My Family Culture

This week I was presented with the following scenario:

A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. You are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently. You are further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, you can only take 3 small items with you.

I was then asked to describe which items I would choose to take and how I could/would explain their meaning.  After arriving in the new country, I would then be told that I could only keep one of the three chosen items. 

I have thought about situations like this many times, especially in regards to war and disastrous conditions around the world, when teaching about fire safety and when severe weather comes to call in my region, as we can often be subject to tornadoes, damaging storms in all seasons, and flooding.  What I have come to discover is that the harder I think, the less I need materially.  I would be incredibly thankful to be able to have my immediate family with me; however, I would miss the remainder of my family the most.  Most of my valuable items live in my mind and in my heart, so my three items would be reflections of that.

The first thing that I would take would be a photograph of my mother.  She is an integral component to my family, and a major influence in most of what we do.  She would, without a doubt, be the most missed item in our new world.  I would likely then defer my other two choices to my children, allowing them to each choose something that means the most to them. 

My decision reflects perfectly how I view my family culture.  We place great merit in our close family and value each other above all else.  Our children come first and foremost.  My husband, as a father and a husband, would be content in knowing that his three ladies would get to choose.  My role, as a wife and mother, is to respect my husband’s wishes and put others’ needs before my own. 

If I was then told to only bring one item, there would be no question that the picture would remain.  My children would understand that being able to consult with their grandmother, even if only through a picture, would carry much more weight than the tangible items they had chosen.  I am proud of the fact that know deep down in my heart that the most important things in my life can always be with me as they live within me.