mart and hit the make-up aisle. You want to look for a female beautification product they call “base” sometimes known as “foundation”. Find a nice, unoffensive, caucasian tone. Then, on a daily basis, I want you and your whole family to be white, inside and out.
Right now you have big questions. For example, how does this dude know so much about make-up? Like all good stories, mine begins in college. I actually wrote and delivered a paper on racism, and to spice things up I painted myself half-black for the delivery. Good times. But enough about me.
After a month or two of being “the new young white couple” you can all come out of the closet. It's easier this way. Trust me.
peace|dewde
Man, that is crazy!! It may have been your messed up hair (I saw your Tweet from yesterday). Perhaps the out-of-sorts hair concerned her.
In response to your prayer, maybe this is why God has placed you here: to break through stereotypes and racism of Tolwdaft and her peeps in addtion to spreading the Good News.
I have to admit, this article comes a very interesting time. I have noticed racist attitudes boiling out of some people in response to Obama's election. These attitudes far exceed party affiliation. It is extremely disappointing!
Our pastor challenged the congregation to do something so big that only God can accomplish. This sounds like this might be one of yours.
H3E, Chele and I will be praying for Sue and you that God will help you do something only God accomplish: break through your neighbors' preconceived notions.
Blessings!
Dude you are a ninja. a ninja for the Lord!
don't let it sweat you. people are always a little wary of different in their perfect little communities. Take me. I'm a white guy (some would say a REALLY white guy). I moved into an all black community. My neighbors, after i'd befriended them, revealed to me they all had bets on how long i'd live there. Some gave me 6 months, some a year. My neighbors directly next to me said 5 years and that's why they are my fav's
The point is to embrace that fear initially because when they get over it they will be more real with you. My hood rocks and i get smiles, conversations and so much more out of people who just a few years ago were betting on my quick departure.
God Bless em!
dude. that's so rock and roll.
haha. this is great! thanks for sharing that bro. “my hood rocks”… that's sweet.
it really is.
sweet, thanks bro! it's an exciting time… and we can't wait for what God will be showing us in our 'hood.
hahahhahaha. yeah. that was a google search find.
taurus. no… but… what do you drive?
lol is all i have to say.
Uhhhh a BMW
And before you judge…a 1992 BMW with 225,000 kilometers on it HAHAHAHA!
oh niceeeeeeeeeeeeeeee… and i didn't “say” nuthin!
i wish i had my '86 chevy… celebrity. that would make it easy for me. “grandma” car…
Great post!
My family and others are getting ready to make such a move. We are a new plant and believe that God has called us to be purposeful in building a “multi-cultural” ministry. Part of that means we need to set up camp in an area of town that isn't “easy street” USA.
Just this last weekend we were discussing what we can do to earn the right to be heard as “new comers” and currently an all white congregation. I will share your story with the crew… Thanks for posting – stay the course!
wow. speechless. i guess georgia is different from california. hang in there dude. how's the view from the highroad?
thanks Adam. “stay the course” is one of my favorite thoughts… and there was a good Tozer devotional about it this week too. w00t.
share away, and hope they get a kick out of it.
it is good. for now.
an asian?but Bruce Lee,that's my Idol.great post.
haha. he rocks. thanks for stopping by!
Possibly, be a little more "stealth-like" and next time she might not even know you're approaching!
Just kidding bro. Maybe some really cool things can happen between you and her. Dude, I love your label: tolwdaft. . . priceless!
My neighbor is die-hard KJV ONLY! She was trying to "witness" to me for a while because I mentioned to her that I didn't believe that the KJV was the ONLY bible (she pried it out of me man). She was bringing me groceries and stuff, and then when she gave us the food, she would talk about the "true holy bible". Sheesh. So, I did the best thing I could think of: I talked to her in as much of an intellectual manner in regards to the Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic texts, how we don't even have original copies of that, the Septuagint, and how inaccurate ANY English translation is. Now mind you, I do believe in the infallibility of Scripture, but I wasn't going to go there with her. I had to get her to see her arrogance!
What a wretched man am I! I wished that I would have been as gracious as you were!
haha. wow.