We have been in China 100 days now. It is a little strange that I know that, but I counted it! Does it seem that long?
Not long after we arrived, I was chatting with the kids and somehow 100 days came up. Some schools have a special day when they have been in school 100 days, so I thought it might be fun to plan something special for our 100th day in China. I counted on my calendar and today Friday, November 28, 2008 is the 100th day since our arrival. I had plans to do a bunch of things today, but with my teaching schedule the only thing we did was count 100 chocolate chips and put them in cookies. We also stirred the batter 100 times. The kids wish that they could eat 100 cookies. Maybe we should count another 100 and have another celebration again in the spring.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Jason: There's a new building going up...
...across the street from us. And, although it must have been there all along, I just noticed it out the kitchen window yesterday afternoon.
It's weird how that happens.
I mean, there are so many buildings going up in this city, it's by no means unusual to see cranes and scaffolding rising into the sky, growing taller day by day, at first hidden from view by the saftey wall / advertising billboards surrounding the area, then peeking above the wall, then before you know it jutting toward the sky, another edifice bearing witness to this country's unprecidented growth. It's not unusual at all.
But it is a little weird to look out the window of your own house and realize that, somehow, you've never seen, or certainly never quite noticed, this giant construction project right there!
Things sometimes happen that way. Stuff just pops up out of nowhere, or so it seems; but to look at it, you realize this must have been going on all along; I just never noticed.
So... I'm sitting here thinking about it.
And of course, there are tons of life applications that each of us could make: family, children, Clear Creek... If you're thinking of something - some situation that comes to mind - then, by all means, "think on such things." For me, here's where I am:
I just left from a lunch/study with Joseph and Monica (a believer whom Joseph met at a student fellowship)... And now my 1:00pm alarm is sounding the call to prayer... So, let's do this: I'll just type my prayer and let you get my idea that way.
Father, when I saw that building it started me thinking: What do I want to build? How should I build? Like Paul said, there's this need to build upon the right foundation, and to use the correct kind of materials, so that the structure will be sound and the building will last, so that the materials will survive the heat. I want to be careful how I build. I want to make sure, always, that the foundation is upon the Rock. I am not the base; I am just one of many living stones. Please use others, too. May the family here, all of us, do what we can. I know that these kids are wanting to do the right thing, and they want and need all the help we can provide. Thank you for gifting me with some measure of ability to teach and strengthen them; but at the same time, I hand them over to you. I don't want to be the one upon whom the building is set. I want that cornerstone and foundation to be You and Yours. The words spoken and given to us all, the wind that freely blows, from the beginning until this very day, in this very place. So let it be, that these and others (you know them) will be built into the life you have planned for them. So let it be, that I will know how, that I will have opportunity, and that I simply will use the tools you provide me to carefully and correctly build. So let it be.
It's weird how that happens.
I mean, there are so many buildings going up in this city, it's by no means unusual to see cranes and scaffolding rising into the sky, growing taller day by day, at first hidden from view by the saftey wall / advertising billboards surrounding the area, then peeking above the wall, then before you know it jutting toward the sky, another edifice bearing witness to this country's unprecidented growth. It's not unusual at all.
But it is a little weird to look out the window of your own house and realize that, somehow, you've never seen, or certainly never quite noticed, this giant construction project right there!
Things sometimes happen that way. Stuff just pops up out of nowhere, or so it seems; but to look at it, you realize this must have been going on all along; I just never noticed.
So... I'm sitting here thinking about it.
And of course, there are tons of life applications that each of us could make: family, children, Clear Creek... If you're thinking of something - some situation that comes to mind - then, by all means, "think on such things." For me, here's where I am:
I just left from a lunch/study with Joseph and Monica (a believer whom Joseph met at a student fellowship)... And now my 1:00pm alarm is sounding the call to prayer... So, let's do this: I'll just type my prayer and let you get my idea that way.
Father, when I saw that building it started me thinking: What do I want to build? How should I build? Like Paul said, there's this need to build upon the right foundation, and to use the correct kind of materials, so that the structure will be sound and the building will last, so that the materials will survive the heat. I want to be careful how I build. I want to make sure, always, that the foundation is upon the Rock. I am not the base; I am just one of many living stones. Please use others, too. May the family here, all of us, do what we can. I know that these kids are wanting to do the right thing, and they want and need all the help we can provide. Thank you for gifting me with some measure of ability to teach and strengthen them; but at the same time, I hand them over to you. I don't want to be the one upon whom the building is set. I want that cornerstone and foundation to be You and Yours. The words spoken and given to us all, the wind that freely blows, from the beginning until this very day, in this very place. So let it be, that these and others (you know them) will be built into the life you have planned for them. So let it be, that I will know how, that I will have opportunity, and that I simply will use the tools you provide me to carefully and correctly build. So let it be.
Monday, November 24, 2008
making the most of every opportunity
My job, I find, as I go forth each day, is to make the most of each opportunity I come across. To show warmth and to radiate love to the people I encounter. I tried to do that today. To be patient. To explain a little more carefully. To mention the reason for my hope any chance I got. And to enjoy the day. To live in today, and not worry about tomorrow, or next month (when I'll be moving!), and certainly not next year. To live today, and "live the questions" as I read in a book once. Tiring this life, but energizing too, and a day lived well is extremely fulfilling. That is why I came back to China; that is why I am here now.
P.S. Pr-y for the sisters across Hangzhou. I am hosting a weekly meeting open to any of them. I hope that one day we will develop into city-wide sisters who know each other and edify each other, and even hold each other accountable. But that is a long way off. So just write this request down somewhere, and remember to lift it up.
Cecely
P.S. Pr-y for the sisters across Hangzhou. I am hosting a weekly meeting open to any of them. I hope that one day we will develop into city-wide sisters who know each other and edify each other, and even hold each other accountable. But that is a long way off. So just write this request down somewhere, and remember to lift it up.
Cecely
Autumn @ 19-1-601
Here is a photo taken from the kitchen window of our apartment @ 府苑新村19-1-601. This is where we live.
I didn't expect to see anything like Autumn here, so these few colorful trees are a nice surprise.
I've shown you the view from our place once or twice before - the fireworks most recently, and a view of the mountains a while back.
Turns out, though, that the time of our views from 19-1-601 is limited. Wei and Zhou have sold the apartment. We will be moving out in January.
She is helping us to arrange a new place, still here within the FYXC apartment complex. It will probably be near the back, or western, side of the grounds - farther from the street, the bus stops, the shops, the restaurant, the canal. Probably on the second floor - which has the plus of not being the sixth floor, but probably means we won't have our same mountain view. In fact, it certainly will not be our same view. It will be different.
Even if we can still see the mountains, even if we can still see the changing leaves - well, the trees will be barren in January, I suppose - still, the location will have changed, the perspective will have shifted, that "certain slant of light" the poet speaks of will be coming in through another window.
Our life will change, will shift - how, we know not - as it always does, for each of us. We will have new blessings - it is reported that this place has newer furnishings and an extra bedroom. We will have new frustrations, new inconveniences - longer walks to and from the bus, carrying our groceries in the then-freezing temperatures, perhaps clumsily balancing an umbrella in one hand, fumbling for the keys with the other, wind-whipped snow or drizzle or worse threatening at every moment to colapse the whole teetering performance.
Or...
I was just reading something last night: G.K. Chesterson, as quoted in Richard Foster's Spiritual Classics, says, "An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered." For example, he says, consider the way we might react to a jammed kitchen drawer: Most of us have somehow come to expect that drawers should and must always open smoothly the first time; but, come to think of it, why should we expect this? And certainly, why should we huff and puff and curse and spit when - not surprisingly, after all - we find that, in this fallen world (in this physical world, fallen or not, I would suppose), the drawer happens, this time, to be jammed? Why not rather think of this as an invitation to adventure?
Imagine yourself a surgeon, he would suggest, performing a complex operation in hopes of removing - in your case, a dish towel, let's say - from the patient's abdomen. If you were in the operating room and met such a difficulty, how would you react? Surely it does no good to curse the towel, nor the abdomen, not the man lying on your table (whose fault it presumably is for swallowing the rag in the first place). Instead, we need to "make the most of every opportunity" - concentrate, remain calm, take it a step at a time - and after it is all over, maybe even remember to thank the One who gifted us with this (albeit unexpected) chance to exercise our unique skills.
And the same goes for moving: I am, after all, "just a pilgrim here below," so I should by no means find it strange that I am asked to move from time to time. I need not worry at the inconvenience of it all. Rather, I should view this as a sort of small adventure. A new home, a new view; a new perspective, a new outlook.
And I shall bless the Maker of it all.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Jason: I went running again
Yes, I ran today.
No, I don't mean that this is only the second time I've gone running since when I first mentioned the idea several weeks ago.
No, that's not to say I've gone running very much; but this is not just the 2nd time.
And yes -- thank you for saying so -- I do think I'm looking a little thinner, as a matter of fact.
It's getting cold here in HZ. Long-johns weather. But sunny. And, you could even say, warm in the mid-afternoon. Kids are laying out on the lawn all over campus to soak in the last few golden rays of summer before the really really cold weather sets in next month. And in that same spirit, I decided that -- although I was tired, although it's been a longer-than-usual week -- still, I better take advantage of this afternoon's nearly ideal running weather and go outside and, you know, run. So I laced up and headed out.
For the first time in my (admittedly brief) running career I decided to take the iPod and listen to some good ol' American classic rock. I heard Lynard Skynard, the Allman Bros., Phil Collins [I know he's not exactly "Classic Rock", but it's on the playlist anyway], U2, Hall & Oates... Awesome stuff. I also prayed in snippets, and enjoyed seeing a sliver of the sun through the increasingly-cloudy sky. I watched birds chasing one another, jealously defending their favorite branches and berries. I said "hello" and "fine, thank you" and "my name is Jason" to giggling school girls skipping rope.
Hey, wait a second... I had to get the door.
Cec has ordered Mexican food from Pancho's and had it delivered to our house!
So, [no pun intended] I gotta run.
Blessings to you.
No, I don't mean that this is only the second time I've gone running since when I first mentioned the idea several weeks ago.
No, that's not to say I've gone running very much; but this is not just the 2nd time.
And yes -- thank you for saying so -- I do think I'm looking a little thinner, as a matter of fact.
It's getting cold here in HZ. Long-johns weather. But sunny. And, you could even say, warm in the mid-afternoon. Kids are laying out on the lawn all over campus to soak in the last few golden rays of summer before the really really cold weather sets in next month. And in that same spirit, I decided that -- although I was tired, although it's been a longer-than-usual week -- still, I better take advantage of this afternoon's nearly ideal running weather and go outside and, you know, run. So I laced up and headed out.
For the first time in my (admittedly brief) running career I decided to take the iPod and listen to some good ol' American classic rock. I heard Lynard Skynard, the Allman Bros., Phil Collins [I know he's not exactly "Classic Rock", but it's on the playlist anyway], U2, Hall & Oates... Awesome stuff. I also prayed in snippets, and enjoyed seeing a sliver of the sun through the increasingly-cloudy sky. I watched birds chasing one another, jealously defending their favorite branches and berries. I said "hello" and "fine, thank you" and "my name is Jason" to giggling school girls skipping rope.
Hey, wait a second... I had to get the door.
Cec has ordered Mexican food from Pancho's and had it delivered to our house!
So, [no pun intended] I gotta run.
Blessings to you.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Bad News: Can't See Blog
I'm not sure if we told you all about this or not, but we have lost the ability to actually see the blog from here. The only reason this matters for you, though, is this: We can't see any comments posted here. Please send your comments to our email accounts. Thanks.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Jason & Joseph
OK, this is like the third (or actually forth) time that I am writing this entry. I doubt any of you saw the first one or two. I had written a bunch of stuff, then edited, then decided to re-edit, then had to just give up and go to bed. So, here goes (again)...
Frank & Joseph came over Tuesday night. And I went to Joseph's today (Wednesday)
Now that I have a few minutes - very few, in fact - let me try to say what I was wanting to tell all of you: The time with them here at the house was good. They explained to me some of the family history here in HZ and gave me an idea of the current state of affairs, particularly in reference to the Wen San (W3) group [aka, "downtown"].
One little note: I don't know if anyone has heard this or not, but Charles is probably NOT going to Canada, after all. His wife is "with child."
Still, there is, to some extent, an on-going leadership vacuum with the W3 family. You might already know, they have had a number of struggles through the years, and for much of their collective lifetime they have relied on outside teachers and short-term "good news blitzes," if you will, for their growth and sustenance. While we are thankful for those who have come before us and who continue to serve in what ways they can, we [the team] do not see this as the best way for the long-term. Frank & Joseph also see the problems and weaknesses inherent in this situation, and all of us are thinking about how to change things - how to build-up, transition, grow, reach-out, etc., etc.
I could go on and on about the details, but there's no time right this minute. Suffice it to say, we had a good talk, and we are thinking about these issues.
So, today I went out to Joseph's place.
He lives waaay down south. He just moved out there, actually. He wanted to sort of "get away from it all" and have a quiet place to study. He is, or I should say was, an art student. But his true passion is the Passion, as it were. He very much wants to devote himself, and this is his aim. Out there at the southern end of HZ, there are a number of fellowships, it turns out, comprised primarily of students who live and study in the area. He has a great deal of contact with others who share his beliefs. I met two of these today. We had a good, long talk about the current situation in HZ, their impressions of both the W3 group and others around town, and what exactly needs to be the focus and methodology employed so that the greatest effect may be realized. We closed by jointly aiming our thoughts above.
I really don't know what else to say...
I could tell you that Joseph lives just outside of a huge, fake, Song-dynasty village/movie set where many films and TV shows are produced; or, that this same village area turns out to be the home of that guy who, you may recall, fatally stabbed the American volleyball coach, then committed suicide, during the BJ Olympics this year; or on a lighter note, that having missed my bus stop on the way home, I decided to just follow the route to the end where I was able to walk to a nearby Starbucks and grab an iced, grande, cherry-mocha latte.
But I need to go to English Corner, so...
Just keep this whole situation in your thoughts.
Thanks.
Frank & Joseph came over Tuesday night. And I went to Joseph's today (Wednesday)
Now that I have a few minutes - very few, in fact - let me try to say what I was wanting to tell all of you: The time with them here at the house was good. They explained to me some of the family history here in HZ and gave me an idea of the current state of affairs, particularly in reference to the Wen San (W3) group [aka, "downtown"].
One little note: I don't know if anyone has heard this or not, but Charles is probably NOT going to Canada, after all. His wife is "with child."
Still, there is, to some extent, an on-going leadership vacuum with the W3 family. You might already know, they have had a number of struggles through the years, and for much of their collective lifetime they have relied on outside teachers and short-term "good news blitzes," if you will, for their growth and sustenance. While we are thankful for those who have come before us and who continue to serve in what ways they can, we [the team] do not see this as the best way for the long-term. Frank & Joseph also see the problems and weaknesses inherent in this situation, and all of us are thinking about how to change things - how to build-up, transition, grow, reach-out, etc., etc.
I could go on and on about the details, but there's no time right this minute. Suffice it to say, we had a good talk, and we are thinking about these issues.
So, today I went out to Joseph's place.
He lives waaay down south. He just moved out there, actually. He wanted to sort of "get away from it all" and have a quiet place to study. He is, or I should say was, an art student. But his true passion is the Passion, as it were. He very much wants to devote himself, and this is his aim. Out there at the southern end of HZ, there are a number of fellowships, it turns out, comprised primarily of students who live and study in the area. He has a great deal of contact with others who share his beliefs. I met two of these today. We had a good, long talk about the current situation in HZ, their impressions of both the W3 group and others around town, and what exactly needs to be the focus and methodology employed so that the greatest effect may be realized. We closed by jointly aiming our thoughts above.
I really don't know what else to say...
I could tell you that Joseph lives just outside of a huge, fake, Song-dynasty village/movie set where many films and TV shows are produced; or, that this same village area turns out to be the home of that guy who, you may recall, fatally stabbed the American volleyball coach, then committed suicide, during the BJ Olympics this year; or on a lighter note, that having missed my bus stop on the way home, I decided to just follow the route to the end where I was able to walk to a nearby Starbucks and grab an iced, grande, cherry-mocha latte.
But I need to go to English Corner, so...
Just keep this whole situation in your thoughts.
Thanks.
Rats!
I am pretty scared of rats. In the past I have had nightmares after hearing people just talk about rats. Why anyone would want one for a pet was beyond me. When I lived in China 10 years ago, I would occasionally see one, alive or dead. I did not like it, but I did start to get over my fear and was just thankful that they were outside and not in our building. Since being in Hangzhou, I have not seen a rat. I am sure they are here, but I have not seen one. We live next to one of the school cafeterias, but there are often cats and even sometimes some dogs that hang out after dark. I am thankful that I have not seen one. I might scare the kids if I screamed.
We have been preparing for winter around here. Jon has been plugging holes and drafts and things like that. He said that he needed to find steel wool. We were looking for something like that in the store and I mentioned not seeing any rats or mice. Then Jon admitted that the other day he heard a noise in the kitchen. When he went in the kitchen, he caught sight of a tail! The tail was disappearing through the hole that the washing machine drains. (the machine that we rarely use, since we use the one in the other “kitchen”) The hole is larger than the drain pipe, and we know that mice and rats can fit into very small areas. Jon plugged the hole with some aluminum foil, but that didn’t do any good.
Well, I am sure you can guess what is coming…
A couple of nights ago, I heard a noise and thought that one of the kids was up. I got up to check on them, but everyone was sound asleep. I kept hearing the noise, and could not go back to sleep. The door to the kitchen was closed (thankfully). I knew that I was hearing a mouse or rat. Now, often people will call mice “rats”, but do you know the difference? Mice are tiny, and rats are NOT tiny.
There was no way I was going to go into the kitchen! Finally I thought that the critter was on the counter (it wasn’t, but I thought it was). That was when I woke Jon up. He made some noises at the door and then went into the kitchen. He wanted it to run away so he could plug the hole and have it trapped in our kitchen. It worked. We figured out that it was indeed a rat!
How do we know? Well, because it got into my Pop Tarts! Yes, I know that mice probably like Pop Tarts too, but could they get a package off a shelf and then drag it all the way across the floor? The rat ate about half of a package of chocolate Pop Tarts, one bite from a brown sugar Pop Tart and part of an apple. I really hope that it had a bellyache!
Jon plugged the hole at about 4 am, and so far we have not seen or heard anything.
When we were at a large store the other day, Jon thought that he would ask about traps or rat poison. We have an electronic translator feature to our cell phones, so he typed in “rat” and then made some gestures like a trap and then dead (drawing his finger across his throat and then sticking his tongue out) to a store worker. Without much hesitation she pointed to the large cleavers and knives! We all laughed at that, and then she told us she did not think that they had anything like that. I am sure we can find some thing else, but in the meantime, my Pop Tarts are in a locked container!
We have been preparing for winter around here. Jon has been plugging holes and drafts and things like that. He said that he needed to find steel wool. We were looking for something like that in the store and I mentioned not seeing any rats or mice. Then Jon admitted that the other day he heard a noise in the kitchen. When he went in the kitchen, he caught sight of a tail! The tail was disappearing through the hole that the washing machine drains. (the machine that we rarely use, since we use the one in the other “kitchen”) The hole is larger than the drain pipe, and we know that mice and rats can fit into very small areas. Jon plugged the hole with some aluminum foil, but that didn’t do any good.
Well, I am sure you can guess what is coming…
A couple of nights ago, I heard a noise and thought that one of the kids was up. I got up to check on them, but everyone was sound asleep. I kept hearing the noise, and could not go back to sleep. The door to the kitchen was closed (thankfully). I knew that I was hearing a mouse or rat. Now, often people will call mice “rats”, but do you know the difference? Mice are tiny, and rats are NOT tiny.
There was no way I was going to go into the kitchen! Finally I thought that the critter was on the counter (it wasn’t, but I thought it was). That was when I woke Jon up. He made some noises at the door and then went into the kitchen. He wanted it to run away so he could plug the hole and have it trapped in our kitchen. It worked. We figured out that it was indeed a rat!
How do we know? Well, because it got into my Pop Tarts! Yes, I know that mice probably like Pop Tarts too, but could they get a package off a shelf and then drag it all the way across the floor? The rat ate about half of a package of chocolate Pop Tarts, one bite from a brown sugar Pop Tart and part of an apple. I really hope that it had a bellyache!
Jon plugged the hole at about 4 am, and so far we have not seen or heard anything.
When we were at a large store the other day, Jon thought that he would ask about traps or rat poison. We have an electronic translator feature to our cell phones, so he typed in “rat” and then made some gestures like a trap and then dead (drawing his finger across his throat and then sticking his tongue out) to a store worker. Without much hesitation she pointed to the large cleavers and knives! We all laughed at that, and then she told us she did not think that they had anything like that. I am sure we can find some thing else, but in the meantime, my Pop Tarts are in a locked container!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Elaine and Margaret
Cecely here. I wanted to post a quick note to say that I had a good Monday mtg. with Elaine and Margaret today, who had their own good mtg. yesterday by themselves at Margaret's house. They are feeling good and I think they are about to enter a phase of growth and spiritual high spirits. They pr-y very sincerely and well. We are reading some of the Ps-lms at their request, and they are gaining some insights and working on their own applications of the verses. All this growth has been a big answer to pr-yer and we can definitely see His hand working in this. Thanks for lifting them up and please continue to do so. I'd like to ask that you talk to Him about giving them discernment, so they can recognize truth and untruth when they see it. Also that He will continue to help them foster a sense of spiritual independence, and confidence that they can understand what they read. On the other hand, pr-y that they'll have an awareness of interconnectedness with the group at large, as their bros. and sis.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Clarks: Fireworks for the B-Day Girls!
Apparently word has gotten around the neighborhood that tonight is Gao Yan's, and tomorrow Cecely's, birthday! To celebrate this "Double Happiness" （喜喜 for those of you studying Chinese characters at home) the people across the street are blasting us with several rounds of colorful fireworks [see fig. 1]. The view is impressive and the sound absolutely stunning.
Not to be outdone by these merry-making revelers, Jake and Shelley treated us all to about $100 (USD) worth of Papa John's pizza this noonday meal. We had two pepperoni pizzas, a(n) Hawaiian, and a Heart-Clogger's special. [I believe the menu identifies the latter as "Meat Lover's"] Besides that, there was a rice dish - because, you know, we live in China, so how can you say you've really eaten without having some rice? - and, like, four pitchers of soda to wash it all down. Good guy, that Jake.
As for presents, Cec has a number of wrapped items on a table here in the living room [see fig. 2] to go along with the books we bought her this afternoon [fig. 3]. So, not a bad birthday weekend. 
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Clarks: All-Around Update
Hey there. Sorry to keep you waiting for a new post (in case you were waiting, that is).
First things first: Yes, Jake & Shelley are here, as Josh mentioned. [Sorry I don't have any cute pictures to show you. I imagine they will have plenty to share when they get back to Chatt.] Right now, they are visiting in XiaSha, where they taught last year. This weekend Jake is planning to treat the team to pizza! Wow, what a guy!
Next: We had a b-day party for Hallie last Sunday. Jenn took pics, but I get the feeling that she isn't exactly finding the free time to edit photos, post blogs, etc. So, in lieu of her... Let me say, Hallie's party was a smash: Home-baked chocolate cake and (store-bought) ice cream... Lots of nice gifts, including pj's, art supplies, and what all else I don't recall... It was a nice get-together after our usual Sunday get-together.
In other news: Wei is starting to ask questions when Cecely reads to her during yoga class, so that door is opening just as we have been hoping it would. Last Friday, we took a student from Jason's senior English classes [a different student from the one I told you about last-last Friday] and went to the You-Know-What Bookstore. She had seen me reading such a book before class one day and had asked "what's that? can I get one here?" and so we took her to get one she could have and read for herself. We'll see what comes next; we haven't seen her or talked to her since Friday. Hopefully, she's been reading and will want to get together for some instruction.
Oh, and this is cool: Last night, as we were leaving our favorite noodle restaurant, a faux-Japanese chain called Ajisen that serves some of the best Korean kimchee in town (go figure), along with other delicious delicacies like cold-salad-sesame noodles with tender, smoked, pulled, boneless chicken and their signiture "1000-Flavor" noodle soup which comes with the best hard-boiled egg you can imagine [I know it might be hard to imagine anything special about a hard-boiled egg; if so, you need to come here for a visit]... oh, and the tea there is the best... and I almost forgot to mention, their miso soup is out of control! Get Jared and Cassie to take you down to Sushi Nabe at Coolidge Park on the river, and get a taste of their soup; it's exactly as good as that, and much cheaper! But, anyway... wasn't I saying something?
So as we were leaving, Cec caught sight of this guy reading the Book. He's just sitting there in the middle of the restaurant (literally, he was in the middle) reading it in Chinese, like that's just the most normal thing in the world - which of course it isn't, not in this counrty, not in the US either. So she spoke with him a little bit, and then while we were wandering around in the adjacent shopping center, I had this feeling, you know, like I ought to go back there and talk to him some more, so we went back, and this time I spoke with him and indicated that I might like someone to read with in Chinese, and blah, blah, blah... "by the way where are you from?" and it turns out he is a student at Steve's college! [Who's Steve? He's a guy that is here in town doing the same thing we are doing. He came through the China Calls program. I had met him at the China Calls orientation meeting last spring, and now he has been meeting with us most Sundays.] So, long-story-short, we have put them in touch with each other and are hoping that will work into something up there in their part of town (a little north of where we live).
Bottom Line: I find it impossible to keep up with You-Know-Who's pace. I mean, I think of cool things that happen - some seemingly small, some amazingly big - each and every day, that would make good blogging material, but who has time to write it all down? Like our old friend, John, once said, "If you tried to write down everything He did [and is doing] you'd fill the world with books [and blogs] and still just scratch the surface." Now, I know how John must have felt. And I bet his wrists were tender and sore, too, from so much typing. I know mine are.
First things first: Yes, Jake & Shelley are here, as Josh mentioned. [Sorry I don't have any cute pictures to show you. I imagine they will have plenty to share when they get back to Chatt.] Right now, they are visiting in XiaSha, where they taught last year. This weekend Jake is planning to treat the team to pizza! Wow, what a guy!
Next: We had a b-day party for Hallie last Sunday. Jenn took pics, but I get the feeling that she isn't exactly finding the free time to edit photos, post blogs, etc. So, in lieu of her... Let me say, Hallie's party was a smash: Home-baked chocolate cake and (store-bought) ice cream... Lots of nice gifts, including pj's, art supplies, and what all else I don't recall... It was a nice get-together after our usual Sunday get-together.
In other news: Wei is starting to ask questions when Cecely reads to her during yoga class, so that door is opening just as we have been hoping it would. Last Friday, we took a student from Jason's senior English classes [a different student from the one I told you about last-last Friday] and went to the You-Know-What Bookstore. She had seen me reading such a book before class one day and had asked "what's that? can I get one here?" and so we took her to get one she could have and read for herself. We'll see what comes next; we haven't seen her or talked to her since Friday. Hopefully, she's been reading and will want to get together for some instruction.
Oh, and this is cool: Last night, as we were leaving our favorite noodle restaurant, a faux-Japanese chain called Ajisen that serves some of the best Korean kimchee in town (go figure), along with other delicious delicacies like cold-salad-sesame noodles with tender, smoked, pulled, boneless chicken and their signiture "1000-Flavor" noodle soup which comes with the best hard-boiled egg you can imagine [I know it might be hard to imagine anything special about a hard-boiled egg; if so, you need to come here for a visit]... oh, and the tea there is the best... and I almost forgot to mention, their miso soup is out of control! Get Jared and Cassie to take you down to Sushi Nabe at Coolidge Park on the river, and get a taste of their soup; it's exactly as good as that, and much cheaper! But, anyway... wasn't I saying something?
So as we were leaving, Cec caught sight of this guy reading the Book. He's just sitting there in the middle of the restaurant (literally, he was in the middle) reading it in Chinese, like that's just the most normal thing in the world - which of course it isn't, not in this counrty, not in the US either. So she spoke with him a little bit, and then while we were wandering around in the adjacent shopping center, I had this feeling, you know, like I ought to go back there and talk to him some more, so we went back, and this time I spoke with him and indicated that I might like someone to read with in Chinese, and blah, blah, blah... "by the way where are you from?" and it turns out he is a student at Steve's college! [Who's Steve? He's a guy that is here in town doing the same thing we are doing. He came through the China Calls program. I had met him at the China Calls orientation meeting last spring, and now he has been meeting with us most Sundays.] So, long-story-short, we have put them in touch with each other and are hoping that will work into something up there in their part of town (a little north of where we live).
Bottom Line: I find it impossible to keep up with You-Know-Who's pace. I mean, I think of cool things that happen - some seemingly small, some amazingly big - each and every day, that would make good blogging material, but who has time to write it all down? Like our old friend, John, once said, "If you tried to write down everything He did [and is doing] you'd fill the world with books [and blogs] and still just scratch the surface." Now, I know how John must have felt. And I bet his wrists were tender and sore, too, from so much typing. I know mine are.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Jake and Shelly visit
Dear Friends
Jake and Shelly arrived safely here in Hangzhou. Tonight they came over for dinner. Gaoyan showed Shelly how to make some Chinese food. We watched the senders’ video together. After they left, we watched it over and over again, missing the time in Hixson with our church family. We saw so many faces that we love and miss. Your warm smiles in the video are just like yesterday to us. We really can feel how much we were loved by you while we lived in Hixson. Still now, you send your love in prayers, cards and caring packages. We are so blessed by having you as our church family.
Time went by so fast! We have been gone from you for two and a half months. Caleb is growing bigger. He enjoys his Bible class video in Clear Creek. We showed it to our toddler class and the moms were impressed by the volunteer work for children’s education and the classroom setting and how well Caleb would sit in the class. Our toddler class is going well. We have met four Thursday mornings. The moms talked about the five love languages for children and the five love languages for couples. It is still a challenge and learning experience for us to know how to get the toddlers to sit through the class without running around playing or fighting over toys. We rotate in three homes and there are always so many toys around.
Every Wednesday afternoon, I study with Angel, a realtor. She reads through the material twice and shares her understanding of the material. Then Angel explains how she can apply the material to her life. She is really open about the study. Please keep her in your prayers and pray that G will give me strength and wisdom to guide her. Caleb and I ride the bicycle to her place on Wednesday afternoons. It is a little scary to think about Caleb riding behind me on the baby seat crossing four lanes of cars and busses and two lanes of bicycles. The weather is getting colder and rained twice on Wednesday. I want to pray G will give us perseverance to keep this study.
It is so good to see Jake and Shelly. We really miss you too. We want to be better in our communications and write you more often. We hope you saving every penny for your plane tickets to visit us in China.
Jake and Shelly arrived safely here in Hangzhou. Tonight they came over for dinner. Gaoyan showed Shelly how to make some Chinese food. We watched the senders’ video together. After they left, we watched it over and over again, missing the time in Hixson with our church family. We saw so many faces that we love and miss. Your warm smiles in the video are just like yesterday to us. We really can feel how much we were loved by you while we lived in Hixson. Still now, you send your love in prayers, cards and caring packages. We are so blessed by having you as our church family.
Time went by so fast! We have been gone from you for two and a half months. Caleb is growing bigger. He enjoys his Bible class video in Clear Creek. We showed it to our toddler class and the moms were impressed by the volunteer work for children’s education and the classroom setting and how well Caleb would sit in the class. Our toddler class is going well. We have met four Thursday mornings. The moms talked about the five love languages for children and the five love languages for couples. It is still a challenge and learning experience for us to know how to get the toddlers to sit through the class without running around playing or fighting over toys. We rotate in three homes and there are always so many toys around.
Every Wednesday afternoon, I study with Angel, a realtor. She reads through the material twice and shares her understanding of the material. Then Angel explains how she can apply the material to her life. She is really open about the study. Please keep her in your prayers and pray that G will give me strength and wisdom to guide her. Caleb and I ride the bicycle to her place on Wednesday afternoons. It is a little scary to think about Caleb riding behind me on the baby seat crossing four lanes of cars and busses and two lanes of bicycles. The weather is getting colder and rained twice on Wednesday. I want to pray G will give us perseverance to keep this study.
It is so good to see Jake and Shelly. We really miss you too. We want to be better in our communications and write you more often. We hope you saving every penny for your plane tickets to visit us in China.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Clarks: Halloween
We hosted a Halloween party the other night for Jason's senior English majors. As you can see, we kept things fairly simple by just wearing Jack-o-lantern shirts and donning cat-masks. In the past in China we've gone to great lengths to prepare homemade costumes: she a rabbit, he a carrot; she a mouse, he a block of cheese.The Hardins were also able to make the scene - all five of them in costume. [I'll let them put something up when they get a chance.] The kids, of course, were a smash hit with the party crowd.
Speaking of which, they (the students, I mean) did a great job, too, of getting costumes together, preparing and helping decorate, bringing food and drinks, and cleaning things up afterward. There were all kinds of costumes - scary ones seemed to be most popular, though.
When I get a little time a will try to put together a slide show on here for all of you to see. [This picture was taken and e-mailed to us by a student; we've still not loaded our own shots from the camera to the computer.] It was great fun!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Cecely's Comments on November 1st
Cecely here:
This is a cool misty day, the first of November. We are really feeling at home here, settling into a routine a bit, which is more than welcome. The neighborhood is starting to feel like our neighborhood. We see aquaintances outside while walking or going to the store, and say, "ni hao", and we meet up with some of our friends on a weekly basis, like Wei, our landlady, or Hong, the friend we met one day while walking after supper. Those relationships are strengthening, and beginning to feel like friendships, with ebbs and flows, times of receding and deepening. Please keep these relationships in your thoughts, that we will have wisdom to guide our discussions and choices in our times with them.
Also, more has been developing with Elaine. We have set up a weekly time to meet and study, but she called last Monday to cancel, saying she had a friend coming in from out of town, but before she hung up she added that she had invited the other ladies in "her group" over on the previous Friday, and they had all had a discussion together! I felt so glad! That is the very thing we have been pra-ing about when we think of her. That gave me real encouragement that she understands where this all needs to head, and so I feel so thankful.
We are also still enjoying our classes quite a bit, and recently got news from the school that we can reschedule our classes on Christmas day. We had been hoping to be able to cancel them altogether, but this is at least somewhat of an improvement. Anyway, at school we continue to get closer to some key students that seem promising, and I have begun studying Chinese each friday with a Chinese major named Joyce who is a really sweet girl. Keep her in your thoughts, please, as we spend time together, and please also be keeping me in mind as I try to study the language. Lately it has been much more of a struggle. I have trouble forming sentences in Chinese. I felt great for a while, then plateaued big time and it is just such a rough patch for me linguistically. And also please remember Wei Na and her boyfriend, the one Jason went to Starbucks with that night. They are a great couple who we will probably hang out with again in the future. We would also like to begin to make friends with a certain co-worker named Bob, and his family, so pray for us to get an opportunity to do that.
And also, we continue to go and visit at the hair salon. Last time we were there the subject of them coming over to visit us came up yet again, but something about their time schedule ususally stands in the way, so just please be asking that if that is supposed to happen, it will when it should by His timing.
It can get frustrating waiting for the next step in all of these relationships to happen. We are accustomed to moving a little more quickly than this, but we have been challenging ourselves to be patient and let things develop a little more naturally (and hopefully more sustainably) in these cases. It takes not only patience but discernment. Please just be lifting us and our contacts up.
In addition to all that I have said, I want to add: thanks for sending us here with a great team! We love our team members, and it is helping more than words can express to have them here. Last week me and Yan and Jen went together to get foot massages, and then have dessert at Pizza Hut, and it was just a fabulous night, very refreshing. And it is so nice that I already know these ladies, we are not just having to get to know each other on the field. So we are friends who know each others strengths and struggles, and we start from that point, able to sympathize and listen to each other in an educated way. Just a big blessing.
That's all for now. Also, thanks for sending Jake and Shelley. We look forward to seeing them soon!
posted by Cecely
This is a cool misty day, the first of November. We are really feeling at home here, settling into a routine a bit, which is more than welcome. The neighborhood is starting to feel like our neighborhood. We see aquaintances outside while walking or going to the store, and say, "ni hao", and we meet up with some of our friends on a weekly basis, like Wei, our landlady, or Hong, the friend we met one day while walking after supper. Those relationships are strengthening, and beginning to feel like friendships, with ebbs and flows, times of receding and deepening. Please keep these relationships in your thoughts, that we will have wisdom to guide our discussions and choices in our times with them.
Also, more has been developing with Elaine. We have set up a weekly time to meet and study, but she called last Monday to cancel, saying she had a friend coming in from out of town, but before she hung up she added that she had invited the other ladies in "her group" over on the previous Friday, and they had all had a discussion together! I felt so glad! That is the very thing we have been pra-ing about when we think of her. That gave me real encouragement that she understands where this all needs to head, and so I feel so thankful.
We are also still enjoying our classes quite a bit, and recently got news from the school that we can reschedule our classes on Christmas day. We had been hoping to be able to cancel them altogether, but this is at least somewhat of an improvement. Anyway, at school we continue to get closer to some key students that seem promising, and I have begun studying Chinese each friday with a Chinese major named Joyce who is a really sweet girl. Keep her in your thoughts, please, as we spend time together, and please also be keeping me in mind as I try to study the language. Lately it has been much more of a struggle. I have trouble forming sentences in Chinese. I felt great for a while, then plateaued big time and it is just such a rough patch for me linguistically. And also please remember Wei Na and her boyfriend, the one Jason went to Starbucks with that night. They are a great couple who we will probably hang out with again in the future. We would also like to begin to make friends with a certain co-worker named Bob, and his family, so pray for us to get an opportunity to do that.
And also, we continue to go and visit at the hair salon. Last time we were there the subject of them coming over to visit us came up yet again, but something about their time schedule ususally stands in the way, so just please be asking that if that is supposed to happen, it will when it should by His timing.
It can get frustrating waiting for the next step in all of these relationships to happen. We are accustomed to moving a little more quickly than this, but we have been challenging ourselves to be patient and let things develop a little more naturally (and hopefully more sustainably) in these cases. It takes not only patience but discernment. Please just be lifting us and our contacts up.
In addition to all that I have said, I want to add: thanks for sending us here with a great team! We love our team members, and it is helping more than words can express to have them here. Last week me and Yan and Jen went together to get foot massages, and then have dessert at Pizza Hut, and it was just a fabulous night, very refreshing. And it is so nice that I already know these ladies, we are not just having to get to know each other on the field. So we are friends who know each others strengths and struggles, and we start from that point, able to sympathize and listen to each other in an educated way. Just a big blessing.
That's all for now. Also, thanks for sending Jake and Shelley. We look forward to seeing them soon!
posted by Cecely
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