Homeward Bound

(Saying goodbye to the "Watermelon Lady")
(Farewell lunch with some of our Chinese friends)

It is mid-afternoon on Wednesday, and we have just said farewell to some of our closest Chinese friends. Half of my team had to say good-bye to them probably for good. I'm glad I just had to say "see you again!" I'm only leaving for 2 months, and then I'll return to this now very familiar place that has slowly been turning into my home.

We have just been packing, cleaning, and saying good-bye to friends and neighbors on the back street (like the noodle people and watermelon lady). The majority of my students left a long time ago, so I don't have to think about finding them and saying good-bye. Currently I'm packing a suitcase to take home. The rest of my stuff will be migrating downstairs to the 4th floor, where I'll live next school year.

We also have to make this apartment look spotless for next year's teachers. Chinese apartments get dirtier than most, at a much faster pace. I scrubbed and scrubbed the kitchen, for example, and the warped cupboards and chipped floors can't really ever look decent no matter what I do. The walls around the propane stove are also permanently blackened. And I discovered that there is wood rotting under our kitchen sink, bringing lots of nice bugs with it.

Okay, I should get back to cleaning and packing! I'm excited to be headed back to the U.S. for at least a few weeks. And I'm glad I don't have to say good-bye to this school and city forever, because I'll be back!

This is probably my last blog for a while. Tomorrow we actually get to fly to Beijing (taking an airplane, instead of the train, is a rare opportunity in China). I joke that we are flying on China Duct-Tape Airlines. The few times I've been on an airplane in China, I was pretty sure the plane was held together by tape or staples. Then we fly to LA on the 30th on China Scotch-Tape Airlines (actually China Eastern, but close enough). :) I'll arrive in Kansas on the 2nd. Please think of us, as we have a lot of meetings and traveling ahead of us for the next week.

This is all for now, folks! Thanks for tuning in for so many months! You have been incredibly faithful in your encouragement and support.

The swat heard around the world

I know I just wrote a blog post yesterday, but I'm back for another fun filled entry!

Earlier I was reading my friend Ashley's blog about how Obama swatted a fly on television. PETA apparently had problems with his actions. That reminded me of how I even heard about this really un-newsworthy event all the way in China. (I didn't hear about PETA's reaction--nobody cares about PETA in China--but I got to hear how the American president so heroically slayed that fly). In case you didn't know, people are absolutely in love with Obama here. They have no clue what he actually does as president or what he stands for, but they think he's very polished and eloquent. That's all that matters for a leader, they believe.

Okay, I could go on, but I probably shouldn't. I'll talk about something else. How about the neighbors who are drilling holes in the concrete walls and hammering things at 10:31 p.m.? Okay, I won't even talk about that. What should I talk about then?

This morning Jodi and Shannon and I jumped on the bus to go downtown. It was extremely hot, hazy, humid, and polluted. But it still was a blessed time. We had to go pick up some t-shirts Jodi had designed for us. The place to pick them up was down the city's shopping district, which is filled with swanky shops, rich people, and plenty of beggars.

Some of the poverty you see in China is unbelievable most of the time. There are human beings literally on the doorstep of death, writhing at the passerby's feet. For the most part, people just walk by these people without so much as a backwards glance. I have seen paralyzed people, elderly people, little children, and severely burned people begging, all while people go about their clothes and electronics shopping.

So whenever we go downtown, we make sure to carry extra change, because you're bound to have plenty of people to give it to. Jodi and Shannon (who are roommates) had been collecting their loose change this past year in a Ziploc bag. While we were walking, they found one person to bless with this gift. And they found that man in the midst of shoppers ignoring his presence.

He was an old man shuffling aimlessly around in a tattered shirt and raggedy pants. He had a bit of wiry, gray hair. His face was leathery from the years of harsh weather, and his eyes were big and sad looking. In his hand he held onto a single white little baggy, which probably contained all his worldly possessions.

Jodi quietly walked up to the man and gently placed the bag of money in his hands. He was stunned, and couldn't say anything. It seemed that he gave a little laugh of incredulity. He had that look of, "Is this for real?" Jodi just smiled her big, gracious smile, and the man's eyes filled with tears. We walked away, and he remained there--rooted to the spot. No one probably ever noticed him or ever gave him more than 2 mao (about 3 cents).

Despite the surrounding chaos and extreme heat, I only could think of that man and the look on his face. That's why the Son came. He came for the poorest and weakest. He came for the outcast, downtrodden, and downcast. He notices people that others do not.

I was just thankful for being able to witness that moment. For some reason it was very powerful for me. We've been able to bless people in a lot of different ways since we've been here, but watching Jodi and Shannon and the man seemed incredibly significant.

We can't help everyone. The needs are endless, especially here. It can be extremely overwhelming, even paralyzing, to see some of the crushing poverty and injustice that surrounds us every day. But He knows we can't help every single person. We are still limited in a lot of ways. But He does call us to help the people He puts in our path, even if it is just serving one person in a seemingly small way.

Thanks to Him for getting me out of my self-centered mode today!

In other news, I went to eat dinner with Jodi and some of our Chinese friends. We ate at a little Korean restaurant, which basically was a dirt floor with tin scraps for a roof. Three shirtless men cooked the food right in the room with us. We had to maneuver around dogs and children going to the bathroom in the middle of the street to get there. But the food and company was grand.

We've been doing other little activities, but I think I've thrown enough words at you for now. Enjoy your weekend!

Roads paved with gold

(On the fairly crowded city bus this afternoon. And is it just me, or is China filled predominately with males?).
(The diligent road pavers).
(Eating at "Happy Harry's" with my students).

It is about 5:30 in the early evening as I write this. The temperature is 92 degrees. The heat index is 109 degrees. I feel like I am back in Kansas, except there's really no escape from the heat.

I finally got in touch with some students. I hopped on the city bus at 11:20 and arrived at new campus 20 minutes later. They are repaving the huge road in front of the school. This is an amazing thing in this city. The road, which was literally littered with boulders and collapsed concrete, is now on its way to becoming a real road. But that means they were pouring asphalt in 110 degree heat. So when I got to cross the street, I had to leap over tons of gooey tar.

This occasion reminded me of a few weeks ago when some students asked me only half-jokingly, "Are the roads really paved with gold in America?" I was thinking, "Wow, isn't that what immigrants to America thought 100 years ago? And some people still think it." I assured them, "No, they aren't paved with gold." But they are usually fairly smooth, and paved with asphalt which can't be said for a lot of roads in China...

Then I also was reminded of how I was thinking many Americans are considered "poor," if they don't have a car. Most "poor" people in America could easily be considered middle class or almost upper class in China. Middle class Americans would be considered extremely rich in China. In China you are rich if you have a car, a 3 bedroom apartment, and an air-conditioner; you are middle-class if you have a refrigerator and a motorized bicycle; you are poor if don't have enough food to eat.

It always puts life in perspective when I sometimes ponder things like that...

Anyway, I found my dear students near the back gate. We wandered and wandered until they decided on a restaurant for lunch--"Happy Harry's." I asked who Harry was, knowing that no Chinese person had that name. They said it was perhaps the man behind the counter who cooked our food. He was bent over in half from age, he didn't have a shirt on, and a little cigarette drooped from his mouth. He didn't seem to fit the description of Happy Harry. He was more like Haggard Hu.

The tables were the most creative I've seen in China. The seats were swings hanging from the ceiling. When I sat down I was pretty sure the ropes would snap. I doubt those swings have had any Americans sit on them. I weigh more than most Chinese girls and boys. And the students were enthralled with the swings. They asked, "isn't this the most romantic restaurant?" I looked around at the buzzing flies, Haggard Hu, and the sweat dripping down everybody's eager faces. "Um, I don't know if 'romantic' is the right word for it..."

I had some fried rice with some limp vegetables strewn on top. Three of the girls only ate "ice-cream" for lunch. They insisted they were too hot for anything else. So they only ate some jelly-looking "ice-cream," with red beans and cherries and other things mixed in.

Anyway, we had a very pleasant lunch. I have missed those students these past couple of weeks. After lunch we walked back across campus in search of air-conditioning. There is no air-conditioning in any of the buildings or dormitories, except for the China Post on campus. So we all piled into the China Post, probably making a nuisance of ourselves, but greatly enjoying the cool air. All my students spoke longingly of their hometowns, which they promised had much pleasanter weather.

We reluctantly left after a while. The students headed back to their dorms to sleep. There wasn't anything else they could do. The total lack of air conditioning and heating is one reason I think productivity is sometimes rather low in this "furnace city." In the extremely hot months (June-October), all people can do is sleep or sit motionlessly or eat a watermelon. In the extremely cold months (December-March), all people can do is wrap up in a million layers of clothes, and again, sleep or sit motionlessly, with eyes glazed over.

Only the sturdy people (which doesn't include me or most of my students), are doing something. For example, from our kitchen window I can see construction workers building another rickety, multiple story apartment building in the searing heat. I can also look down out my window right now and see a dozen firefighters/soldiers, clad only in olive green shorts, running several miles... The only other active people are the pilots who have been flying fighter jets across the city for several days. I don't look at the planes; I look at the people's faces on the ground. Everyone gazes up in wonder and amazement at this sight. I think they are probably also filled with pride--their country is modernizing, and catching up with the West. They probably never anticipated the day that their country would have its own, albeit Russian-made, fighter jets.

The visions of America's roads paved with gold are gradually being replaced by a rapidly modernizing and developing China. And I'm here to witness it all. I'm pretty fortunate. :)

A foreigner and nomad

Just about one week until we're headed on the long, meandering journey home! Next Thursday we go to Beijing. Then we eventually fly to LA via Shanghai. Then I eventually fly to Kansas City, and then drive to Topeka. It's such a long journey, that I won't really think about home until I actually see it.

And where is my home? For a long while now, I've had this feeling that I don't really belong anywhere. I lived in southern Virginia for four years, making occasional visits back to Kansas. Then I've been living in China for nearly 10 months, and will live here for many more months. For most of my life I felt like a foreigner in Kansas, then Virginia, and now China. So where is "home?" If home is where the heart is, then I'd say my home's not anywhere on this planet.

I was reminded of this when I was reading about the "hall of faith" in Hebrews. "...They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland..." 11:13-16.

There are a lot of other revealing, relevant things I've been reading in the Word in my vast amount of free time lately, but that's all I'll share for now.

In other news, the local family here continues to grow through our team and our Chinese friends. Yesterday two students completed studies about Him. One student accepted, while one did not. Last week another student also joined the family. There's been a lot of celebration here and in our heavenly home, I'm sure!

Tomorrow some of my teammates and Chinese friends are taking the train to Zhejiang province to visit a famous mountain. I was going to go, but I have to hibernate here some more, because I caught a nasty cold, despite washing my hands, etc. I think a lot of it has to do with China's lack of hygiene practices, which I don't have any control over. It's pretty much impossible to not get sick every other day.

I want to rant about China's "hygiene," which I feel like getting all riled up about once a month, but it won't do any good. I can't change the habits of 1.3 billion people, and I just have to let it go... Easier said than done.

Have a happy, super hygienic day in America! See you soon.

Chinese good-byes

The majority of my students have disappeared for the summer, without so much as a "good-bye." I only know they have left when they send me a text message after they've already arrived in their hometown.

But I was the saddest yesterday when I called my special student and friend after she didn't come to our study. When I got in touch with her, she was at the train station on her way home to Xinjiang! She wasn't supposed to leave for another couple of weeks, but she abruptly decided she had to go home that very day.

The moral of the story is that Chinese people really don't say "good-bye" like how I'm accustomed to. They just quietly disappear, and don't want to make a big deal out of their departure.

I'm just glad I got to hang out with her so much recently, and I'm hoping that she'll connect with a good fellowship back on the other side of China. At least I'll get to see her again soon in just a couple of months!

In other news, one of Shannon's students has joined the family! And one of my guy students, who has been studying with Jonathan, will also have to make a decision one way or another this Tuesday. Please be thinking of all of them! :)

And now that I have too much time on my hands, I've been thinking about the future... Not too much, mind you, since any plans you make in China will automatically be obliterated, but I still have a lot of hopes and dreams. I'm still very excited about being here next year, but I really cannot see myself teaching English for a long time. So perhaps grad school will be back in the picture soon. We'll see...

And, welcome back to one of my most faithful blog readers, my baby sister, Andrea! (She was serving in North Africa for a few weeks, and now she has safely returned to America. After this experience, her life has also been ruined for the ordinary). :)

"Today rest"

(A recent picture of my team and I)

A few days ago I was buying fruit at the usual vendor outside the front gate. I am able to understand a lot more lately of what people are saying. The difficult part is coming up with an adequate response. The woman smiled expectantly at me, and declared "Jintian xiuxi!" (Word for word , this translates into "today rest.") Was this a greeting? Was this a command? Later I asked one of my friends what I was supposed to say. She said that it was indeed just a friendly greeting and I didn't really need to say anything in reply.

So I'm feeling more at home, and I can navigate the culture quite a bit better than when we first arrived last fall. I'm able to read a lot more Chinese characters, and can understand a lot more when people are speaking. Sometimes the Nanchang dialect is frustrating, though. I've been learning "standard" Mandarin, and by golly, why can't they speak that on the streets? It would make life easier. :)

And while I'm feeling more at home here, it's obvious that many people in this city can't believe that I actually live here. I'm getting a lot better at ignoring the extremely obvious stares, gaping mouths, or the constant shouts of "HELLLOOOOO!!" or "WHAT IS YOUR NAME?!" But, every once and a while, I realize that I can't every truly be at home, just because I'm not Chinese.

Yesterday, I was happily walking along a street by campus when a man, who looked like he was from the countryside, stopped dead in his tracks when he saw me coming about a mile away. This guy's jaw literally dropped to the gravelly ground, and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. He didn't make the slightest movement after that. He was frozen to the spot, and he didn't move until I was inside the gate.

I wanted to laugh, considering what he was probably thinking. He was probably visiting a relative in this neighborhood, and then he spotted the first foreigner in his life--a girl who had white skin and blue eyes and big feet. And she was much taller than all the other people on the street. What a sight! He had heard that foreigners were very strange, and here was proof! And it looked like she actually lived here and knew what she was doing! What a story to tell the wife and village when he got home!

In other news, there's still not a whole lot happening. We were supposed to go visit a random, nearby mountain this weekend, but it's been canceled for unknown reasons. I'm just studying Chinese and hanging out, while trying not to think too much about going home!!

Happenings of Late

(Eating with some people from fellowship at "Le Bistro"--probably the quietest and cleanest place in Nanchang)

(Joelle, Shannon, and I hanging out under Jodi's mosquito net. You can't escape from all the mosquitoes!!)

Countdown: 16 days until Beijing; 21 days until America; 23 days until Kansas!

After many months I have finally counted the days until I'm on the way to seeing my family and friends again on the other side of the world. Every once and a while throughout the day, I realize that I'm homesick. I didn't allow myself to be homesick any other time in the past many months, because that would have made things more difficult. But now perhaps it's okay, although I have to still be focused on what's happening here.

However, there's not a whole lot happening. There's just continual rain and heat and bugs--plenty of bugs. I just hang out with my special student most days. Yesterday we had another study together and I was able to give her some money from our fellowship in the city to help her get home to Xinjiang, which is a three day train trip. She can only afford the standing ticket, which means she must stand for three days straight (This is pretty common, but painful way to travel in China). So this money will at least help her get a seat or even a bed for some of the way.

She was pretty overwhelmed by the gift and started crying. I reminded her that family members help each other out when they're in need. She's a sister we wanted to help.

Anyway, most days we either try to cook some food in our apartments, or we eat at the tiny restaurants surrounding the school. Most meals are about 7 kuai ($1). Lately we've eaten a couple of ritzier meals for about 40 kuai ($6). We try to live like the locals, but the past couple of days we've gone to some really nice restaurants that have just about given me culture shock.

On Sunday after fellowship, we had a farewell lunch at a swanky place called "Le Bistro," which is the only Western restaurant in a city of 5 million people. Only rich Chinese go there. The menu was small according to American standards, but it seemed like there were endless choices. We all sat and drooled and deliberated for a long time. I finally ended up with a Caesar salad and piece of chocolate cake. Is it okay to cry about food? I hadn't eaten a salad in a restaurant, or tasted a real chocolate cake in almost 10 months. I about fainted, it was so good.

Then for dinner on Monday night, our team took one of the teachers from Japan to eat at a nice Japanese restaurant. I ate Japanese fried rice and miso soup. My teammates got sushi or other kinds of Japanese food. It was crazy being in a place that actually had air conditioning, and not having to sit on a little peg stool to eat!

Okay, that's all I know for now. I know I need to keep moving and thinking about right here and right now, although it's hard not to get excited about next month!