Raising Third Culture Kids

Jess and her class

Jess and Sam have grown up in a culture that is different to ours, but unlike their Peruvian friends they are not from the host country either. In many ways they are neither British nor Peruvian but actually have their own culture. They talk to each other in spanish but there are things that they love about England too! They have lived in Peru for 6 1/2 years and we are so proud of the way that they have adapted, learned the language fluently, made friends and served in our ministry with us. We do recognise that this has come at a cost, they have grown up missing many things about the UK; whilst they have had some amazing experiences (trekking in the Andes, watching dolphins swim wild in the Amazon, sailing on lake Titicaca, helping to provide aid to victims of natural disasters ) that their friends in the UK could only dream of.

Today was their last day at Ausangate school where they have studied for the last 6 years. As their Peruvian adventure is coming to an end (for now), they will need to adjust to life in the UK which is really a foreign culture for them; so many things about life in the UK will be new.

Sam has lived most of his life in Peru, he has no memories of when we lived in the UK before, so it will be a huge change for him. Please pray for them as we make the transition, their Peruvian class mates did a special presentation to say goodbye to them today and we had a small farewell party. Their prized possessions are their school uniforms which their friends and teachers have signed. Saying goodbye was hard, there were lots of tears today and more to come....