Roots in Exile

By Ma May Si, OSOF Fellow and Vice President for the Matu Affairs Organization USA.

Interviewing community members for the Our Stories, Our Faith (OSOF) fellows’ program has truly been an unforgettable and rewarding experience. Not only has this experience allowed me to connect with my community members, close friends and family more deeply, it has also allowed me to better understand the impact of migration and the broader social history of the Burma diaspora in Indianapolis.

A year ago, I moved to Indianapolis from Columbia, a small city in Missouri with a Burmese population nowhere comparable to the size here in Indianapolis. Although it has already been a year, I am still discovering new Burmese-owned businesses and Burmese-led organizations and groups that provide social services for community members. I am deeply appreciative and in awe of the efforts of those working relentlessly to provide resources for our non-English speaking community members to be more independent. As was the case for my family, three out of the four narrators I interviewed revealed that they had also moved from out of state, with the availability of resources and the large community here as deciding factors. It’s human nature to seek belonging, and I believe it’s the opportunities that Indianapolis offers for Burmese people, such as being able to interact and worship in one’s native dialects, that truly make individuals feel like they belong here.

After years of having their voices dismissed or their sense of worth diminished, being asked to share about their lives may feel difficult.

During the recruitment process, I aimed to recruit narrators of different age groups and genders to ensure I captured a variety of perspectives. I hoped to explore both the similarities and differences in experiences, along with ways faith and culture intersect in their lives. However, this process was more challenging than I had anticipated. Many potential narrators, regardless of age, expressed hesitancy, and older individuals often told me to find others who could better answer the questions. While I can’t say for certain why these hesitations existed, I imagine that younger individuals may have had busy schedules or felt unfamiliar with the idea of being interviewed about their everyday lives. For older individuals, the lasting effects of religious and political persecution in Burma may still shape how they see themselves and their stories. After years of having their voices dismissed or their sense of worth diminished, being asked to share about their lives may feel difficult. These possibilities highlight how important it is to continue creating opportunities for community members to share their experiences, and to remind ourselves that ordinary stories are just as important as extraordinary ones.

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I was eventually able to recruit a total of four narrators for my interviews, two that grew up, and another two that spent majority of their lives outside of the US. One of the older narrators I recruited was a 63-year-old-woman, who is one of my friend’s mother, and the other was my father, a 50-year-old. As for the younger narrators, I was able to recruit a friend and a cousin, who were 24 and 20 at the time of the interviews. They offered many meaningful insights and there were several points that lingered with me throughout the interview.

When asked what they appreciate about living in the United States, three of the four narrators spoke about the freedom and the opportunities available to them. Paul, my father, emphasized that life in the U.S. and Myanmar are complete opposites, with examples including the ability to worship freely, work freely, and live day-to-day life without restraint. This sense of deep gratitude was evident through the speech, vocal tone, and facial expressions of the narrators and served as a great reminder of God’s goodness and blessings I sometimes take for granted. Furthermore, their perspectives also stirred a sense of curiosity in me on how responses might differ if the same question were to be asked to individuals who were born and raised in the United States. What would they say they appreciate about living in America? Will their sense of gratitude mirror that of these narrators? The youngest narrator, like the others, was born in Myanmar and spent time living in Malaysia before arriving in the US. Although he left Myanmar just when he was about a year old and arrived in the US when he was very young, his journey still allowed him to compare the differences in livelihood. This type of comparison may not be available to those who have grown up entirely in the United States, and I believe this will play a great role in the probable differences in responses. I am curious of how their understanding of faith and community is shaped within a culture here that often emphasizes individuality over shared identity, and how those perspectives might both differ from and connect with the stories I heard.

One of my favorite parts of the interviews was hearing about their favorite cultural holidays and rituals from their childhood. All mentioned celebrating Christmas as a church community, compared to the norm of only celebrating it with your family here in America, and of the games, food, and laughter surrounding the celebrations. My father also shared about the symbolic firing of traditional muskets during New Year’s to welcome the new year and proclaim joy and good health through Christ. A quiet sadness filled his voice as he recalled the past, which made me greatly empathize with the older folks in the community that may still be longing for the land of their childhood and memories. Another holiday or ritual mentioned was a cultural celebration known as Losak Khotue or Khotue Poei, which one of the younger narrators mentioned as crucial for connecting with other Matu-Chin youth and building a shared identity. The responses for this question highlighted that faith in the Chin and Burmese communities are often intertwined with culture, and that cultural events are essential for identity developments and reinforcing collective value systems.

There was a bit of sadness as he was talking about these memories, which made me greatly empathize with the older folks in the community that may still be longing for the land of their childhood and memories.

All four narrators emphasized the profound impact of mothers in strengthening their faith. Ngun, the 63-year-old narrator, mentioned she grew up in a Christian household but did not fully understand what it meant to be saved. Her and her siblings eventually came to know Christ personally due to her mother’s prayers and encouragement, which was also consistent among the other narrators. Almost all mentioned growing up in Christian households but not having relationships with God until personal encounters with Christ through camps and mission trips.

Ngun and Paul both revealed that there are some things their family never talk about, such as things related to suffering or financial hardships. Their reluctance to talk about these things with their family could possibly stem from not wanting to appear vulnerable in front of their children and to preserve their sense of security. On the contrary, Billy, the 20-year-old narrator, revealed he hopes his parents would share the emotional burden of suffering and hardships. Nancii, the 24-year-old, was the only one out of the four to share that her family talks about everything from suffering to joy, while emphasizing the importance of faith as the catalyst for openness among her family members. I believe this openness or the desire for openness from the younger narrators could be attributed to growing up in the US and its emphasis of freedom of expression, compared to social harmony, “saving face,” and the idea of not burdening others that is largely emphasized in Asian countries and likely still among the older narrators. This kind of generational gap was also apparent in other responses. Both the younger narrators believed discipleship training among the older generation is not as common, and that church is seen as a part of culture for many community members. These responses are worthy of consideration for the community. For the church to grow and continue to be a place where all generations can worship together, we cannot merely preach the teachings of Jesus, we must live them. It is also essential for the church to learn how to properly approach differing opinions and perspectives among church members. Today, there are many Chin-Burmese youth who no longer attend their parent church or church in general due to differing political views than that of the pastor on the pulpit. While differences are bound to exist among generations growing up with different values, these differences must be combatted through the cultivation of an envrionment filled with Christ’ teachings of love and compassion, not shame.

I am reminded of the story of Abraham through the stories of the narrators. God called Abraham to leave his native country, and through his obedience, he and his descendants were blessed. I can imagine the similar fear and emotional distress that Abraham and many Burmese folks may have shared when they left everything they knew of for a land thousands of miles away. Through it all, God protected and provided for them, and only through faith and His faithful promises, did Abraham become the father of many nations. Only through faith and His goodness, are we also here today as the Burma Christian diaspora. I pray we continue to live our faith boldly and follow Christ’ teachings to be the salt and light of the world, and I pray we continue to make Indianapolis a flourishing place for people of all tribes and backgrounds to live in. Amen.

Listen to the audio transcript below for a peek into what the interview process looked like for May:

Ma May Si, also known as Maysi, is a passionate Matu Chin leader in the community. She obtained her Master’s in Public Health from the University of Missouri-Columbia, with an emphasis in Promotion and Policy, and recently moved to Indiana to reunite with family and to better serve the Burmese community. Maysi currently serves as the Vice President for the Matu Affairs Organization USA, volunteers at the Chin Center, and is a youth leader at her church in Indianapolis. Through the OSOF Fellows Program, she hopes to amplify the stories of the Burmese Christian diaspora and highlight the profound role God has played in the lives of community members.