There is a loud buzz in the dining area where Chinese seamen surround Danie. A rumour, clearly per ship telegraph, spread and according to the rumour Danie, a man with many connections, is on board. He is peppered with many questions from a ten-deep crowd and every man wants to know something. It is a little chaotic, especially because of the small problem that impedes the flow of communication... language.

It is a gross understatement to say the English skills on board are limited. Danie’s Chinese skills are just as limited. He knows about five words in Chinese, covering mostly ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’. It quickly transpires that the conversation is going nowhere, but they have no wish to give up. The solution is to play a little charades and Pictionary. The Chinese men talk to each other and use sign language. Two of them appear with a pencil and a little notebook. The result is definitely not in the league of Van Gogh, but the drawings do help with understanding. 

From the chatter and stick men on the dirty page, Danie finally understands that the crowd is under the impression that he sells diamonds. It is definitely a first for him. He explains and signs back to them, trying to make it clear that they have the wrong end of the stick. At last they understand that they are barking up the wrong tree and the realisation that Danie’s backpack does not contain sparkling stones clearly disappoints. The atmosphere changes visibly. The excitement has been lost. The only noises that remain are the sounds of chopsticks scraping the porcelain bowls as they finish their lunch. 

 But, Danie’s backpack does contain something important. In the silence after the stormy discussion, he unpacks the Chinese Bibles and places them one by one on a table. It is a silent invitation to something larger than normal life. As the men try to steal a view of his ‘product’ he points at the cross on his jacket badge while indicating ‘no cost, for free’.  Just like that a new door opens...  

As eager hands grab the Bibles one by one from the table, they start a new conversation - without words. It builds a bridge, not only between cultures and languages, but also between man’s heart and God’s heart. Rather than with diamonds that they so desperately want, they leave with a message of mercy, love and hope.

Your donation of to the CSO makes stories like these possible - every day. It takes the Word of God to men working at sea and these men come from all over the world. For that we thank you from our hearts, on behalf of each person touched by our work and service.

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