Taiwanese Thanksgiving

This week I was a little bit apprehensive about celebrating my first holiday away from home.  I wondered how anything would be the same - no family - strange food - and we don't even have real oven!  How on earth were we supposed to cook everything?  We started baking on Wednesday, and we used four separate toaster ovens that were on rotation.  The pies and stuffing and cranberry sauce were all finished around 1:00 am.  The next day, our two turkeys (we were thankful for Costco this year :) were taken to the school and baked in the commercial ovens.  Everything else was made at our three apartments.  By 6:00, all the cooking was done, and we headed over to dinner.  We had over our all of our close Taiwanese friends, and we got to share a little bit of how American celebrate a traditional Thanksgiving.  Out of all the things that I am thankful for this year, I think it is that God has given us a sort of family over here - with co-workers, roomates, and new friends, and I am so grateful that we were able to be together on a day when everyone is aware of how much goodness we have been given.  

"The Days Are Just Packed..."

Friday night kicked off a full weekend with almost every spare minute filled with opportunities.  Two of our Taiwanese friends came over (Phoebe and Kitty) and we worked on a puzzle that we had bought at the night market last week.  When we got really hungry...we biked into the Chaojhou night market for dinner.  On the menu: Japanese cabbage and egg cakes.  It wouldn't have been too bad except for the gross mayonnaise they use over here for icing.  Saturday we left home around 11:00 to go into Pingtung and watch our school compete in a sports day.  After our school won the relay, Kitty picked us up and we went to the Taiwan sugarcane factory.  We had the best pineapple ice cream ever!  On Sunday, we went into Kaohsiung with two teachers that were visiting us for the weekend and went to church with Florence and Jennifer, who are teaching assistants from summer camps.  We were fortunate enough to have someone translate the service for us, and afterwards, they wouldn't let us leave without eating their traditional Taiwanese potluck with them.  

As a result of all the business that has bombarded us lately, I managed to develop a small amount of sympathy (or tolerance) for the people who have ever complained to me about pulled muscles.  I used to think... "What a baby, it can't be that bad...just toughen up!"  It was a new experience for me to suffer any serious physical malady usually only incurred by brunt manual labour, but now, I have three smarting muscles in my back just asking for people to feel sorry for them.  But I have tried to learn from this experience...from now on, if anyone comes to me with a pulled muscle, I will make it an earnest endeavour to give them the compassion they are looking for :D

How To Express...

If you have been having doubts concerning your ability to communicate with others, my advice is that you travel to a foreign country, where they not only don't understand what you are trying to say, but they don't understand what you are saying to begin with.

This past Tuesday, one of my co-teachers and I were driven to an elementary school where we were going to be teaching for the afternoon.  Our driver came into the school to pick us up, and ironically, on the day that our teaching aid was not going with us, the driver did not speak English.  We remembered how to ask "What is your name?", but that was about it, and after about fifteen minutes of driving silently through the country, "Where are we going?!" was a question we wished we knew how to ask - normally, our schools are less than five minutes away.  Finally we arrived, and taught three classes each of our youngest grades yet.  Usually we teach the fifth and sixth graders, but this time, it was 1-3 graders...they were so adorable!  When it was time to go home, we told the driver that we needed to go back to our train station...however, 'train' was the only part of what we said that he understood.  We found ourselves in the little town's own train station, and it was up to the two of our combined three months worth of Chinese abilities to get home.  We looked at each other and grinned - if anything, this would definitely be an adventure.  We remembered how to buy the tickets, but we really needed to figure out when our train actually left.  Between the station master and the reader board, we finally understood that our train left in about forty minutes, so we set out to explore the town.  We decided that snacks were a positive thing and both of us picked up smoothies (ordering in Chinese) and had a conversation with one of the locals, who spoke quite a bit of English.  Many conversations here involve piecing together of Chinese and English (which is the next common language after Chinese).  It makes for quite interesting and animated discussions at times.

I think that every day here, I learn a little bit more of how little sometimes you really need language to communicate (at least - in the most minor of dramatic circumstances), whether it's by me trying to say something, or someone else trying to speak to me....my little students demonstrated this to me in class one day when I couldn't understand one of their questions.  It was a matter of quite urgent importance, and as they watched me shake my head with the blank look that creeps onto my face much too often here, they realized that if the matter was to be resolved, they had to make me understand - and fast... one little kid kept blurting out the one word in English that they knew - "WC! WC!"  Of course, between all the chaos, I was not focused enough to get it - until one of the students finally stood up and 'mimed' to me the dilemma.  For those of you who know what 'WC' means, I think you will appreciate the humour of the particular dilemma that I found myself in...

Every time I speak in Chinese here, I always hold my breath until I see them nod and exclaim... then procure the item I requested.  It's definitely fun to be able to speak another language, but as someone told me, 'I'm not just learning the language, but I'm learning how to learn another language..."  I know that God brought me here for a reason, and I'm pretty sure that the things I learn here are going to be a part of His future plans for me...even though I don't know what exactly that is yet.  

Choujhou Elementary

I looked down at my hands - gritty from all the chalk - and back up at my little students. I wrinkled my nose as I tried to brush my hands off. "Teacher, this way!" they exclaimed, and pulled me down the hallway to the outdoor sinks. They watch me wash my hands, and whisper among themselves about me. I turn around and they all point at my eyes "Teacher! Blue!" I point at their eyes and say "Students! Brown! Brown! Brown!" When I show them pictures of my family, they all gasp at how many brothers I have... "Five brothers!" they repeat again and again... "WOW!!!!!" they say when they finally understand what I just said.

My tiny fourth graders all ran up to me during the break today, and each was carrying the sheet that their teacher had them prepare with questions (in English) to ask 'the foreign teacher'. We all start laughing as I try to think of the foods that I like that I can also say in Chinese. The question list is forgotten as the whole classroom latches onto me and tears down the three flights of stairs into the courtyard to the play structure. They make sure that I cross the rickety bridge and go down the slide with them before we have to run back in when the bell rings. Two of my little girls hold my hands as we all rush back to our classroom. When I finally have to leave, everyone crowds in for a picture and we put up our 'happy fingers'.

Here we are!...

To: USA From: Me

Dear America, I know that these past couple of weeks have probably been pretty intense as the elections came to an end. I can't imagine what it was like on Tuesday night as you found out who your next president was. I would love to tell you how amazing it is to be over here in Taiwan and unaffected thus far by any American political tensions or poor leadership decisions that are just around the corner (maybe January 20th), but I would hate to begin a mass exodus from the U.S. to other countries. It was my first time voting in a presidential election and (bummer) the guy that I voted for lost. Oh well, there's always next time...unless of course the rapture comes (and that might have just become more of a possibility)...

On a more serious note, I have been praying for my home country especially over the past few days. My thoughts have been with my church family, and I pray that you will be continually encouraged and constantly reminded that our faith is in God, and not in a man - even a president. I am assured that God has power even over men that are not seeking Him, and the Lord is watching over His people.

In Hosea 13:11, God is lamenting for His people. I wonder if He feels the same about America right now... "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help." Hosea 14:1-"O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity." God promises in 14:4-"I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him." God is jealous over His children, and no matter how many times we fall, His mercy is turned toward us.

Joel 2:21, 25-27- "Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the Lord will do great things. (25) And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.

God is going to do amazing things through the results of this election. He tells us not to be afraid about anything. When He comes, He will restore everything that was ever done wrong...

Joel 3:16- "The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel."

Because You Never Know Who You Might Meet...

I once read a quote somewhere along the lines of 'you should never go out of the house without make-up on because you never know who you might meet'. Well...I met Superman the other day. He was pretty much everything I had ever imagined Superman would be like...cool, suave, and very 'cute'. The only thing was...he was a little bit shorter than I was expecting...and much younger. As my fifth grade class introduced themselves to me at the beginning of the morning, I was slightly taken aback as one of the tiny boys pulled out his muscles and whispered his name dramatically - "Supermaaaann." The class all cracked up at my reaction as I laughed and then raised my eyebrows a little. I went over to look at his name tag, and sure enough, his name really was 'Superman'. Over here, English names are given and taken by necessity without really a second thought, and you can also change your name as many times as you want. On the whiteboard in our office we teachers have a list of the more unique names of the children that come through the EV. Among them are 'Watt', 'Rock', 'Jizzle', 'Skill', and 'Tank'. They sound like nick-names from an eighties war movie! The whole English vocabulary is pretty much up for grabs when it comes to what you want 'the foreigners' to call you. If you could pick out any name for yourself in the English language, what would you choose?

I got back on Sunday from a trip to Nantou, located in central Taiwan where we have another team of teachers working. We went to an American church in Tai-chung, and it was the first time that I have been around that many 'foreigners' since I have been here. It was rather a strange feeling as I looked around during the service to see so many people like...well...me! You could definitely sense an 'American feel'. I felt a little bit out of place, and wondered if that's just part of being away from home for so long. It also occurred to me that by the time I get home it will be a new thing for people I talk with on an everyday basis in the store or at the train station to be talking to me and me actually understanding them... and then realizing that "Oh yes, I can say something back..."

God has shown me more and more while I have been here how important kids really are to me... and how if I was doing anything else right now, I would be crazy. I hate to say this, but I don't think that I ever fully realized the value in a tiny little kid. I have learned to appreciate so much about them, mostly their innocence, and openness... I know that may sound cliche, but it is striking me for the first time. They reach out to learn so willingly and with so much excitement that it makes me want to be able to teach them better. I thank God so much for this chance to be here even though I know that there are others much more qualified than I am.

We taught our largest school ever last week... there were almost 120 students. All of us teachers play the clapping game with them for the introduction, and when we say goodbye, many times the students will stand and as a group give us a thank you cheer in Chinese. When we are sent out into schools in the city, after each class period, my kids will bow and say thank you in English to me before they run up and confiscate my flashcards to quiz me the vocabulary words in Chinese that I just taught them in English. God has used each child I meet here to show me how precious it is to work with them and help them learn for the tiny bit of time that I am with them.

All Sorts of Things...

We got back late Sunday night from a visit to our co-teachers in the cities Hualien and Yuli which are on the other side of the island. We had the chance to walk through the campus of the Hualien school, and it was a blessing to see everything the Lord has been doing there...the program at the school there is really unique and it made a big impression on me that I should look harder for small ways to reach out to the students I teach, even though after that day I won't ever see them again.

Thursday night, we were running errands after school, and we ran into one of our Junior High students. We talked to her for about twenty minutes, and found out that she lives right above our drink stand down the street. When we asked her to come over on Saturday to play frisbee...she mentioned that she did school all day Saturday... the kids here work so hard...a lot of times school is a six days for them it sounds like - especially for the students getting ready to graduate junior high - and then 'cram school' on top of that. So much importance is placed on education here and what grades you get can make or break your future.

We got to see the lighter side of a lot of our Nan Jung students when we played volleyball with them for P.E. class. For over two hours we played out with the students in the sticky heat. Watching them play together, I could see that even with all the importance on education, importance is also put on as working as a true team, even if it means laughing as a team at mistakes.