My daughter, Carolina, her husband, Lukas, and their two children recently spent a summer month in Slovakia, his home country. Because of Covid-19, it had been a year and a half since his family had seen Miro, their 3-year old son. And they had never met their daughter, Liana, who is just over a year old. So the pent-up longing to be together was understandably huge.
But there is a “language barrier.” While many in Lukas’s family speak English, others speak it shyly or not at all. The children understand Slovak, and Miro can even speak it. In fact, some words he prefers to say in Slovak. After his mom and dad left him with the loving grandparents for five days to go to Paris for their anniversary, Miro was speaking Slovak fluently! Carolina understands it and sings Slovak songs with the kids.
Lukas has four living grandparents who neither speak nor understand English very well. Lukas and Carolina love their big extended family in Slovakia, and the month they spent together has been life-giving. Hal and I here in Atlanta look at the many photos they have been sharing of their Slovak family, and we can tell they are connecting in ways that don’t require speaking. In one picture, Lukas’s grandparents look lovingly at him as he cares for Miro, and their pride in him as a father and man is all over their faces.
How do we communicate with each other? In words, yes. But also with smiles, hugs, listening faces. With good food shared, with approval, with help in a moment of need. With music we share a moment of deep communication. With our quiet, unhurried presence, we communicate love and care. By just showing up, we communicate. In offering our gifts, our strength, our time, we communicate.
I once saw a cartoon about prayer. The prayer started, “Dear Lord. . .” followed by a scribbled tangle of lines. Then it ended, “Amen.” The implication was that God understands our prayers even when we can’t put anything into words. God can always read us. God knows exactly what we mean and what we need.
The Spirit of God understands when we cannot put our needs, our worries, our hurt, our wonder, and joy into words at all. Thanks be to God for the inexpressible gift of being deeply known and loved.