It amazes me how free the kids are here. They go everywhere, alone, or with friends their age, with no adult supervision. All over the town. Many of them are already starting to work, like carrying baskets on their backs to sell plums or other fruits or vegetables. Others carry their younger siblings in baskets or cloth slings on their backs until the babies can walk. Even the babies walk the streets alone, though usually their parents will be watching from a short distance.
Life is just so safe here, that people don't need to worry about their kids. It's amazing. I wonder how long it can stay that way. I'm sure it's easier in a small town.
Our class teaching team ate lunch at the restaurant run by the family of one of our students. We had these fantastic noodles. Yum. :) Our student was helping her parents prepare some vegetables for the restaurant while we ate.
You see it everywhere here. Kids grow up young and fast. They learn about life young and fast. And they start to work hard young and fast.
One of our kids cried because she got nothing write on our test. David gave her a pep talk on perseverance. Two other kids got the top two marks in the class (one of them got 100%). These were the same two that we had given the same perseverance talk last week because they were also crying for academic reasons. There's such a wide range in our kids.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
home stretch... already?!
Due to my inability to use a Mac, you will have to scroll down to read the few words that I wrote before uploading these pictures... but meanwhile, please enjoy the visuals! ^^
English classes happen every morning. Here is the wonderful Class 3 (around Gr.6) :D
Here's our big group picture before Daniel and Cenia (TAs) left. The program for teachers teaching teachers (Chinese teachers learning to teach English) ended on Saturday, so we've had to say farewells already. Please remember Daniel, a new C with a lot of big decisions on his plate, and Cenia, not yet a C.
Most mornings we perform a skit during the opening session. Here is the popular "Farmer Dave" playing the Good Samaritan.
Sidewalk Chalk! Here are the 30cent Walmart purchases in action. They just loooove it~
A close-up of said wonderful sidewalk chalk
Bobby and Bryan doing some outdoor games. Beautiful sunny days ^^
I'm glad one of us got a shot of this group... please bring these 5 students especially before the Throne. Larry, Jay, John, Lamont, and Chris -- they are all in my Gr.6 class, and 4 (not so sure about the fifth) were caught smoking in the washroom last week. They are troublemakers in a sense, very rowdy, but also really sweet boys ... just breaks my heart that they would abuse their bodies in this way. I'm so glad they were able to hear what Bobby mentioned in the previous post.
Thank you to the guys for keeping the updates rolling! It's been an exhausting few weeks, yet we simply cannot believe that there are only a few days left. Last Saturday has already hostd a few farewells -- please remember Daniel (one I don't think any of us are ready for all the goodbyes we will have to say this coming weekend. Saturday morning will be the last day we have with our students... a few team members and all the TAs will be leaving on Sunday... we just keep asking Him to move mightily during our remaining time together.
Like Bobby said, there have been so many seeds planted... from simply talking to Father in the presence of our students to making crafts with crosses on them... we've been noticing that they've been noticing.
Please keep us in mind as we wrap up the teaching portion of our journey -- may we finish the race running strong!
May I introduce you to Mark (top) and Steven (bottom). As you can see, they are a bit rough-and-tumble, but we are always entertained by their antics. Both their parents work (and live?) at the Youth Center, so these boys hang around us a lot after classes and in the evenings. We were even led on a hike up the mountains by them! This is a prime instance of seed-planting opportunity ;)
Crafts class! The best afternoon activity ever!! (In addition to games, sports, and drama/reading of course)
Some of the finished products. Amazing what joy can be brought by a few pompoms, glitter, and other cheap decorations! I wish I'd brought more...
English classes happen every morning. Here is the wonderful Class 3 (around Gr.6) :D
Here's our big group picture before Daniel and Cenia (TAs) left. The program for teachers teaching teachers (Chinese teachers learning to teach English) ended on Saturday, so we've had to say farewells already. Please remember Daniel, a new C with a lot of big decisions on his plate, and Cenia, not yet a C.
Most mornings we perform a skit during the opening session. Here is the popular "Farmer Dave" playing the Good Samaritan.
Sidewalk Chalk! Here are the 30cent Walmart purchases in action. They just loooove it~
A close-up of said wonderful sidewalk chalk
Bobby and Bryan doing some outdoor games. Beautiful sunny days ^^
I'm glad one of us got a shot of this group... please bring these 5 students especially before the Throne. Larry, Jay, John, Lamont, and Chris -- they are all in my Gr.6 class, and 4 (not so sure about the fifth) were caught smoking in the washroom last week. They are troublemakers in a sense, very rowdy, but also really sweet boys ... just breaks my heart that they would abuse their bodies in this way. I'm so glad they were able to hear what Bobby mentioned in the previous post.Thank you to the guys for keeping the updates rolling! It's been an exhausting few weeks, yet we simply cannot believe that there are only a few days left. Last Saturday has already hostd a few farewells -- please remember Daniel (one I don't think any of us are ready for all the goodbyes we will have to say this coming weekend. Saturday morning will be the last day we have with our students... a few team members and all the TAs will be leaving on Sunday... we just keep asking Him to move mightily during our remaining time together.
Like Bobby said, there have been so many seeds planted... from simply talking to Father in the presence of our students to making crafts with crosses on them... we've been noticing that they've been noticing.
Please keep us in mind as we wrap up the teaching portion of our journey -- may we finish the race running strong!
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Corellation is not necessarily causation
I have learned that washing clothes by hand is extremely hard work. Crazy. I spent what felt like an hour washing four pairs of socks. My clothes were soaked from the shower head. Finally, the socks were sufficiently clean (not all the other clothes that still need washing), so I took them outside to dry. There's a long wire where everyone hangs their clothes.
As I stepped out, Harry Potter was sitting there. And it started to rain. I couldn't believe it, it had been a sunny day up to the point when I brought out my socks to dry. I brought them back inside to hang them somewhere in the hallway. And just when I finished hanging them, it stopped raining. So I brought them back out. Harry Potter said to be careful because obviously my socks had power over the rain. And of course, it started rain again, just as I stepped out. But it was only sprinkling, so I risked the chance that it would stop.
We had a carnival for the kids outside today. In the pouring rain. Emphasize pouring. Why did I have to leave my socks outside??
Caught some kids smoking. They denied it at first, but the smell was clearly there. After emphasizing the importance of telling the truth, and the amount of respect one gains from being able to tell the truth, they were willing to admit that they were smoking. We had a discussion on the negative effects of smoking. But I did not command them to stop smoking. I said that it was my preference that they not smoke, and focus on fulfilling their potential. I asked that they make the decision for themselves, as young men. These kids are 11, 12? I wanted to give these kids the ability to develop respect for themselves, that their opinions mattered, and that they could make decisions for themselves that depended on their own thoughts, rather than external factors like peer pressure. I wanted them to feel like they were making a positive decision, instead of being punished. Was I taking the right tact in dealing with this matter?
I hope that every single lesson I give to these kids is taken seriously. They seem to be listening on some fronts, but not on others. They don't fight as much anymore. Some of them have really responded to the talks on leadership. Some of them have responded to the talks on helping those who can't do things on their own. A lot of them still disrespect each other, while others have become very good friends. Is this really working? I don't know. But I hope that these kids are really learning. We are so limited as ST, and also, the local rules complicate things, so that we can only use allegories, stories, lessons, and so on, without being able to discuss what we really want. Frustrating, but also so positive when we see some of these kids actually growing. :)
They stopped calling me Bobby Wawa. I'm not sure what it is they call me right now. I'm trying to figure it out.
Eric's a superstar. He made pizza for all the kids, and for most of them, it was the first time they've ever tasted pizza. Today, kids were bringing him gifts. Not just any gifts. Porcelain figurines, hourglasses, etc. We had some pizza too, it was great. But it was insane about how much it filled up my stomach. My stomach seems to have shrunk, and pizza doesn't seem to fit in there as well as it used to.
I hit my head. There's a small gash there. I was in the home ec room, watching some of the YC's home ec students make pizza, according to Eric's recipe. On the way out, the door frame is really low, and I crashed into it and fell down. Which gave me a nice burn on my right forearm. I'd forgotten what peroxide feels like.... It seems like we're becoming the walking wounded. Bryan sprained his ankle. Carrie's immune system has acted up. Sarah has a bit of a fever. Please think about us. :)
We're entering our last week with the kids. Oh please keep them in mind. Also, we planted some seeds the other day. With the rain here, these plants should also be able to grow really well. But who am I to say? Big daddy says that they could grow well. I hope they do, the beans would be great.
Bobby (something? not Wawa anyway)
As I stepped out, Harry Potter was sitting there. And it started to rain. I couldn't believe it, it had been a sunny day up to the point when I brought out my socks to dry. I brought them back inside to hang them somewhere in the hallway. And just when I finished hanging them, it stopped raining. So I brought them back out. Harry Potter said to be careful because obviously my socks had power over the rain. And of course, it started rain again, just as I stepped out. But it was only sprinkling, so I risked the chance that it would stop.
We had a carnival for the kids outside today. In the pouring rain. Emphasize pouring. Why did I have to leave my socks outside??
Caught some kids smoking. They denied it at first, but the smell was clearly there. After emphasizing the importance of telling the truth, and the amount of respect one gains from being able to tell the truth, they were willing to admit that they were smoking. We had a discussion on the negative effects of smoking. But I did not command them to stop smoking. I said that it was my preference that they not smoke, and focus on fulfilling their potential. I asked that they make the decision for themselves, as young men. These kids are 11, 12? I wanted to give these kids the ability to develop respect for themselves, that their opinions mattered, and that they could make decisions for themselves that depended on their own thoughts, rather than external factors like peer pressure. I wanted them to feel like they were making a positive decision, instead of being punished. Was I taking the right tact in dealing with this matter?
I hope that every single lesson I give to these kids is taken seriously. They seem to be listening on some fronts, but not on others. They don't fight as much anymore. Some of them have really responded to the talks on leadership. Some of them have responded to the talks on helping those who can't do things on their own. A lot of them still disrespect each other, while others have become very good friends. Is this really working? I don't know. But I hope that these kids are really learning. We are so limited as ST, and also, the local rules complicate things, so that we can only use allegories, stories, lessons, and so on, without being able to discuss what we really want. Frustrating, but also so positive when we see some of these kids actually growing. :)
They stopped calling me Bobby Wawa. I'm not sure what it is they call me right now. I'm trying to figure it out.
Eric's a superstar. He made pizza for all the kids, and for most of them, it was the first time they've ever tasted pizza. Today, kids were bringing him gifts. Not just any gifts. Porcelain figurines, hourglasses, etc. We had some pizza too, it was great. But it was insane about how much it filled up my stomach. My stomach seems to have shrunk, and pizza doesn't seem to fit in there as well as it used to.
I hit my head. There's a small gash there. I was in the home ec room, watching some of the YC's home ec students make pizza, according to Eric's recipe. On the way out, the door frame is really low, and I crashed into it and fell down. Which gave me a nice burn on my right forearm. I'd forgotten what peroxide feels like.... It seems like we're becoming the walking wounded. Bryan sprained his ankle. Carrie's immune system has acted up. Sarah has a bit of a fever. Please think about us. :)
We're entering our last week with the kids. Oh please keep them in mind. Also, we planted some seeds the other day. With the rain here, these plants should also be able to grow really well. But who am I to say? Big daddy says that they could grow well. I hope they do, the beans would be great.
Bobby (something? not Wawa anyway)
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
GOOD news of GREAT joy! :D
Somedays the Father just blows your socks off... or in my case today, dries your socks off. That's right, after rain every day for the past week, with our clothes getting ever dirtier and no place to dry them well, He has gifted us with an afternoon of bright warm sunshine! The sun brought a smile to many faces...
...but the REAL great news is that the Son brought even BIGGER smiles to us this evening. Every night, we have a time for team sharing. Usually, one person shares his/her personal testimony and we pray for that brother/sister together. Father has used these "family" times to the true glory of His name...what we've heard and learned has been nothing short of amazing. During tonight's gathering, not only did we get to hear yet another story of His grace & love, but we also celebrated a Very Special Occasion -- one of the TAs from Chengdu (they have been invaluable in helping us get through these weeks) has decided to give his life over to Him!!! WOW. We are so humbled and honoured that we were invited to be part of this significant step.
For more details, please email one of the team members... We can inform you that his name is Edwin. Please remember him. If you wish to address a short message to him too, please leave a comment and I'll make sure he receives it. ^^
Longer update with more pictures later! Here we are about an hour ago, our whole team (minus our illustrious leader who took the picture) plus the TAs ... very sleepy but very, very happy. :)
May I thank you once more for your faithfulness in talking to our Abba about our various requests...here He is, answering us.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
I have a new name
Bobby Wawa. All the girl kids call me it. So here's the story.
Remember the blog thing I wrote on my personal blog about how Korean people always get so confused about my name and call me Barbie? Apparently, Bobby sounds like Barbie in Chinese (Mandarin or Sichuanhua, I'm not sure). And wawa means doll. So they call me Bobby Wawa.
My shoes are wonderful. I bought them on Boxing Day. I needed shoes with good ankle support, so I got some basketball shoes. The guy at Sportcheck told me about these great vents on the bottom that let my feet breathe. All the guys there bought this shoe for playing basketball. Sounds great! I got them cheap because it was Boxing Day!
In Vancouver, this vent "feature" sometimes felt like a bug. Whenever you step in a puddle, you can guess what happens. Here in ZJ, where it has been raining for almost a week, I have experienced the "benefits" of this "feature" every day. Especially today, after playing soccer with the soccer camp's kids. It was raining, and I slipped too easily (four times?). I need new socks. Or I need to wash my old ones fast. I'm wearing Tim's socks right now.
Back to class tomorrow. It's getting interesting. We had an interesting discussion on fighting. When is fighting ok, when is it not ok? What's the difference between a bully and a protector? Why should fighting not be taken lightly, and why should one tread with caution? I hope that we have calmed them down a bit. This class in particular was very rowdy. Aussie-Rule Duck Duck Goose. I've never seen anything like it.
We are going to be going more into personal development lessons later this week. Please keep it in mind.
Bobby Wawa
Remember the blog thing I wrote on my personal blog about how Korean people always get so confused about my name and call me Barbie? Apparently, Bobby sounds like Barbie in Chinese (Mandarin or Sichuanhua, I'm not sure). And wawa means doll. So they call me Bobby Wawa.
My shoes are wonderful. I bought them on Boxing Day. I needed shoes with good ankle support, so I got some basketball shoes. The guy at Sportcheck told me about these great vents on the bottom that let my feet breathe. All the guys there bought this shoe for playing basketball. Sounds great! I got them cheap because it was Boxing Day!
In Vancouver, this vent "feature" sometimes felt like a bug. Whenever you step in a puddle, you can guess what happens. Here in ZJ, where it has been raining for almost a week, I have experienced the "benefits" of this "feature" every day. Especially today, after playing soccer with the soccer camp's kids. It was raining, and I slipped too easily (four times?). I need new socks. Or I need to wash my old ones fast. I'm wearing Tim's socks right now.
Back to class tomorrow. It's getting interesting. We had an interesting discussion on fighting. When is fighting ok, when is it not ok? What's the difference between a bully and a protector? Why should fighting not be taken lightly, and why should one tread with caution? I hope that we have calmed them down a bit. This class in particular was very rowdy. Aussie-Rule Duck Duck Goose. I've never seen anything like it.
We are going to be going more into personal development lessons later this week. Please keep it in mind.
Bobby Wawa
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Its Saturday!!! Tomr is Sun. !!!
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Last day for teaching...ya teaching on sat., morning only, but had to do mini-Olympics (soo tried now). Thx the father for not raining on us (just mist), and it was perfect timing. It is done!!! (mini-o) and now its the time for rest, one day, then another 6 day of teaching. Lot of planing still needed! Everyone here is so fun to be with and so fun to talk and learn from. So much lessons learned and so much friends made. Sunday tomr!!!! one more hour of sleep (waking up at 8!!! thx JC) I need all the rest I can get and be ready for the next week. The kids are soo fun to be with, wait SOME of the kids are soo fun to be with. Next week is going to be fun but going to be a lot of hard work. ttyl (don't mind me, my thoughts are everywhere) :D
Dave
Dave
Friday, July 20, 2007
Eat and Sleep
The day is going so fast... Wake up, devo, eat, class, lunch, sleep, class, dinner, devo, sleep, and restart... The food is soo good!!! :D 2-3 bow of rice for lunch and dinner! Its 2:15 !!!!! wish that I can type more but g2g to class. post more later
Dave
Dave
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