Recently I was invited to lunch at the home of a friend in a fairly rural area. The home sits on a road outside of the nearest town by a couple of miles and stands in the midst of a "jungle" in the mountains. The people of El Salvador have such a heightened sense of hospitality that I just had to share this with you.
While visiting, I made an observation about the coconuts growing nearby. The next thing I knew, one of the people there was climbing the tree to cut down the coconuts so that I cold have a drink of coconut milk. He then proceeded to cut open enough of them with his trusty machete (the all purpose tool here) to send me home with a gallon of coconut juice.
But it didn't end there. While being served roasted peppers (mmm...delicious) I was asked if I would like a slice of lime with it. This is very common here and is served with most meals so I thought little of it. I responded politely and asked for a slice. He asked his wife for limons (Spanish for lime) and was told they were all out. Without missing a step or saying another word he simply grabbed his machete and headed out into the jungle. About 15 minutes later he comes back with a bag of limons.
The lessons?
#1. Be careful what you ask for here...you will probably get it. I can only imagine what would have happened if I had said I liked milk. Oh, wait. I did see a goat nearby!
#2. These people take hospitality to a whole new level. They take the words of I Peter 4:9 seriously: "Show hospitality to one another without grumbling."
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