In Hindsight

I had really been feeling smug and proudish regarding my resolution to blog weekly. Yet in my haughtiness it appears I overlooked an important fact...the blog is only as good as the information given. As I review November I realize that while I quipped eloquently on numerous occasions (as I often do), I neglected to fill you in on the actual going-ons around Shiyan at that time. So, as I hear hindsight is 20/20...better late than never?

First Finer Things Club finished our second book, Jesus for President. The girls and I had some fascinating discussions around the ideas presented, and were convicted by the ideas of community, love and separation from the world's system. There were some low points too, but all in all, by the end of each night we generally felt just as frustrated, just as inspired, and just as assured that our writing abilities could easily lead to publishing according to certain standards. We coupled FTC with a project Angelyn and I "cooked" up, (pun absolutely intended) New Soup November. Thanks to a gift from the mother, we dined on everything from pumpkin bisque to mexican-tortilla soup. A tradition that was so delicious, it couldn't end according to the calendar! FTC has just started The Brothers Karamazov, despite my insistence that two Dostoevsky novels in one year was too much for any person we dove in and I am actually really loving it. Going in with an understanding of the insanity of the Russian naming system, and Fyodor's classic wit, makes a vast difference.

November brought the 3rd World International Wushu Championship...and yes...we tried to explain that you should probably not name anything Third World if you want people to show up but they just wouldn't listen. Well, foreigners came anyway and as a lot of our students were volunteers, October found them in a state of panic, reading up on Liberia or attempting to learn Hungarian in a week. We just sat back and gave pointers on foreigner hospitality and waited for our "honored guest" invites that we had all been promised. Well, they never came, but thanks to the giving nature of Halley (a sister), Megan and I were able to attend one of the last competition. We oohed and aahed at the foreigners, but were generally bored by the whole thing...you can really only watch so many people gather their Chi before you get bored. It did have a slam-bang finish though, when they brought out children with swords and big sticks, fighting two against one - that was the bloodshed we were looking for! Extremely dramatic death scenes and all the kicks-to-the-chest a Kung Fu fight should have.

There was an election...surely you heard about it. Barry had a student who memorized Barack Obama's entire victory speech, and I got to hear him perform it at a speech competition yesterday - plagiarism or not, that little guy really inspired me! (He won too - in China, cheating is nothing compared to passion and a Y chromosome)

The women in the family got some much needed R & R and spiritual rejuvenation in Xiangfan for a Ladies Retreat. Carie and Brittany pulled the whole thing together themselves, and we were really blessed to have a more mature Chinese sister from Wuhan come to lead the girls. She was incredible, and they were thrilled to have the chance to learn from her. So the foreigners and Chinese were able to split and we were really encouraged with a study on prayer, and some much needed lab. HE is really working through the people in Xiangfan, two of their girls decided to follow HIM after the weekend. AMEN

Despite Brian's insistance, some people understand that every day truly is my birthday. After weeks of keeping me in suspense, Trent surprised me with a weekend birthday trip to see a musical! (Yeah, he's really good) We hopped on a train Friday night to catch the Saturday evening showing of Aida, and it was phenomenal. As my roommates from college know, I am a little crazy for musicals...one prime example being that I had the Aida soundtrack downloaded and memorized 12 hours after I found out what we were doing...so it was the perfect gift. We were able to spend the weekend at Andrew and Jamie Hill's, two foreigners who lived in Shiyan last year and are now working in Beijing. On Sunday morning we got to meet with their family, and I was really encouraged by the opportunity to see what a mature, flourishing Chinese family really looks like. In the afternoon we picked up a Toffee Nut Latte and spent hours walking around the 798, the modern art district of Beijing. I had been to the city 3 times, and I had never loved it so much! I recommend this part of town for anyone who goes to Beijing, I will definitely be back myself. The city was going to tear down the dilapidated warehouse district, but instead gave it to the art community and its completely free to visit. They gutted them all and now its city blocks filled with galleries of painting, sculpture and photography that really pushes the boundaries of what we believe is "kosher" in China. Theatre, Coffee, Art, Asians...it was like for one weekend I was home in Seattle and my soul was replenished.

Which brings us to Thanksgiving 1, and yes, there is a part two. We had a small, foreigners only, Thanksgiving this year because the responsibility of so few of us cooking for 60 Chinese people was too overwhelming. The morning held the annual Shiyan football game and this year I got to be on the winning team... which was shocking, since I was wearing a Tech shirt...and also had nothing to do with the unfair team number advantage. We played at a the middle school's field, which literally sits on top of a mountain and we had an incredible view of the city. Trent and John deep fried a turkey, because if you can't dump a bird in a vat of oil in China, where can you? We had way too many desserts and of course everything was fantastic. After gathering the energy to move again, we had a friendly Taboo - battle of the sexes, and my winning streak continued. Truly, its not fair for anyone to stand up against the mind-meld of Jessica and Angelyn. We ended the evening with some Office, and began the Christmas season at promptly 10:00 pm with a viewing of Meet Me In St. Louis.

Thanksgiving 2 is a tradition that Angelyn and I began last year, which was to go to Wuhan on for their big foreigner Thanksgiving that they hold on Saturday. Two Thanksgiving, two days of intoxicating foreign food, two chances to be with people we love - its just too good to pass up. So we made the trip to Wuhan, and convinced some of our Xiangfan friends to come with us. Though this year didn't include a trip to Tom's World...we were able to spend some much needed quality time with our friends and meet some of the other teachers from around China. Being a returning teacher definitely left a different impression on me this year, meeting newbies, giving advice, and reminiscing about faces that we "Old China Hands" were missing.

Wow...I'm shamed by my rambling, but mostly just overwhelmed with how blessed and full my life is here. When I was preparing to move to China, and even this summer as I visited the states, people were constantly commenting on the selflessness of following the Father to a foreign land. But if you follow my life here at all, or if you could see the day to day interactions I get to have with some of the most beautiful people I have ever met, you would know how far from selfless it leaves me. My life has exploded since the day I set foot in China, I have never been happier, more fulfilled, or challenged. As my dear sister Harmony says, "HE is so GREAT".

Photos from November Days - Click HERE
Photos from Beijing Trip - Click HERE