Rolling out the red carpet

I had a learning point at the beginning of my trip to the islands. When we arrived to the island we landed on one side and had to walk on a dirt road to the other side. About halfway through the trip there was a stretch of the road that was covered in this stale, stinky, green stuff that smelled like death. I thought to myself, "Maybe they put this hear to keep dust from flying up? Maybe they put it here to scare away these dreadful horse flies?" I'm still recuperating from a bite from one of those horse flies, by the way.

A few minutes later I was conversing with one of the leaders on the trip when a painful rebuke was brought to my attention. They said, "Did you see that green stuff back there on the road? Do you know what it was?" I replied, "I think it was seaweed, it smelled unbearable." That person then explained to me that the island basically had two items that the people could live off of and trade: fish and seaweed. They said that the seaweed was sold for making cosmetic type products and then when the fishing season was bad it was even used for sustenance. He then proceeded to tell me, "The people of the island laid out the seaweed on the road as a sign of welcome to us."

It made me think of our English phrase, "roll out the red carpet". These folks had rolled out the red carpet for us; they had given us the royal treatment! I felt terrible for what I had thought and was so thankful that I didn't commit the grave error of saying something offensive in front of one of the islanders. Let this be a lesson not to despise things that you don't perceive as important and to vigilantly expect unfamiliar forms of hospitality. For example, if you are invited to somebody's home and they offer you mate, as an American you may think that if you aren't thirsty you can simply say, "No thanks". However, it is very offensive to turn it down. It is an extension of their friendship and hospitality and turning it down is like rejecting them. I am constantly watching for moments of growth and this was definitely an opportunity.