Fun with Flags

When a was a little girl attending church in Topeka, Kansas, I remember seeing the walls hung with many flags. It was always intriguing to me to see all the colorful shapes and patterns. Japan was especially memorable as one of my friend's little brothers called it "the ball." Every year, our church would host Missions Sunday. Even once we left that church and attended several others in other states, I would always get excited for Missions Sunday when the nation flags would reappear on the walls. Sometimes we would have international foods prepared by missionaries or other people in the church to have a taste of other cultures.

In fact, when I was 10, we had a missions dinner on a Sunday night during Missions week that was particularly special. It was the first time I used chopsticks. There was a sweet, single gal serving as a missionary in Thailand who taught all the young kids how to hold and use chopsticks. I remember her being one of the coolest people I knew at that time. In fact, to this day I remember her name.

As my sister and I grew older, we became interested in re-creating flags from other countries - mostly Africa. She was more dedicated and ambitious than I was; however, we both spent the majority of one of our summers in junior high creating miniature paper flags, which we still have in our possession.

One of the notable hangings on my wall is a map of the world with the countries' flags underneath. Many a friend has sat at our kitchen table staring at that map and commenting on the flags. You would think with that amount of scrutiny and attention I would have all the flags memorized, but alas, it is still a goal.

All that to say, flags have played at least a minor part in my life and love for other cultures and peoples. It's just one aspect that shaped my life into what it is today.