Okay, The Banana Tree. First off, I don’t think you can hear the story properly unless you pronounce it properly. And for all intents and purposes, this must be pronounced as closely as possible to the way my dear friend Justin Renton pronounces it. American friends, when you saw this title, this is what happened in your mind: Buh-Naaa-Na (notice that the “aaa” and “a” are like the sound in “apple”). Well, frankly, that just won’t do! To go further in this story, you must hear the word like this: Buh-Naw-Naw. Say it with me “Buh-Naw-Naw”. Got it? Good.
Okay…so when my husband and I were deciding upon which overseas location in which to move our family, we chatted to Justin about a difference in South African culture that he labeled “The Banana Tree” theory. (Did you say it right? Just checking!)
This theory notes the difference between the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere thinking. Mainly with regards to weather. He explained that given the fact that the Northern Hemisphere folks have been trained in regards to planning ahead and keeping busy because they all know that Winter is coming and therefore, crops need to be harvested, food needs to be stored, preparations need to be made and you need to work hard to ensure a sustainability during the harsh winter months. As a whole, this is worked into the DNA of the Northern Hemisphere human. In contrast, the Southern Hemisphere folks do not have the same challenges with regard to winter. Enter The Banana Tree. The theory is, that the banana tree will always produce bananas. All year round, fruit will appear on the trees, grain will grow in the fields and in general…”everything will work out in good time.” There is no rush, no urgency, no fear of the hardships to come. Culturally, this contributes to the way that people will approach life. I found this fascinating at the time and wondered what this would look like practically.
I could go super deep and spiritual with this whole theory…but far be it from me to pretend at intellectualism! Wanna know where it popped up for me? Let me explain…
"Now Now" vs. "Just Now"
Any South African has just begun to chuckle. In America, I feel like we are pretty pedantic in the way we measure time. We tend to be “slaves of the clock”. We have many ways to describe the length of time we can expect something to happen:
Generally we will give a tangible time frame…
“Be there in 5”- meaning minutes
“Friday, next week, at 2pm” - exactly what is says
Or when we are vague, but still using tangible measurements of time…
“In a sec (second)”- meaning that in under a few minutes, I will get to it
“In a few”- this is referring to minutes and generally can mean anywhere from 3-5 minutes.
“When I can” - don’t hold your breath, this may or may not happen and by the way… “can’t you see how busy I am right now?”
In South Africa, they have two measurements of time. “Now, now” and “Just now”. At first, I thought it was kind of cute. “Now, now” sounded a bit like a stutter and I always smiled a little in my heart. But what I soon realised was that when you receive this as an answer to your inquiry as to when you could expect something….you actually had no idea when this would happen!
Speaking to the fridge repair person who hadn’t shown up to the last two scheduled appointments…
Me - “So, when will you be here?”
Repairman- “Yeah, yeah…just now.”
Me- “But wait, does that mean today?”
Repairman- “Yeah, yeah…soon..just now!”
They did show up. The next day. As I started to see this trend, I sought help from my South African friends to understand this measure of time. The funny thing is, they don’t know either!
Some say that “Now, now” is sooner than “Just now”. But others reverse the two. As far as an estimate as to how long either is referring to….well, that is a complete mystery!
In the States, “just now” is a past tense term.
Me - “Are you going to unload the dishwasher?”
Husband - “I did it just now”.
Husband - “When are going to order the pizza?”
Me - “I did it just now.”
Let me tell you, as a Northern Hemisphere human…this just boggles the mind! My “slave to the clock” nature screams, “JUST TELL ME WHEN THIS WILL HAPPEN!!! I WANT A TIME….THAT SHOWS UP ON MY WATCH, FOR THE LOVE OF PETE!!!”
Once again, I am reminded of my prayer when we were thinking of where to serve overseas…”God, take us to a place that is slower paced and help me learn patience.” God is faithful my friends.
Well, I guess I can just blame it all on the Banana Tree!
I’ve got to go, I’ll post again soon….”Just now”!
