First Day Jitters

Actually, I had none. I was relaxed as a cow chompin' grass on a sunny day. In the shade. With some water to wash down the grass. Anyways, I think they pulled my students out of a fairy tale. Well, maybe not, but close. I'm sure they'll learn to have "fun" after they get used to me. Haha I'm expecting them to. I need SOMEONE to keep in line.

Anyways, things went swimmingly. Stellar, if you will. No one died, and I didn't end up as tired as I figured I would. That was until I walked home. I walked home today with a microwave, a rice cooker, a blender, 4 plates, 4 bowls, a dish drainer, a spatula and ladle, a skillet, a water bottle, a cutting board, a key basket, a strainer, 3 locky platic storage thingies, a carrot peeler, a knife, scissors, a jug, paper clips, and a partridge in a pear tree. Well, minus the bird. I had the microwave, rice cooker, and blender barely balanced on the little tilted back rolley thing and the bags of the rest cutting in to my hands. I was determined. I made it. I was GOING to take a bike ride...

Well, that's about it. My kids said 5th grade is fun so far. Haha just wait little angels. Hopefully I can make it fun. Please pray for them because I know that at least 3 don't know the Lord. I had them write testimonies today. Peace!

Short Arms

The sky has been bipolar the last few days. I wake up to the clearest blue sky you've ever seen, and then hours later WHAM! Torrential downpour. Then more blue sky and sun and then the heaviest rain you've heard. So, as I walked home in the rain today, I realized that I think Asian umbrellas have a shorter handle because they have short arms. Maybe other umbrellas are that short, but I haven't carried anything but Asian ones in so long that I can't remember.

I got my classroom all set up. Just when I thought I was done, I though of 10 other little things that needed to get done. And then after my classroom was all set up, I moved my desk clear across the room. Guess I wasn't done after all.

We have projectors, and I have a computer!!! I was thrilled to say the least. I made a rules and procedures power point. I figure it would be more interesting than me standing up there gabbing while they drift off into lala land. I'm so happy that I can show video clips and pictures and websites pertaining to the lessons! :D

Tonight we're going to Tony Romas to celebrate the birthdays of Robyn et Moi. Then we're going to Robyn and Robbie's house to chit chat, hang out, and eat REAL cheesecake, chocolate chip cookies, and birthday cake that Robyn and I made together last night. As we baked, we reminisced about the last time I was over and we made frosting using Korean ingredients. The frosting ended up more like a greasy fudge that slide around the mixing bowl in one giant lump. That gave us the jollies.

Last night I wrote and practiced my maid of honor speech. I'm not sure why I did it so far in advance, but for some reason I thought of it and wanted to do it. Of course, I cried like a loser and then realized that if I get up there to give it, I might barf, run, or bawl. Maybe all three...we'll see when the time comes. I can just see myself in front of 400+ people...oh great, I'm freaking myself out now. I'll shut up about it.

I bought this coffee powder stuff...it works.

I've had this revelation that heat rash isn't fun.

The only thing I have left to do it buy hangers and get the other half of my clothes together, clean my oven and figure out where the battery goes, and move my new microwave, dishes, rice cooker, iron, etc. from school to home. Haha then I'm all set! No more living on PB+J, yogurt, bananas, and green tea.

I love aircon. It's like an addiction that I need to be unaddicted to because it will cost me $$. But it's so nice...aircon addicts anon.

I'm excited about this school year. I can't wait to start teaching and get to know my kids. I pray they will all accept Christ. In His time, and not mine. I'm so blessed by God. I can't even count all the ways He's poured blessings on me. I love Him.

Should have bought non perishables

Probably the most exciting part of my day was arriving home from work (I left my house at 8:15 and got back at 5:15) and finding a box of 16 yogurts sitting on my table. In my haste this morning, I left them sitting there. BLAH! There goes about 8 bucks down the drain. A good start to my year of money saving. I should have bought only non perishable items.

Other than that, my day was honestly just cleaning, setting up, and planning. Nothing interesting. I got my TV back in my house today. It's not plugged in, and I think I'll keep it that way for now. Peace.

All About God

I dedicate this post, and my life, to my wonderful God.

God is amazingly amazing. God is indescribable. Awesome. All powerful. All knowing. Loving. Perfect. Holy. Wonderful. Mighty. Reigning. Creator. Father. Beginning and End. Giver of Good. Unchanging. Ruler. Beautiful. Gentle. Shepherd. Pure. Most High. Everywhere. Drier of Tears. Leader. Giver of Life. Unlike any other. Calmer. Peace. Given to All. Giver of Good Gifts. Trustworthy. Sovereign. Truth. Mine.

We serve a great God who is our very best friend. Unlike earthly human friends, God is truly faithful. He never gets tired of our questions. Never says "That's it! I've had it with you!" when we mess up...over and over. He is never late. In fact, He's never not there. His phone would never be turned off if He had one. He doesn't sleep so we can always talk to Him anywhere we are. He doesn't laugh at our dumb questions. He never gets mad and gives us the silent treatment. He doesn't forget anything we tell Him or ask Him. He always always listens and has the best advice for us. He's always watching out for us and always there to pick us up and dust us off when we fall. There's no job that's too hard for Him, and He helps us get done everything that needs to get done. He died for us and rose for us. What earthly friend would or could do that?

I'm thankful that God has the puzzle box. He can see the picture on the front. I know that if He showed me the picture, I would have a nervous breakdown because it's so big and detailed. He provides me with one puzzle piece at a time. One trial here, a blessing there, a weakness in this piece, a strength in that one. And as time passes, I can see the puzzle being put together. Of course things that didn't make sense before make sense now because they have other pieces around them. Of course everything fits together just right and paints a beautiful picture because who else painted it but God? Of course it's not complete, but I can rest assured that each piece will come in time. The finished product will be amazing. Each piece works together for good. Each piece piece brings more days during which I can serve God. Maybe I'll see the whole thing when I rest in Heaven, but for now I'm content just to see piece by piece. And I'm happy knowing that God is perfect and knows exactly what He's doing. The stormy pieces fit just right with the blue skies.

I'm sickish right now. My body is tired from 2.5 months of traveling. I'm moving in to a new house and setting up my classroom. The days are long and filled with sweat, moving heavy things, frustration, and weariness. I asked God, "couldn't you have waited for the weekend to make me sick? I'd gladly take a trial then." But sweetly He whispered back that His grace is enough. Of course. Isn't it always? Absolutely. So, yes, I get frustrated and throw my broken stapler down when the bulletin board paper rolls up and I run out of staples. When my back hurts from moving book cases and I just want to stop sweating. Guilty. But then I run over, shut the door, turn off the light, sit in the corner, close my eyes, and pray. I tell God that I'm overwhelmed, sick, tired, hot and frustrated. I ask Him to take it all away and help me rely on His strength. I tell Him I can't do this. I bet He loves hearing that. He reminds me that I'm right. I can't. But He can. God never promises that we won't have trials in our lives, but He does promise that when they come, His grace will be enough. That He won't give me more than I can handle. And I love Him more for that. When my burdens seem too hard to bear, I look to the cross. There I see that Jesus already bore them for me.

God doesn't drop us off at the beginning of a trial and say, "See you at the end!" No, He goes before us blazing the trail. He goes behind us, protecting us from danger. And He goes beside us, urging us on and holding our hand. Picking us up when we fall and singing to us of His strength. He helps us have real joy in the hard times. He's that bright star that you see when the wind blows the thundercloud away for just a moment.

When we walk by faith, we walk the path that God has already bush-wacked. I think about the future. China seems so far away and yet so close. So close I can taste it. I day dream about it all the time. The passion won't go away. Sometimes the devil whispers in my ear thoughts of "you can't do it alone" and "you're too weak." But why should I put limitations on God? He doesn't even need me. He just chooses to use me. When I am willing, clean, and right with Him, then He will use me however He sees fit. I'm thankful that I can put my complete faith and trust in Him. He might use me in small ways, or they might be big. Whatever it is, I can trust Him to lead. I don't have to worry where I'll go or what I'll do or who I'll meet. He has all that set up. I can just trust. Sometimes God allows the clouds to cover up the sun so that, in faith, we might still believe the sun is there.

There's so much more I could say about God. So many more ways I could praise Him. If I were to write a book of all His praises, it would take longer than eternity! He's awesome. Awesome is a word invented by humans and doesn't even come close to describing God. He's...maybe in Heaven. :) Peace.

Always Good

12:20am. I'm lying in my stuffy hot house (1. I refuse to use my aircon because I want to save money for my orphanage 2. I couldn't use it anyways because it leaks if I do) on my bed talking to God before I go to sleep. The power goes out. I didn't have any windows open...I'm not quite sure why...but I don't know how much it would help since the night was warm anyways. My first thought, as I starting sweating, is GREAT. Wonderful. Just what I need right now. I'm sick, I have to get up early, it's pitch black and I have NO idea how to get the power back on, and there goes the power. Well, that thought only lasted about 5 seconds until the God I was talking to only moments before shook me and basically said, "Hello. I'm still here. I'm still good. I will still take care of you."

And I thought...what if I have my orphanage in a very poor part of China where we could only dream of aircon and where the power goes out often? How would I react then? How SHOULD I react? I have a wonderful apartment, I almost always have fans, and I'm really blessed. God is always good to me because He loves me and wants to take care of me. Sometimes He tests me to see how my faith and trust will hold up in a sticky situation (no pun intended.) I just read a blog written by a girl that has an orphanage in Africa, and her power was off for 5 days! Yeah, I can deal with one night if need be.

So, I took my i-touch (about the only source of light I had. Note to self: buy a flashlight) and went to investigate. I found the little box thingy that has those switches in it. Of course, being the skilled mechanic that I am...not. Not only do I have no idea why they have those switches, but on top of that the words are in Korean. I chuckled to myself. Then I thanked God that I had wireless internet and my i-touch was charged. I whipped out Google translator and translated those words. One was for water...nope. One for heat...definitely NOT. And the last one, which was surrounded by a red sticker and a bunch of Korean words, meant POWER. HA! I found it! Well, sort of.

Usually glaring red means STOP, DON'T TOUCH. Hmm...I translated the word on the actual button, and it meant "off." Well, I thought, if I flip the switch the other side should read "on." You have to understand that I'm always, always afraid that something in my house will start a fire. In this case it was that coupled with the fear that I would flip some Korean switch and cut off the power to the whole city of Seoul. I prayed and said, "Ok, Lord, I have no earthly idea if this is right, but here goes!" And flipped it. The power flickered and died. So I tried again. This time I heard the soft noise of the fan, and all the lights came on.

With a smile and a strengthened trust, I went back to bed. Even when a situation might not seem like it's good, God is always good. In this case I had to get past selfishly looking after my own comfort, and trust that God knew what was best. And He worked it out in the end. He's always good.

Today we start inservice. Moving heavy boxes of books, cleaning classrooms, setting up desks and bulletin boards, and sweating. :) Should be good times. School starts one week from tomorrow, and I'm excited to meet my students. Peace.

For All I've Been Given

I have so much. They have so little. I put worth and importance all to often in material possessions, while they have one, maybe two, pairs and clothing and sometimes not even enough food to feed their family. I worry about my aircon not working while they live in a cave in the side of a mountain. I get tired of sweating while unpacking suitcases full of clothes and shoes and other beautiful things so I sit in front of a fan blowing on my face. They could only dream about electricity. I put away books that I haven't read in a long time. Many of them can't even read. I upload pictures from my awesome camera. Would they ever have that? What do they have? What do they need? Do they need all these things I have? Do I need all these things that I have?

No. Not really. We need food and water to keep us alive. Shelter from the elements might be a welcome touch. Some clothes could be desired. But really what we all need, what I need to bring to them, is Jesus. His love, His care, His provision. The knowledge that they, and I, can have a true and strong and lasting and amazing relationship with Him.

Before I came to Korea, I was quite proud of myself that I downsized to a big suitcase, a little suitcase, a backpack, and two bins. That was my life. I threw out 5 large trash bags full of stuff.

Then I come here and I see that, compared to others, I don't have as many clothes (though I have many!) and I don't have as many shoes. I don't have as much jewelry or purses or perfumes or nail polish or... I need to buy more. I need to be changing my outfits more to fit in better. I need to stop wearing and using the same things and get more. I need to spend more money. So, I spend, quite carelessly at times, money that I don't need to be spending. And then, as a result, I have more. Now as I unpack my house at the beginning of a new school year, I realize how much I have. I see how much I've spent. I realize that I could have used that money to save for the future, sponsor a child, help someone in need, or just give it back to God in the offering at church. Sure, I've done those things, but not nearly as much as I could have and should have. This makes me ashamed. This shows me how much focus I've put in possessions.

And then, like He does, Jesus lifts up my face. He reminds me that I can start over. That it's never too late to start focusing more on what matters. On what lasts. To some, having this much might seem like it's not a problem. But for me, who wants to open an orphanage in China (and that takes money) this is a problem. This is me being a bad steward of my money and time. And so, I pray that God will forgive me for this and help me focus on what's truly important. Instead of shopping, spend time with HIm. INstead of spending, save. Save for the beautiful Chinese children that I already love even though I haven't met them.

Today I'm feeling a bit under the weather. I didn't go to church, but an online sermon will take it's place. I should feel overwhelmed by all I have to do in my house, but I'm not. I know that God will help me to get it all done. I'm excited for a new school year because I want God to use me to help change kids lives. I want to do show and tell every day. Show them Jesus in my life and use my voice to tell them of His love. As much as a strongly miss China, I'm content. I am really content. I know I'm needed here and I know I'll be used here for God's will. China can wait while I serve God in Korea. I'll be back. Someday. :)

Woke Up and Wrote Part 2

So now that I've successfully slept about 5.5 hours, I'm ready for a new day. I went to visit with one of the new couples who will be teaching here, and I accidentally talked their ear off. They were very gracious and very sweet. Then I went to see the Mays. Those were some happy times. We all went shopping together. When I looked around my house last night, I realized I really had nothing. No dishes, no towels (I used an old tee shirt), no cups, no extension chords, and other things I might need in the future like an ironing board or a rice cooker. When I came home from shopping, I lugged 2 huge bags full of stuff and a bamboo mat about 50,000 miles uphill both ways in the snow. I finally made it home (thankfully, it was hot today) and figured that it is all part of character building. Or something...but now I have many things that I need.

Korea is so...organized and...clean. I crossed the street when there were no cars, and I got some strange stares. I looked up and the little red man was screaming at me to wait until he magically turned green. Oops...but in China it's ok. *grin* I didn't die, so that's good. I notice huge differences between Korea and China, but they're hard to explain. That's ok. You'll just have to come here and see for yourself.

Here are some more updates:

Tuesday August 10

Won't really update today. It'll be the abbrev. Version.

Got up for breakfast. Scratchy tired eyes. A hazy polluted day. You
could barely see the city whereas on normal days it's crystal clear.

Played with the babies all morning so Rena could have company. We get
along well. :)

After lunch I napped for too long and this time it really was by
accident. Well, it made up for the little sleep I got last night.

Played with the babies again till dinner. Then ate and it was a merry
time of course. After dinner we...drum roll...played with the babies
again. And I decided it was my turn to get icecream again, so we
walked to the store and got it. It was yum.

We then proceeded to play a game of Sorry during which the sun went
down and we were all squinting to read the cards. I won.

Then we gathered in the older girls' room and played UNO a bazillion
times. People dropped out until we were down to four over giggling
girls mixing chinese and English words to make sentences. We laughed
till we cried and laughed some more. You only get nights like that once
In a while.

Now it's bed time. The shower situation was the same, so I bathed
using handfuls of warm water out of the sink. It is cloudy water today.

A beautiful cool day. A good end to a Tuesday. Love you! Peace.

Thursday August 12

I stayed up until 1:45 last night reading the news, washing clothes,
and trying to catch the MASSIVE cricket that flew into my room. That's
what I get for leaving the window open. So, upon arising this morn, I
was exceptionally exhausted. Haha. I pried myself out of bed at 7 so I
could eat breakfast, and promptly went back to sleep from 8-10. That
was a good idea. When I woke up I felt wildly rested and I didn't even
care to take a nap today. I still haven't caught the intruder, so I
slept in fear with a tee shirt wrapped around my feet in case he
decided to attack in my sleep. Never! But believe me when I say...he
was ginormous!

I hung out in the airconed nursery with the bebes and Rena until noon
when it was time for lunch. Then went to lunch, Which was a tasty mix
of noodles, greens, green beans, tomato sauce, and a few other veggies
and spices. The apple after was delicious. It was green, which is the
best color for an apple to be. Yammy!

After lunch was UNO! Wow I've nevered played it in my life! This was
my first time and it was oh so fun! I think the kids need to get out
more because they're always at each others throats during the games.
Sometimes literally. Even the sweetest ones go nuts. And conspire
against me. Thankfully Ive picked up on much of their Chinese through
context clues and words that I know from studying and listening. I can
usually call them out when they're out to get me. Anyways, we did get
out. They took the trash cart to the dump. Then of course we had to
stop in the dinky dimly lit store for some expired food and yummy
popsicles. We made our way back only to be confronted with UNO. It
was a "lively" game with much bickering, so when it was done I just
left. Now here I am in the privacy of my own room writing.

I love how no one in china walks fast. They just take their sweet time
down those dirt roads surrounded my concrete slabs of houses. I love
how they sit and fan themselves under the trees and next to the
overgrown shrubs and weeds. I love how corn and pumpkins grow wild in
front of the police station. I love how the little puppies run around
next to the babies wearing not even a diaper. I love how the trash
piles sit at the top of a beautiful ravine with swirling rows of green
green cornfields in the middle of groves of trees with the backdrop of
the smogey city. I love how there are no cross and don't cross signs.
You just weeve in and out of cars who honk just to be heard as you
calmly make your way across the street. I love how old and young
ladies and men alike sit on the side of the hill under their red
umbrellas selling the most massive and delectable grapes of my life. I
love how little kids ride their bikes down the road and almost crash
because they're staring. I love meal times when anything goes. I love
all the cars and how they just work together to form organized chaos.
I love seeing a kid in front of the dad on the motor cycle sitting on
top of boxes that are stacked up on the motorcycle floor while the mom
And the rest of the kids sit in the cart which the motor cycle is
pulling. I love how no one knows how to form a line anywhere for any
reason. I love how bugs love you as much as little kids do. I love how
no one wears deoderant and no one cares. I love how old ladies squat
down outside at the hose to wash their dishes in cold water with no
soap. I love how sitting on cardboard is just as adequate as a chair.
I love how people wear the same thing over and over. I love how the
smog overtakes the city but you can still See the sun...sometimes. I
love how icecream is really cheap. I love how everything is really
cheap. I love the tak taks. I love how no one shaves their legs. I
love how cute the bebes are. I love the path that cuts through the
corn field and the weeds that whip your legs while you run through it.
I love the gates that are barely hanging on their hinges. I love the
random rusty exercise equiptment on the side of the road. I love the
hilariously overdone and cheesy Televison shows. I love all the random
smells..well, most of them. I love the man stoking the fire on the
side of the road next to the telephone pole. I love the kids
on the roof with their red plastic bags tied to old casette tape
string stuff flying them in the breeze like kites. I love how the taxi
drivers meter doesn't work so he just quotes you some random price. I
love how everywhere is a garbage can. I love bargaining. I love how
they all want to be in a picture with you. I love the cheaply made
merchandise. I love how the supermarket is like a super walmart times
three. I love how it's totally ok to bump in to people cause no one
knows what personal space is. I love how the bus is like 20 cents and
super
Overcrowded and dirty. I love how they hunt bugs at night with a
flashlight so they can eat them. I love NOT eating them. I love how
oreos are two times as much as a water bottle. I love the random
chinglish tee shirts and signs. I love the motortaxis that call out to
you to try and get you to ride them. I love how every day is fashion
disaster day. I love how it's ok to sweat all over everything cause
everyone does and no one cares. I love how stores are just thrown
together. And I love how the people give massive smiles when I smile
at them. Some of the many reasons I love china.

I went up and played with the babies and realized I was a bit tired so
I came down and napped for about 20 minutes. Then it was time for
dinner. I was late so I didn't get my usual spot at the table outside
in the cool night air, but inside was surprisingly cool as well. After
dinner we went to get Popsicles. I had to round it off to an even 4
times that I bought. Everyone loves Popsicles and I love that they
love them so I bought. The kids ran ahead with the bags of Popsicles
while I took pictures. By the the time I got there only one popsicle
was left and it was the kind I like. good. So we ate and then the kids
practiced for the talent show while
I played ring around the rosie with about 8 babies who just laughed
and laughed as we all got dizzy going round and round in a circle. All
the while I though how depressing that rhyme is. Soon it was dark, the
babies went to bed, and some ofthe older girl went to play UNO. It wad
good times with lots of laughing and trying to guess each others
cards. We sit on the tile floor of the bedroom with two fans blowing
on us so we can try and stay cool.

Now, alas, the day is done. Tomorrow is my final day in Gongyi and
then it's on to Xuzhou. That should be oodles of fun! Tomorrow I head
off to Zhengzhou for a day of shopping with Rena and Heidi. Rena was
apprehensive about going because she had never been to the city. I said
me either. Where's your sense of adventure child! She ended up saying
yes and I didn't even really have to try to convince her.

Uh oh the cricket is back. I heard his large body thump on something.
Better go find him, shower, wash my clothes, and get into bed so I can
be rested for tomorrow. Peace!

Found him! Time to command and conquer!

Friday august 13

The world was blanketed in fog when I peeled myself out of bed this
morning. I could only hear the chatter coming from the direction of
the dining room, but I could barely make out the people. I ate in a
groggy state. That's what I get for staying up too late again. After
eating I went to lie back down until just before we were going to
leave at 8. Rena knocked on my door early, and she and Heidi were
ready to go, so I got ready and dashed out the door. And thus began
our day.

We caught one of the guys as he was driving the van out the gate so we
hitched a ride to the bus. I thought Chinese taxi drivers were crazy.
Talk about a real life video game of dodging
people, cars, and motor cycles while weaving in and out of massive
trucks carrying whatever full up to the brim. And I learned that you
don't have to drive on your side of the road. Good to know. The bus
was leaving so our driver cut across the oncoming lane and parked
right in front of the bus. We scampered out and hopped on.

The bus took us to the other bus. Wow, if I never bounce again in my
life it'll be way too soon. We were under the impression that not only
was this bus cheaper, but it was also faster. About the only redeeming
quality was the aircon. The bus bouned and bounced and weaves through
traffic up the hill in the fog next to a cliff. I paid two bucks for a
2 hour long half broken amusement park ride on which I was sure I'd die.

Anyways, we didn't die. We made it to the outskirts of Zhengzhou. We
hopped off the bounce land and onto a city bus which we rode right to
the foot of the shopping centers.

The rest of the day was spent going up and down, in and out of
buildings and shops. The purchases were the heaviest things of my life! I bought a tote style bag in which to carry them so I could take them on the plane. I think
I still have a shoulder. Rena helped me carry it.

Rena's brother met us there. He studies and works in Zhengzhou. He
took us to a place for lunch. 50 cents for a bowl of noodles. It was
filling too.

After lunch we shopped some more. Heidi bought a bag, rena bought a
shirt and a hat, and I browsed and wanted to buy lots. I refrained.
Partly because I knew I'd have to carry it.

We tried to take the train home but the next train wasn't until 6:30
which we deemed too late. As it turned out, we rode the crowded city
bus for an hour and got on the highway bus at 6:30. BUT we saved 8
yuan. Rena was happy about that.

We made it home despite the fact that a thunderstorm started and again
I thought we'd die. For a bit we drove on a small incline and the hill
next to us had turned into a muddy river. There was literally fast
flowing water up to the curb overflowing onto the grass and gushing
out of the man holes. One van was trying to drive in it
and all I could say was good luck Sparky. Another motorcycle acted
surprised when he got splashed. I thought "dude, the sky is gushing
and your driving next to a puddle the size of Texas driving an open
vehicle with monster trucks all around you. Let's think about this
one." then there were the ghost riders on their motor cycles heads and
bodies covered in black ponchos speeding down the highway in the rain.

At last we made it, hired a taxi to take us to the top of the hill,
and made our way through the darkened streets toward home. The only
light, for there were no street lights, was the occaisional flash of
lightning and the dim glow of the distant city lights. Carrying my
gigantic bag I slipped and slided through the mud in my flip flops. We
made it to the corn field. The path through it was pitch black. A
grape vine had toppled directly over a puddle. There was no way around
it so I waded ankle
deep through the puddle under the grape vine. Next thing I know I was
ankle deep in water again. I heard Rena squeal just as we both hit the
puddle and we ran through.

We trudged up to the gate in the dark and the gate keeper eyed us and
let us in. Dinner, although cold, was waiting for us. We ate and made
a mad dash for the showers.

As I entered my room, I was talking to someone. I felt something
underfoot and looked. There was barnabas, the massive cricket that i
had tried so hard to Capture, half dead. I killed him the rest of the
way and hoped it wasn't his cousin Shirley and that barnabas is still
out there. I celebrated with a shower. Time to clean and pack for we
leave at 5am for Xuzhou and more adventures. Peace!

Saturday august 14

Got up before the sun today only to be greeted by gushing rain and
massive puddles. Side note: it was barnabas' cousin that I smashed,
but I caught the man himself. Moving on, we piled on the bus and got
settled in for the 5 hour drive. I slept through most of it, though it
was difficult because of the way things were set up. About the most
exciting part of the trip was waking up to see sunny, hazy but sunny,
skies. That and the corn fields.

We stopped a few times for gas and bathroom, and the trip soon ended.
I fell in love all over again after walking through the gate of the
xuzhou home of hope. Yep, china and with the kids if definitely where
I'm supposed to be. No doubt in my mind. Now, let's see how He works
in starting this orphanage.

We all talked and ate lunch and met the beautiful children. After
lunch the kids split up into three teams of the primary colors. They
gave each kid a tee shirt and a flag for each team, and each team had
to come up with an acronym such as FROG: fully rely on G They came up
with some interesting ones.

Holly and Logan and I went to the train station to
book our various tickets. I got mine for shanghai and I leave on the
18th around 4pm. They had said that one other woman had a lot of
trouble booking her ticket to shanghai and she had tried for days. So
I prayed a lot and my prayers were answered quickly with a yes.

After we got back, we ate dinner. I ate with all the foreign adults.
We had hamburgers and baked beans and potato salad. Yum! We talked and
laughed.

After dinner I talked more with the kids. I met someone who believes
and we talked about child searches and who to contat in the
government. She's going back to shanghai from the 18th to the 20th as
well, so we're going to hang out.

The fly in my shower had a death wish. He walked to the edge and just
dived in. Bye bye fly.

And this ends my blurry eyed day. I'm pooped and just washed my
clothes and
Am ready for a shower and bed. Sorry it's so short. More to come. Peace.


August 15

There are tables set up outside under the pines, and everyone sits
around them drinking soup and eating steamed buns and spicy noodle
things. The chatter is quiet, but it'll get much louder later.

My room was warm last night so I'm hoping I get used to it. I slept ok
anyways. Time for a new day. The older girls are going shopping this
afternoon. I'm excited about that.

The kids memorized verses in the morning and we had a meeting with the
older kids who are counselors. After the memorizing we had a peanut
butter and jelly eating contest where the person stands behind
blindfolded and puts their arms around the other person and makes the
sandwich and feeds it to them. That was interesting. Then I slapped
together a bazillon sandwiches for the kids. We had an assembly line
going. They had a scavenger hunt and now it's lunch time and then
shopping!

Shopping was fun. I didn't buy anything, but it was fun to get out. We
just walked around and looked at stuff. tWas fun.

I don't want to leave. I want to stay. I keep day dreaming about my
orphanage and the kids. It's on my mind. It on my heart. I've got it
bad. Cindy told me that it is really a miracle that I'm here. Nathan
gets thousands of emails from people just wanting to talk. Well, he
can't answer all of them, but he answered mine. In detail. And allowed
me to come visit. I told her I had prayed long an hard about this, and
it was Him that took care of it all. One more word from God that this
is it.

The kids have totally stolen my heart. When they come up to you, wrap
their arms around your neck, and kiss you, you can't help but fall
head over heels and melt inside. When they take your hand or pat your
back as they run past. When they get mad at you for discipline and
later give you a hug and smile. It's impossible not to love these
kids. Any kids. I want this. I want it and I'm not going to stop until
I get it or die, whichever comes first.

Monday august 16

I can't believe the date. I sort of lose track of the days and dates
here, but summer is almost over. My time in this wonderful land is
almost done. The more I think about it while my arms are wrapped
around a child as they hold my hand, the more I feel sad and the more
the longing to return grows. I doubt I'll ever figure out why. Maybe
in heaven. :)

Today is water day. My morning began with breakfast. Promptly after
was water balloon filling time. I was in charge of filling them and
making sure the kids didn't touch them. It's much harder than it
sounds when you have 70 kids milling around. I was mostly sucessfull,
though there were a few pokes here and there.

The games began with the infamous water balloon toss. That didn't get
people very wet, but it all broke loose after musical waterballoon
chairs. If you didn't get a seat, you got a water balloon broken over
your head. Then it was a free for all. Needless to say, everyone was
soaked. June tossed a huge plastic bowl of water on me because I
smeared mud on her arm (it was on my list of things to do before I
die) and so we started grabbing the bowl. Made in China. It broke and
cut my right pointer finger. I didn't even notice it was
Bleeding till about 5 minutes later when I felt it sting. It didn't
look too bad, but I got peroxide, polysporin and a bandaid. :D I took
care of myself. The kids kept asking if it hurt. I smiled and said no.
It didn't really. Then I prayed really hard it won't get infected. It
doesn't hurt now and it's been a while so I'll keep dressing it and
keeping it clean. We'll see.

Now I'm damp , but the blue sky and sun have come out to play. I
haven't seen blue sky in a while. It's nice. It's lunch time in 30
minutes and then nap time! Then swimming in the lake later, which I
may sit out because I don't want To take any chances with my finger. I'll take pictures! Good.

Oh nap was scrumptious. I for sure didn't go to sleep till 2 last
night. Might have already said that. See, sleep deprivation hurts you.
I found a useful purpose for my mosquito bites. Connect the dots. :D
I'm smart.

The kids swam today and I talked with Rena. We had a good conversation
about stuff. You know, that stuff. She's unsure. Been told since
childhood the wrong stuff. Believes that. You know? Anyways, I'm
praying for her.

It turned out to be an absolutely beautiful night. Gorgeous. Clear
blue sky and warm non humid air. It felt like Canada. Tomorrow is my
second to last day here. Then I leave. Sadness...I was gonna say
bittersweet, but where is the sweet? I guess the sweet is my
contentment where I am in Korea. Ok.

It's almost dinner time. My finger is doing well, in case anyone
cares. Haha. The kids are watching Madagascar. I'm sitting waiting for
dinner. I love it here. I love everything about it. Everything.

Oh the days draw to a close and I pray that there
might be 30 or 40 hours in a day.

we walked around a beautiful lake and all these Chinese buildings were
lit up in the dark. It was awesome!! There was some live music too.

Now we're just chillin. Being cool. Then bed time so I can wake up
tomorrow for more fun. Peace!

August 17

The last day. Started off with the usual, breakfast, and then the
counselor meeting. After taking pictures of all the teams wearing
their camp shirts, we walked about 15 minutes to a park. I brought my
umbrella to use for the sun like the Chinese do. It's genious.
Anyways, the city of Xuzhou really is beautiful. Lots of green,
flowers, well manicured medians, lots of trees lining the streets,
lakes with gorgeous architecture, and mountains surrounding it. This
park was no exception. The part we went to was a giant obstacle course
kind of like the ones you see on those hilarious Chinese shows where
they try to run across things but end up falling in the water. There
was only one part with water, and it was nasty. I would not want to
Fall into that. They played for a couple hours and had races through
the course. One part you climbed up a wood thing and then straight
down a massive tire and rope wall. One ity bity kid was climbing down
and I was afraid he'd fall so I stood at the bottom. Sure enough,
about half way down, he fell. Thank the Lord I caught him because he
was about 6 feet up. He smashed my glasses haha but they're cheap and
I bent them back into shape. The kids had a blast and several got sick
on the merry go round. Ok, please tell me why it's called a MERRY go
round. I got the go round part, but there ain't nothing merry about it.

Next it was dinner time. Dinner consisted of sweet, pink Chinese hot
dogs wrapper in soft white bread with ketchup, cookies, potato
chips, carrot sticks, cherry tomatos, and soda. We put all the wooden
stools in a big square. On the side was the buffet style food. At the
front was the DJ and microphone. We all ate and talked.

After eating was the talent show. There were poems with
choreographing, dances, and songs. When the older kids from the Gongyi
home got up and sang a slow Chinese song, I lost it. I grabbed a
tissue and tried not to Bawl. I love these kids.I'm going to really miss them.

The pingyu home of hope has a married couple, their 3 biological boys,
and 8 5-8 year olds. 4 boys and 4 girls. They put a blue cloth down so
it looked like a river and the 3 American boys came, knelt down, and
started singing "down to the river to pray." they sang the verses that
invited sisters, brothers, mommy, and daddy. They were all kneeling
singing and I lost it again. They love the kids so much. These kids
are really special, and their lives have chnahed dramatically. Their
Smiles make me melt.

I'm getting up to say goodbye tomorrow at 5. I know I'll cry when I
hug them. I pray I'll be back next summer. This trip...I tell ya.
Confirmation all the way. God's been so amazing and provided so
Many things in ways I couldn't have imagined.


August 18

I got up at 4:50am to say goodbye. Holding their hands through the bus
window in the dark I kissed their fingers and tried not to cry. They
just smiled and said bye. I hugged rena goodbye. I miss them. I hope I
get to see them next summer. Then they drove away and I went back to
my room, cried, smiled, and slept.

I got up around 8:45 and went with Kristie to the shopping. I bought
nail polish cause it was pink and sparkly. Good combo. Then we ate
lunch. I had noodles. Then...best part of my day...the 1.5 hour
massage. Aahhhhhh. I wear my jade cross and the Chinese girl who was
massaging me pointed to it and asked of I believed. She says she does.

Then I went back, said goodbye to Cindy (she packed me food and gave
me a real awesome hug) and left for the train station. Made it about
45 mins before my train left.

There were two women in the waiting room at the train station. I was
holding 10 yuan. One woman asked me if I was going to buy food with my
money. I told her no. Then she asked of she could have it because her
friend was hungry. I just pretended like I didn't understand. Then
they left and I bought a drink.

I was standing waiting for my train and this old man and over sparkly
woman kept looking and me and smiling. Of course I smiled back. Then
she came over and said ni hao and shook my hand. Well that let the dam
loose and like 10 people came up to shake my hand. Haha I laughed. One
lady spoke English. They wanted to know how old I was.

Things I saw on my train trip (I had a window seat!):

A well troden path through a corn field
A woman washing her clothes in the brown river water
A man standing on a small row boat in the middle of the lake holding
onto a pole
Crumbling houses next to brand new high rises
2 little boys looking up at the train while 2 others swim nearby
Cows chillin in the pond
Goats grazing by the river
Half a mile of trash
4 kids sitting on top of a giant rock pile
Sheep that I thought were sandbags
Lots of dark world

Things I smelled on my train trip:

A woman who smelled like she'd been in a house full of burning beef
jerky and toilet paper.
The train bathroom
Spicy fish ramen
Feet
Cigarette smoke

Gramma sitting next to me on the train chomped on chips while pink
princess sang at the top of her lungs off key and momma laughed and
sang along. They sang so so loudly for like 20 minutes. I put my
hands over my ears and all was well.

Someone just said perhaps and I laughed. Also it smells like smoke.

I call them Jingle kids. The kids that come up to you, bow, and tap
your hand with their jingling cup asking you for money. I just stare
ahead until they go away. So sad.

I'm in shanghai at the hostel eating spaghetti. Tomorrow I'll Hang out
with Brooke and shop and stuff. Then the next day it's back home.
Sadness. The future awaits!

I saw a guy reading in the really dim light, and I thought how mom
always asked me if I wanted more light in the dining room when I was
reading and even though I said no thanks she still turned it on. It
made me laugh. :)

Peace and blessins.

Last night I walked into my room and began to attempt to sum up my
roomies before they came. The place looked like a war zone. Shoes and
clothes and shopping bags everywhere. One bed had toiletries and
clothes and food strewn all over it. The other two beds were pretty
neat. I said she must be Asian or foreign cause her feet were tiny.
There was a beer bottle on the table and it was already past midnight
so I figured she must be a loud partier who stays out late. I was
right haha. She was from brazil, and talked loudly on her phone for
quite some time. The other two girls were from england, and I talked
for about 45 minutes with one. They are backpacking Asia for 3 months.
They were neat and tidy and really hilarious. They called the
flashlight a torch. Hahaha I laughed so hard. Maybe it's cause it was
2am.

After popping two vitamin c pills for my throat felt a little scratchy
(that'd what you get for stayng up till 2 every night and getting up
at 7) I went to bed. Kinda a rough congested sleep, but I feel
somewhat better today.

I decided to skip breaking my fast and got ready. Now I'm on the train
headed to shopping. In 1.5 hours I meet Brooke for lunch and more
shopping and fun'

It's so precious. A tall muscular man holding a sleeping girl with
pigtails.

Went to the market and found a bag. You really feel like a celebrity
or something when you're there. Minus the paparazzi. Everyone swarms
you "buy my bag lady! You need a purse lady?lady a shirt lady?" I
would hate to be a celebrity. The best part is when you go into a
store that only sells bags and they say "what are you looking for?"
and I laugh and say "uh, a bag!" hmm a bit obvious, no? Anyways, she
said my price was impossible and then gave it to me after I was half
way down the hall. "ok lady come back I give you price!" yep. I
usually get it haha. Not impossible after all. But you know, it's real
dolce and gabana and real leather. I scoff. Happiness prevails.

I met Brooke and we went to lunch at Chinese food. It was delicious.
She treated and I felt bad because she got dumplings and noodles and
rice and soup and everything and I was so full I couldn't help eat it
all. So, I treated her to one of my favorite massage places. They did
an excellent job, and I even fell asleep during the massage. We just
slept in the dark cold room for some time. Now we're at the bank where
brooke is trying to set up an account.

We talked at lunch and she knows a city that is very poor and needy.
She wants me to visit as an option for starting my orphanage. We'll
see how God leads and works things out. I get more excited my the day!

We went into one of the nicest hotels I've ever seen. We looked around
for a room that was being cleaned so we could take a peek, but it
wasn't to be. We decided that brooke would pretend to speak only
English and no Chinese. Also, we both speak a language from a small
village in Burma. Brooke said "where's Burma?" and I just smile and
said "exactly." we pulled it off a few times without laughing and got
a few strange stares.

The weather is GORGEOUS. Blue sky, lazy clouds, hot but barely humid,
and a gentle breeze. The crowds aren't even that bad.

We shopped at the underground shopping. Again, Brooke preteded like
she couldn't speak English so I translated and we also spoke in our
made up language. I bought 4 pairs of sunglasses, a jade bracelet, and
a couple more jade cross necklaces. Good times. I'm on the metro
headed home. One shirt said "I come to shanghai." yes, I did. And
tomorrow I leave. Alas. I know I'll be back. I'm still content even
though I'll miss this wonderully amazing place.

Time to go back to the hostel and see how much second hand smoke I can
inhale and what weird people I can meet or conversations I can hear.

So I'm going back and the announcer wasn't doing her thing and the
sign was wrong and I wasn't paying attention so I go one past my stop.
An easy fix Involving an escalator but still dumb me haha.

August 20

Slept in without really sleeping. Haha of course my brazillian roomie
first stood by my bed talking loudly on the phone. She was considerate
and left the lights off...for a time. Then she brought a friend in.
The other two girls whispered and were super. I didn't really care
though because I had gone to bed so early last night. 10pm! I was
tired and the Internet didn't work so the only options were sleep or
sit in a dark smokey room while people talked about things I didn't
care to hear. I chose the first one.

Then I got up and had a marvelous shower. The first floor bathrooms
are so much cleaner and warmer and better. It was lovely.

I have this problem with not keeping the inside of my bag organzied. I
can keep everything inside, but it's a jumble of stuff. So I repacked
my bag and talked to the new girl from London. Then I checked out and
now I'm on the metro eating my seaweed square...oh!!!! I get it!!!!
Seaweed!! Epiphany. Anyways, headed to the Maglev for some high speed
train action. Then it's off to Seouleo.

Maglev was an unventful 7 minutes. Quite a fast train. I saw a little
village like the one where the school was. Some houses were standing.
Most of them were heaps of concrete with spots of color here and
there. To make way for more development, no doubt.

At the airport I got a cart for my super de duper heavy bag and it was
quite fun to roll it around. Looked in over priced shops and people
watched. Good times.

Listened to Last Christmas in wanna be jazz airport music, among other
random songs.

A sign on one of those aiport cars:The children, the elderly, and those
Who embrace the baby do not take the back row.

Saw a skinny geeky Asian airport worker rappin as he walked.

At this airport restaurant it wasnt called the dish of the day or the
daily special. It was the Maily item. At least they tried.

One girl at a store asked where i live. I said korea and she said "oh
yes i love korean. Korean is a very romantic land. A very beautiful
land." I'm thinking "lady, you probably never left shanghai. Haha it
gave me the jollies.

I said "if I were anna's headphones, where would I live?" the answer
came all too soon: anna's checked luggage. Of
Course. I hope china southern provides. :D silly me.

Time to board and fly home. Flight departing promptly from Sadness
International Airport.

More to come. Peace.

A girl had a bag with super creepy dolls on it. I hate dolls. Met a
girl with funky curly hair from Italy.

Sittin on the bus watching the beauitful sunset missing China.

Peace

And so ends my updates.  Yes, I had a wonderful time.  Yes, it wasn't always ideal.  Yes, it was sometimes same old same old.  BUT I loved it.  I love it more now.  I desire it more now.  My passion has grown stronger to help these people and bring them Jesus' love.  So my prayer is that if God wants me there like it seems He does, that He will bring me there in His time to the place that He wants me.  That I'll always be looking to Him for guidance and strength and wisdom.  That, in a nut shell, was my trip.  Peace.na.

I Look to the Future

I'm back. Back to my new apartment in Korea. It's 12:47am and I sit here quite awake. Why, you might ask? Take a wild guess. I'm thinking about China. Rolling it around in my mind. Missing the kids. Missing everything about that place. Daydreaming about the future. My body might have left, but my mind is still there. And now that my body is here (and my mind better hurry up and follow!) I will once again fall in to being content with where I am. After all, that's how it should be.

How can I sum up 3 weeks in China? It's impossible. But I'll try. During these last 3 weeks, God has shown Himself over and over and over and over

again. And more than that. I prayed so hard before I left. I prayed that I would be safe, healthy, that I would not get lost, that I would learn about Him, that I would be changed, that I would meet people whom I could turn to in the future, that I would learn much about running an orphanage, that God would grow my faith in Him. It all happened. He answered all my prayers with a yes. And more. And do you know why? It's because He's God. He's good. He loves me with an unfathomable love. He wants His perfect will for me, and I want that too.

I love Him more. It wasn't a cloud nine everything is fine kind of trip. No, there was pain, there was frustration, there was days of not wanting to do certain things. There were less than desirable conditions, dirt, an overwhelming amount of bug bites, allergies, scrapes, tiredness, But God saw me through. In spite of all the things that I could look at and complain about, I didn't view them as negative. There really wasn't much that I viewed as negative on this trip. Some of my selfish emotions were negative, but life was just good. Being with the kids in China was more that I could ask for.

I realize that what I've written so far might not really make sense or be organized logically at all, but I warned you that it might be impossible to explain. Here I go again.

I wrote daily updates, so now I'll post some of them. It might be long, so read what you want and skip the rest. Haha.

August 2

I don't think I get so many stares in Seoul. It's so funny that I laugh outloud everytime they nudge a person and motion to me 'subtly' it cracks me up!
True love: wiping your girlfriend's sweat with a tissue.

So sweaty and muggy. Everyone glistens delicately. A

lmost no one wears their hair down. Me neither! Only some times.

About 10 year
s old. Male. Mother wiping his sweat while he does Kung Fu moves.

East Nanjing road. No idea which way to go. Time to start walking. I walked down a bunch of si
de streets until I found the masses. And I do mean more than the Trevi fountain masses. Much more. Like so man people. Anyways, the construction was gone and there was an beautiful view of the city from across the water. Just 
what I was looking for. I held my spot on the railing in order to take some night shots (I got a few.) while I waited for the darkness, I had many stares of course. At one point I wanted a lady (who had ju
st not so subtly taken a pic of me) to hold a sign while I took a pic of her holding it. She didn't understand and refused and all of the sudden people started forming a circle around me and so I asked them. The circle starte
d growing and I didn't want to draw attention (yeah right) so I booked it outta there.

When I was standing by the railing, a lady stood by me and her husban
d not so subtly took a pic so I smiled and gave the peace sign. While he was posing his camera, I could see a smil
Grow on his face when he realized I was posing for the picture. Little did I know...I tallied 8 people in the space of like 5 mins that saw them take a picture and asked me to take one with them. I kept score as they said "sank-you.".

Then along came Carol. Her English name was Carol. She was from another province and came to shanghai for 2 weeks to study as a linguistics student. Her English was very good and we talked and then walked in the overcrowded streets. She was very easy to get along with and at one point the conversation turned to other things and she asked if I believed. I said yes and we talked about that for a bit. No details of course. Anyways, we ate dinner together and got contact info so I hope to hear from her again.

Made it back in one sweaty sweaty sweaty mess to the hostel. Eating yogurt and drinking water water water after I swet sweat sweat. Yes, I prefer to not be able to understand the conversations around me.

Old Chinese proverb: it difficult to get on escalator.

August 4

It might not seem luxurious to sleep across metal chairs separated by
6 inch gaps on top of your bag with light overhead and announcements
blaring on the loud speaker. People miling arous, smoking and
laughing, children screaming and mothers matching them. The smells of
strange foods wafting through the air. It's not. When leaving Korea I
almost ALMOST didn't bring my pink blanket. I thought it might be
cumbersome. At the last second I decided that it has served me well
and that it would accompany me on this magical mystery tour. And boy
was that ever a good choice! The shanghai train station proved to be
a rather nice alternative to a hotel. At least I didn't have to pay
anything. I just had to get up in the morning and get on my train
(which proved much easier than I thought.)

Now I'm on my way to Zhengzhou. Sitting next to a man who smells
niiiice and smokey. I've got my water bottles, pepsi to keep me awake,
and ramen for that time when I get hungry. I also have my trusty
tissues for the squatty potty which is really a metal basin in the
ground that no doubt emptiest onto the tracks. Ok, so they might not
be THAT primitive.

Once I get to Zhengzhou, I have to figure out how to make it the last
leg of my journey to Gongyi. That'll be exciting.

The train smells strangely like lemon scented urine. Maybe I'll study
Chinese if I don't get motion sick which I most likely will.

I wonder if this car has aircon. Cause we sure as shootin ain't
rolling down the windows. The train is actually really nice. Three
seats, an isle, and 2 seats. Looks almost like a plane except for the
addition of the large windows on either side, added leg room, and no
inflight movies or stewardesses. Oh and the overhead compartments have
no doors. Good thing I didn't pack any bricks in my carry on.

Child 1 is talking. Child 2 is screaming. Mom 1 is sweaty and eating a
bun. Mom 2 is nowhere to be seen. I smell. Man 1 is fanning him self.
Man 2 (mr. Smokey next to me) is breathing. Loudly. Luggage rolling,
voices mumbling in Chinese, candy bar wrappers. It's like an
orchestra. It seems like the first thing people do when they sit down
is put their tray table down. Aren't I observant. Just thought I'd
bore you with useless facts. No doubt man selling things will be
coming through the isles soon yelling and bumping me with his cart
(yep, got an isle seat.)

And we're off! It smells like oatmeal with the sounds of a rather loud
video game. It's a fair for the senses.

Just in case you wondered, it is ok to put steaming coffee that might
fall and scald you onto the tray table but make sure you don't put
that 15kg weight that you carry onto it. It might break.

About 2 hours out of Zhengzhou. I slept a lot. I THOUGHT I grabbed the
non drowsy Dramamine, but I guess not. It was a welcome relief. I woke
up to the kids literally screaming. Playing some game no doubt. I am
literally surrounded by children. They're lucky they're so stinkin
cute. Once I get to Zhengzhou I have to try to find a bus or a train
to gongyi. Should be interesting. No one in shanghai knew where gongyi
was. Even the guy who booked my ticket and he books tickets all the
time. This had been a very uneventful train ride thankfully. I should
get up and stretch my legs.

I made a little puppet with a face from the sanitary bag in the pocket
in front of me and gave it to the two screaming kids. The girl liked
it and laughed. Then the mom took it, looked at it for a minute, and
set it down. It fell on the floor and got trampled underfoot. Well, at
least I tried haha. About 1h20m left. This ride has passed by pretty
quickly. I must have been out for a while.

It's amazing. All the kids just passed out in their parents arms at
exactly the same time haha. Mouths open, parents sleeping as well.

I'm here and I walk in the door and a child took my hand and wouldn't
let go. This is it!! This is so it.


Dinner consisted of cucumbers in a sort of soy sauce, a 4inch round
flat bread, and a millet soup. I got all the water back that I sweated
off tonight. There wasn't an inch of me that wasn't covered in sweat.
I didn't even try to fend it off. I played badminton, UNO, hide and
seek, and just played. I love it already. Life here has no frills. Ok,
well I have curtains, but that's about it. Time to hit the hay and try
to get a good night sleep in spite of the heat so I can get up bright
and early.

August 7
In one week we leave for camp! I'm excited to meet the other 2 HOH's. Should be a good old time. Then after camp I head back to Shanghai and then on to Seoul.

Woke up this morning and pulled myself out of bed. I like the mornings here. Everyone just sits around outside on the stone benches eating their breakfast and chatting quietly. Morning birds are chirping and there's usually a slight breeze. I wear my sunglasses because I go from my dark room to the bright outdoors. I Say goodmorning to everyone and grab some breakfast.

Today was half yum half very strange. It was a muffin that was just plain but quite sweet and yummy and a bag (think Capri Sun only with no structure and strawless that you rip open with your teeth) with room temperature "milk" which tasted more like lemony milky...something. What's with the lemons? Anyways, not wanting to be rude, I drank it all up. Everyone else loved it. Slurping and smacking away (which, to my delight, is perfectly acceptable because they have almost no table manners here *grin*) Maybe I just need to get used to their version of milk. Or maybe it wasn't milk. I'm hoping it treats my stomach ok. Now I'm tempted to accidently fall back asleep for a bit.

Speaking of table manners. It's perfectly acceptable, if not expected, to:

Slurp A LOT
Put your elbows on the table
Talk with your mouth full
Put your face down to the food and shovel it in your mouth
Be on the phone during meals
Burp
Spit food out
Many other wonderful things

I did accodenty fall back into a sleep. It was lovely. When I woke up, the babies were on the lawn sitting on cardboard again, so I joined them. We made crowns of weeping willow branches and put them on the babies and on me. We took many a picture an had lots of laughs. It's amazing that we can find tons to do and many thing about which to laugh when we don't speak the same langauage.

So far I've been called anda, annie, Andy, Anna (pronounced ah-na- this is most common) Angie, and amma. How could 4 letters be so difficult to say haha. I should record how many times they say my name in one day.


A while after lunch we went into town. One of the older girls, Rena, and 4 boys ages 8-13. The city of gongyi is pretty run down and has lots of shops for all kinds of trinkets, clothes, shoes, and bags. We went to the grocery store because I wanted to buy candy and things for all the kids. Rena kept protesting that things were too expensive (a 3 pack of Oreos was about 3 bucks) and I really wanted to get them stuff so I bought it anyways. I knew she was just being kind. I also learned that Chinese women don't shave. I went to buy a razor and Rena wasn't sure why. The shop keeper said "sorry but these are just for men." I told him it was ok and that I use ones for men in America. He said "oh but it only has two blades . It's a Chinese brand. If you want
Gillette it's over there." and I insisted that it was ok. They tried several times to change my mind and I was like NO! Haha well I didn't yell or anything but I just took it. And that was that. Te razor worked great, by the way. I shaved off like 50 layers of dirt and dust. Now my mosquito bites look more prominent on my even whiter legs. :D the kids have been comparing our skin colors.

I heard tong hua at a store and sang along and smiled.

After the super market, we went to a very overgrown park that was still pretty. Old men flying kites and women sitting on the dirt hill under the trees fanning themselves to keep cool. The kids climbed some stone things, and we were on our way. They didn't want to walk up the big hill, so we piled 6 of us into a three wheeled car designed to hold 3 passengers. It barely made it up the hill, but it did and we happily paid 1yuan each. On the way up I noticed that I had a small rash in both of my elbow pits. It didn't itch and it wasn't bumpy, just small red spots. It's still there bit not spreading and I don't feel anything. And it's only in those two spots. I thought maybe some plant at the park gave it to me. If it's not gone by tomorrow I'm going to get some cream
Or something for it. Strange. Haha not that anyone cares to hear about the rashes of others. Don't be rash now.

I also learned today that you shouldn't play basketball with 5 competitve boys when you barely
Know how to shoot the ball. They all wanted me on their team, but I didn't know how to say "that's not a wise choice" in Chinese. It went down about how I thought it would. Although, I did score my teams only basket. It was our only basket because of me too. We got nice and sweaty.

They're stealing my heart. All of them.

August 8
I woke up at 7 today to be in time for breakfast, and my room was actually nice and cool when I woke up. Amazing.  So I said forget breakfast and went back to sleep. I woke up at 9:30 feeling very rested, so I ate oreos for breakfast. Then I got up and played UNO and Sorry with the boys. They came knocking on my door insistent that I play with them.

Now they're swimming. It's been quite eventful. Joy scratched her leg, Calvin finally went swimming. He was so happy when he finally jumped in after days of watching. It made me smile too. :) then someone peed in the pool which caused quite a stir and no one would fess up. So I said drop it and of it happens again, we get out. Haha I love kids and their problem solving which is really yelling and fussing. They found a frog and were, of course, torturing it until I rescued it. Now it's probably dying drying up in the sun. Oh well.

Played skip Bo and it was magically time for dinner. Dinner was tofu and what are those long green things called...oh yeah, celery. In some oil and maybe soy sauce. And then the water and some kind of rice stuff. The end. It was yummy with the ever present steamed bun. Lunch...I won't even try to explain it. The only thing I recognized was green pepper. If you don't know what it is, it won't gross you out. It looked like slices of light pink grooved hot dog stuffed with something brown and translucent potatoes that tasted like something I have no idea. It was good though with rice.

I'm saying some more Chinese phrases. We communicate just fine. Our latest funny is taking a piece of food, saying (in Chinese) that it's someone (e.g this is Rose) and then eating it and saying (in Chinese) it's very delicious! Haha then everyone does it. Tonight people started saying things like "this is the table" then eating it and gagging. Haha I laugh all day.

I helped take the wheelbarow of trash down to the dump which is just next to a corn field. That was interesting cause of course everyone stared at the foreigner pushing the trash. I think one old lady didn't think I could dump it so she started babbling loudly and pushing the trash out with her water bottle. Anyways, that got done and I got my share of stares.

Picture a red blow up bouncy thing that looked like a table perched over a stage. Women in short skirt and heels singing techno songs with men. A pot of ashes burning in front of a shrine. A big red tent with all those cheap looking Chinese decorations hanging from the edges of the tent. And a casket under the tent. A Chinese funeral. I experienced my first one. Small wooden chairs were set up in front of the stage. A man holding a baby who was naked except for an apron. A woman swaying to the music and people milling around or sitting on the chairs trying to keep cool with enormous oriental fans. The strong smell of incense. The kids covering their ears because the music was so loud. Huge gaudy flower arrangements with ribons no doubt expressing sadnes over the loss of this man and red flashing lights flooding the scene. As the sun was setting, there was a funeral on a hot, muggy Gongyi
night. I wonder who died.

It was a good thing when the two boys who were mad at me earlier sat by me on the stairs and rested their heads on my shoulder.

Well, that's all for tonight. Time to take this sweaty mess to the shower and wash some clothes. All I can say for those moms who do laundry by hand is they must have no feeling in their hands and really strong backs!


Those are just a few of my updates.  I have plenty more.  My eyes are getting scratchy and heavy as the minutes pass.  One thing I'll end with is this: while I was there, God confirmed in my heart over and over and over that it was China and it was an orphanage.  This is it.  I've heard many people say it can't be done, you're too young, the government wouldn't let you, it would cost too much, and on and on.  But I say: God can do anything, "do not say "I am a youth," God can work in the hearts of the government, God owns all the money in the world, and on and on.  See a common thread?  If God wants it to happen, it will happen.  If He can die for use, rise from the dead, and save us, He can help me start a small orphanage in China.  With God on my side, I can win.  It's not going to be easy.  It's going to take a lot of time, hard work, dedication, faith, and prayer, but I won't stop pushing until I get it.  Or until I die, which ever comes first.  So, here I sit, in Korea.  Not in China.  Why?  I don't know.  God needed me here first.  But the love for China only grows stronger as the days pass.  It never fades.  And that's God because I know that in my own strength, this selfish rotten human heart would never love a single soul.  
So pray.  Pray that I continue seeking God's will.  Pray that He makes it all clear.  Pray that people come along side to help. Pray most of all, whether it seems good to us or not, that HIS will is done.  Not mine.  Not anyone else's.  God's perfect will.  
On that note, I say goodnight.  Much more to come tomorrow.  Peace.