"Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas", by Rebecca Solnit and Joshua Jelly-Schapiro
By John Peck | February 20, 2017
Many of you who know the New Life Fellowship story are aware we used to sometimes say that Elmhurst/Queens is 'the most ethnically-diverse neighborhood on the planet', and the NY Times and the National Geographic shared those points. Our neighborhood of Elmhurst may or may not have more actual 'ethnicities' than all other places. But new data still suggests that our borough, Queens, still has more world-wide 'mother tongues' than anywhere else.
There's a new work out called, "Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas", by Rebecca Solnit and Joshua Jelly-Schapiro, with a neat map by Molly Roy of the Endangered Language Alliance (free plug, guys!), that might be worth your look-see if you want to know more about our clinic's life-setting.
It's a fascinating treatise we're just beginning to delve into. It deals with social issues such as water and power (where it comes from), how to 'walk around the world' in a day by walking the city (with maps), wildlife, some borough history, sanitation issues (including corruption!), and a lot more...but we're focused on the city's languages, because that's what we face as we serve our patients. To date the health center has served patients from 111 different countries of origin.
Let's take you on a sample from A-Z in languages we may serve: Arabic, Bahasa, Batak, Brezhoneg, Cantonese, Chavacano, Croatian, Danish, Espanol, Estonian, Filipino (Tagalog), Greek, Hindi, Ibaloi, Ibanong, Iloko, Japanese, Kapamkanang, Kichwa, Latviesu, Lietvieu, Minangkabau, Nuu Savi, Nepali, Ossetian, Pangasinan, Quechua, Russian, Slovenscinan, Tagalog, Urdu, Vietnamese, Waray-Waray, Xik-Zik, Yao (African or Asian, take your pick!) and finally, Zapoteco.
Take a look at the information on languages, and see the array of those the Lord has put before us to touch through medical care. And please keep in prayer for us. This is just a small slice of the world...at our door...and maybe inside our clinic. And remember that you, too, will one day see the same thing the writer John saw when he wrote his Revelation: "...I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb."
And enjoy this story about Queens languages:
http://www.businessinsider.com/queens-languages-map-2017-2