Storm stories

The "colossal" and "historic" storm turned out to be pretty intense, but it could have been much worse! We got less than an inch of snow, but lots and lots of ice.

Yesterday I managed to skate my way to the street and got on one of the city buses that were still running. It was freezing rain, ice pellets were falling, and it was really windy, which isn't too fun. I about hit the ground several times, but always managed to right myself. Indiana has tons of old trees, and I was a little uncomfortable walking under them as they crackled under the weight of all the ice. A lot of big limbs were down at that point.

So I made it on the bus and got to school, where I discovered that classes had just been canceled! Sometimes I really wish I had an iPhone or something where I could check the Internet when I'm not at my desk in my room. Now the weather had made a turn for the worse. The freezing rain was really coming down, and everyone was slipping all over the place.

I had to wait outside for several buses to pass by before one finally stopped. They were packed with students heading for the hills, or more likely, their dorm rooms. I finally got on a bus and was so proud at how crowded it was. It was a China bus in America--complete with people coughing on you. :) Everyone seemed sort of panicky. It was like catching the last helicopter out of Vietnam or the last lifeboat on the Titanic.

By the time I slid all the way back home, I was exhausted. I cooked a big dinner and was just waiting for the power to go out because of the ice. Whenever we had big ice storms in Kansas, electricity could go out pretty quickly and forever. Thankfully most of the power lines are underground here. Smart thinking, Indianans!

Then today I couldn't go to work at city hall, because the city government was closed due to the weather. For fun, I decided to chisel my car out of the ice, figuring it wasn't going to get warmer any time soon and I would have to de-ice it at some point. It took 50 whole minutes just to get the thick ice off of my windshields. You could hear a chorus of "chink, chink, chink" as Bloomingtonians all over the city were trying to get into their cars.

So classes were canceled at IU until 1 p.m. today. Of course my classes are after 1 p.m. The streets were pretty quiet, since every office and business in town was closed, except our campus. Apparently IU thinks everyone is extremely hearty and likes to risk their lives to get to class. It was a bit treacherous. Thankfully I made it there and back in one piece!

So that's the storm of the century from a southern Indiana perspective. I know a lot of the Midwest, like Kansas, got a foot of snow and blizzard conditions. I'm not sure which I'd prefer--being encased in snow or in ice. Maybe neither. I'll choose a vacation in Florida.

And speaking of balmy Florida, yesterday was Andrea's 22nd birthday! Happy, happy birthday to my favoritest sister!

My Kansas car is on the left and is covered in solid ice. My neighbor's Missouri car is on the right. He had thought to put a tarp on his car before the storm. He was smart. I don't think I give Missourians enough credit.

Making progress on chiseling through the pure ice.

All the ice coming off my car.

150 years old

I think you can have more than one home... Last night I was eating at a little hole-in-the wall Chinese restaurant with my Chinese friends. When I walked in I felt transported back to Nanchang. It wasn't quite the same, especially because there was soap in the bathroom, but it was close. There were only other Chinese people there speaking in Chinese, it was extremely loud and crowded, there wasn't any heat, a little boy did his homework in the corner in front of a Chinese revolutionary drama playing on the TV, and there were roaches on the wall. We just ordered in Chinese whatever we wanted and then shared all the dishes. I felt like I had come home.

Then this morning I woke up and realized that it is Kansas Day! Every good Kansan knows that January 29th is our state's birthday. Although I haven't lived there for several years now, it is undoubtedly also my home, although it is just about as different from China as night and day.

I've always been proud of being a Kansan at the same time I've made fun of it. My home state is celebrating 150 years as a state today! That seems pretty old, but it's actually quite young, especially in the whole history of our country and the world. Here's a reflection on what makes Kansas so special/unique/strange:

-The best, bluest sky in the whole world.
-Crazy storms and tornadoes that come out of nowhere.
-Plentiful sunshine.
-Amazing, wide open spaces.
-Gorgeous prairies.
-Beautiful sunsets.
-Less than 3 million people in the entire state.
-Full of super hard-working, honest people.
-Farmers who feed us.
-An independent, pioneering spirit.
-Time seems to stand still.
-Fields full of sunflowers and wild sunflowers on the side of the road.
-It's the heartland of America.
-Low cost of living.
-Nobody cares about fashion.
-I was born there.
-No matter where I travel, I will forever hear "Wizard of Oz" jokes.

I'm thankful to have had many different homes--from Kansas to Virginia to China, and now Indiana--and today am proudest of being a Kansan. Happy 150th, Kansas!

Winter blues

If anyone were ever a poster-child for SAD (seasonal affective disorder) it would be me. I was born and raised on the wind-swept plains of middle America, but at least there was plentiful sunshine! The past several winters have been difficult, especially in China and Indiana where the sun seems to have fallen from the sky.

I try to stay occupied, exercise at the gym, and see friends as often as possible, but I still feel like I want to go crazy. I don't think I've even laughed in a full week. Okay, maybe more like a day, but that is strange. And I feel like I'm also surrounded by SAD people--at work, in classes, on the street... I singlehandedly feel like I'm offending/upsetting/saddening everyone I talk to or even look at. But then I realize it's probably not because of me, and I should try to encourage them.

It's just been a weird couple of weeks. The past many days have been filled with snow, some more snow, classes I'm not too enthusiastic about, difficult conversations with people, the realization that I'm a grown-up, and just not a whole lot of joy, to be honest.

I'm just thankful that the Father's love isn't dependent on the seasons or circumstances. Otherwise I would certainly be up a creek without a paddle. (I at first wrote, "up a paddle without a creek.") Hmmm... I should have taught my Chinese students that idiom. How would you explain it?

Encouraging letter

Happy 24.5th birthday to me! Crazy to think that soon I'll be a quarter century old!

I've been resting at home a lot, and was really thankful that we actually had MLK Day off. That is the only other national holiday besides Christmas and Thanksgiving that IU gives us. We don't even get Labor Day off...

Another great book I've been reading lately (textbooks don't count) is "Lies that Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free." Thanks, baby sister Andrea for mailing it to me! I've already been mulling and praying over a lot of different things.

Yesterday was sunny for the first time in about 100 years, and the snow was beginning to melt enough that I could go for a fairly decent walk without falling into a pile of snow. When I headed home I remembered to check my mailbox. There was a lone letter in there with stamps plastered all over it. It looked like it had literally traveled all the way around the world. It was from my dearest Chinese friend and sister, Reborn. It only took the letter 6 weeks to get to me! Good job, China!

If you ever received a letter from me while I was in China, you'll remember that Chinese envelopes and glue are so horrible. It took me about 10 minutes to open it without shredding everything to pieces. Her letter was entombed in the envelope. Inside Reborn had written in her signature blue pen and cute handwriting. She wrote such a heartfelt, and encouraging letter on the very thin Blue Sky University paper that looks like it will disintegrate in your hands. She also tucked several pictures inside. I will treasure them forever, of course.

As I was sitting there reading and re-reading her letter, I was again reminded of the Father's everlasting, wonderful love. I have had many friends, but Reborn was certainly one of my closest. We are definitely kindred spirits. God created such a strong, meaningful friendship between two girls of vastly different cultures and backgrounds. She became an even dearer sister when she became a believer, and she helped my faith grow so much by her encouragement, honesty, and openness. Somehow we could understand each other really well.

I miss her so much, but hopefully with His Spirit, I can continue to build strong, meaningful relationships with those around me here in America. Someday I hope to return to China, but for now He has placed me here.

I thought I could share a few sweet and encouraging words she wrote:

She talked about the scarf my mom had made for Reborn's grandma: "My grandma take the scarf which our baby American mom makde for her everyday and she said 'This is made from American woman. She treat so well to me.' She always said that, and my grandma, and my mom are so thankful for our baby American mom. Thank her! Yes, thank for our baby American mom."

In our letters or emails we share encouraging verses from the Word. We have also talked about waiting on Him to provide us with husbands and not being anxious or getting too far ahead of the Father. She said, "Here is Word I wanna share with you! We need it! From Song of Songs chapter 2:7: 'Do not arouse or awaken love until is so desires.' So let's look forward to that together."

On the back of a picture from a lake she wrote: "Don't you think the scene is really beautiful? I like the boat so much! I wanna sit in the boat and imagine I'm the fair maiden in Qing dynasty." I guess that's similar to wanting to be a Disney princess in America or something.

And as closing words of wisdom and her perpetual concern that I will never get a boyfriend because I am too shy or something, she advised me, "Have more words or communicate with the boy who you like!"

So there you are. Please continue to think of her that she would stand firm and steadfast in Him!

Baby Reborn's baby letter.

Saturday musings

Did you know that people get sick in America too? I started to think I was immune and had created super resistance after getting ill in China just about every other day. I can't remember the last time I was sick in America. But apparently standing out in blizzards and riding crowded buses with coughing people everywhere can also get you sick in America. I'm glad it's the weekend though, so I don't mind my fever and sore throat as much. I do miss my Chinese students texting me to tell me to "drink more hot water and wear more cloth-es." Now I don't know what to do!

So I have survived my first week back at classes and I'm officially a second semester grad student, which sounds more impressive than a first semester one. Surely now I'm filled with so much more knowledge and overall impressiveness, right? Of course not. I'm just reminded each day of how little I do know.

And after a first semester of only quantitative and "numbers" classes, I have to learn again how to use large vocabulary words and write 20 page term papers. I haven't used a calculator once this past week. I thought I would be thrilled about that, but classmates are much more opinionated and argumentative when the topic isn't about regression analysis or marginal cost pricing. Now I have classes, like law, where we discuss what on earth "civic republicanism" is. I still don't know. I think I'm just more intrigued at how my old classmates have transformed into political scientists and public managers. Am I the only person who hasn't worked in the White House or State Department?

Okay, I'm really not complaining, but I feel like I'm on a slippery slope. I think going to the super crowded grocery store with thousands of undergrads on a Saturday morning when you're sick can do that to you...

So here's some positive things that happened this past week:
-I got to meet more new people in my new classes.
-I hung out with my Chinese friend, Grace, and we studied Chinese and English.
-My Kenyan friend came to the IV Grad Faculty Ministry Bible Study with me this week.
-I have been spending a lot more quality time in His Word.
-Last night I hung out with some of my friends and other like-minded believers, when we talked for hours about how we can better love and serve the huge international community here in Bloomington.
-I made some really good chocolate chip muffins and ate them.

School daze

I'm in a cloudy daze. At 5 a.m. this morning after getting approximately 2.6 hours of sleep, Andrea and I hopped into my car to take her 60 miles away to the Indianapolis airport for her flight back to Orlando.

Andrea spent a good portion of last night talking with some nice folks in India on the phone with US Airways and Expedia. She has the most incredible patience. Her flights for this afternoon were canceled because of the impending snowstorm of the century blanketing the South. After waiting for about 45 minutes to speak to a guy with US Airways who had canceled her flights, she was informed that he couldn't help, because her flights had been booked through Expedia. Thus ensued another 45 minutes waiting, plus another 45 minutes talking to an Expedia guy in India, who probably shared the same office with the US Airways guy. Maybe it was even the same person.

They honestly had no clue what they were doing, so Andrea kindly prompted them along. Nobody could rebook her flights for one reason or another, and if they did rebook her flight that went through Charlotte for Tuesday, her flight from Indiana would probably be canceled because of an impending snowstorm tomorrow here. So I found Andrea a cheap non-stop flight straight to Orlando and past all the crummy weather for the wee hours of this morning. I booked it for her while Andrea was convincing the guy to give her a refund. The flight we booked was $97. Andrea got a refund for her canceled flights for $130. So she ended up saving money through this whole ordeal and has finally arrived safely back in Florida.

It's been enjoyable hanging out with Andrea for the past few days and weeks. I always learn so much from her, especially about patience, endurance, and the faithfulness of God. Everything she does seems to teach me something. When we were driving back to Indiana from Kansas a few days ago, we were driving on one- lane, deserted back roads late at night in a raging snowstorm. Civilization was not to be found. While I was nearly shaking with thoughts of falling off into a ditch, or sliding off a mountain of some sort, Andrea calmly, skillfully, and prayerfully drove us to Bloomington. I've been in much more precarious situations, but I panicked at the thought that I had led my dear sister into some terrible end in remote, backwoods Indiana.

So I have parted with my dear sister and started school all in one day on one ounce of sleep. I was also supposed to go to work for 4 hours, but I wouldn't have survived. My classes in general put me in a daze. They always turn out fine, but I am always overwhelmed at first, especially with the daunting amount of group projects facing me this semester on topics that I hardly know anything about. But that's why I'm in school, right?

Happy mid-January! Hope you are warm and blessed wherever you are.

Resolutions

Happy 2011, dear friends!

Do you want to read a book that will change your life? This is my second time reading "Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream," by David Platt. He was the "youngest megachurch pastor in history" when he realized much of American Christianity has manipulated the Gospel in order to fit our cultural preferences. I'm sure I mentioned it this summer, but really, truly you should read it!

Hanging around my Chinese friends and my mom and sister who have such strong faith, I realized that I'm already slipping into apathy and a lukewarm walk with Him. I don't want to be that way. I want to be radical and living my life in complete devotion to Christ.

Here are some interesting sneak peeks from the book, which has helped me re-think my faith, especially as I continue to live in America:

"We were settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves."

"We are afraid that if we stop and really look at God in his Word, we might discover that he evokes greater awe and demands deeper worship than we are ready to give him."

"The goal of the American dream is to make much of us, the goal of the Gospel is to make much of God."

"Jesus commands us to go. He has created each of us to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth, and I propose that anything less than radical devotion to this purpose is unbiblical Christianity."

"We will multiply the Gospel only when we allow others to get close enough to us to see the life of Christ in action."

"Jesus beckons each of us to plainly, humbly, and quietly focus our lives on people."

I could go on and on... But you'll just have to read it for yourself. :) So in this New Year, I only have one resolution. I was thinking about how I would resolve to exercise more, study Chinese more, love more, etc. etc. But everything will fall into place if I focus on God and pray that the desires of His heart will be the desires of my heart. What are your New Year's resolutions?