Greetings from Gig Harbor, Washington where we are enjoying the long, sun-filled days of summer which is Nature’s reward for the short, cloudy, and cold days of winter. After a very full springtime of teaching and training in Colombia, India, Philippines, and Thailand, I’m glad to have a few months of rest before starting up again in the fall and winter.

In May, along with five other men, I completed the third leg of the 500-mile Camino de Santiago pilgrimage in northern Spain in the high central plateau known as the Meseta. We trekked 125 miles over ten days, with a day of rest midway in the city of Leon, with its Roman walls still intact and its stunning Cathedral of Santa Maria aglow with stained-glass windows.

On the 10th day, we reached the highest point of the Camino, known as the “Iron Cross.” Here, pilgrims bring a rock or some other object to toss onto the growing pile. I brought a rock from the dry riverbed in my garden in Gig Harbor and said a prayer, thanking the Lord for a long and fulfilling life, as I tossed it onto the pile. Next year will be our last segment of the 500-mile Camino, and we’ll walk into Santiago de Compostela where the bones of St. James are reputed to reside. I’ll be 80 years old.

On the 10th day, we reached the highest point of the Camino, known as the “Iron Cross.” Here, pilgrims bring a rock or some other object to toss onto the growing pile. I brought a rock from the dry riverbed in my garden in Gig Harbor and said a prayer, thanking the Lord for a long and fulfilling life, as I tossed it onto the pile. Next year will be our last segment of the 500-mile Camino, and we’ll walk into Santiago de Compostela where the bones of St. James are reputed to reside. I’ll be 80 years old.

In June, I was back at the Catholic Retreat Center in Bangkok, training Chinese cross-cultural workers and pastors. We had 30 participants present, and many more on Zoom scattered about in different locations in China. Participants came from several countries, including Turkey, Vietnam, Cambodia, and even Chicago, to participate in this cross-cultural training. Always at the end of a week of training or a two-week course, I invite participants to come forward and share with the group what the course has meant to them and what God has been saying to them through the week.

This time, it seems my teaching on overcoming culture shock struck a chord with many of the Chinese participants. One woman, for whom the course brought out a lot of painful memories and emotions that she had experienced in her cross-cultural adjustment in Thailand, jumped up and said, “Have you noticed this week how much Whiteman loves Chinese people, and how much he loves his wife?” As I sat listening to her testimony, I wondered, “Where is this going?” She continued, “Every time he spoke about his wife his eyes sparkled.” Then she went on to gently chastise the husbands in the group and encouraged them to love their wives more, like I love mine. I had no idea I was communicating that message, but as I often say, meaning is determined by the listener, not by the speaker.

I am grateful that my anthropological training and years of cross-cultural experience have enabled me to teach and train in such a way that it empowers others who face the challenges of crossing cultures with the Gospel. I am so appreciative for those of you who are praying for me that I will continue to have plenty of passion, robust health, and a sound mind to keep going for another decade. Thank you so much and blessings on you.

Cordially,

Darrell Whiteman