Christmas 2009

Marilyn's cheese ball.

Acting out "Ten Lords a-Leaping"

The singers for "We Wish You a Merry Christmas."

Santa's Beard contestants.

Santa's Beard contestants.

Santa's Beard demonstration.

Getting ready for Santa's Beard game.

The three teachers welcoming their students.

The boys at the party.

The party-decorating team.


Alfred dressed in his best suit and shiny shoes to help decorate for the party. He said since it was the first time to come to my house, he should dress appropriately.

Going to decorate for the Christmas party.

Marilyn and me with the assistant president of the university and two ladies from foreign affairs dept. They took all the foreign teachers out for a nice Christmas dinner.

We had some ladies over for a small Christmas party. They are also teachers in our department.

Joseph pointing out his lyrics to "Silent Night"

Students love wearing my Santa hats

Students in class

圣诞快乐 shengdànkuàile and 新年快乐 xīnnián kuàilè!

That is to say: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Every year I see and hear more and more familiar signs of Christmas in China. Christmas trees and Santa faces are in many shop windows. Familiar carols play over and over in the shopping malls. During one recent meal at Pizza Hut, we must have heard “Jingle Bells” about 50 times. It’s not unusual for a restaurant to put one song on repeat mode for the whole day or week or season. Western Christmas traditions are present in the commercial venues and churches but certainly not in peoples’ homes.

In class last week I taught my students “Silent Night.” I gave them a copy of the lyrics with random words missing in each line and asked them to guess the missing words while listening to the song. Some of their tries at the lyrics were fun.

“Silent night, only night”

“Sleep in heavenly sleepy.”

“Sleep in heavenly deeping.”

“Christ the savior is all.”

“Christ the savior is home.”

“Holy infant so tender and wild”

Christmas was very busy around here. Marilyn and I did our second annual Freshman Christmas Party for our 500 students – all boys! Yes, we are crazy! We had the party on Dec. 23 in one of the big rooms in the Student Activity Center on campus. We played some games, sang some carols, and watched Charlie Brown Christmas. I was so nervous about it all, wondering how we would fit 500 students in a room for 250, and if they would have fun, and if the movie would work, and if the PowerPoint would work, etc. But everything went well. The students seemed really happy about it all.

On Christmas day the foreign teachers were allowed to cancel classes! Yay! So we cancelled classes and traveled to Xiaogan – about 2 hours away by bus. We spent the holiday there with our teammates and some other friends visiting from the USA. In all there were about 10 of us. We sang carols and exchanged gifts while remembering the birth of our Savior. We even had a cheese ball (thanks Marilyn) and a real fruit cake (thanks Jane) among our many delicious snacks for the day. Even though we were all away from home and family, it felt cozy and happy being together for a “very Xiaogan Christmas.”

So another year comes to an end. They seem to go by faster and faster. The end of this school year will be the completion of my fifth year in China. I can’t believe it. I continue to love teaching in China and feel so blessed to have this opportunity. Why not come and visit and see all the fun I get to have every day!

I’m so thankful for the amazing gift of Jesus Christ coming to earth for us. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 圣诞快乐and 新年快乐.

I’m beginning my fifth year in China. Things here are starting to seem somewhat normal. The food is familiar, the mass of people is predictable, the students are super, but the spitting never quite sits well with me. I’ve learned to survive on my limited Chinese language skills; that, coupled with my charades and hand motions and I’m able to communicate fairly well. Just today I impressed myself by being able to communicate with a stranger at the bus stop about which bus I should take to get to the church. I mostly pretend I know what is being said when I actually only pick up a key word or two, but somehow communication happens, and it’s fun when it does.

I will begin teaching classes on Oct. 12. It has been a long and restful break over the summer.School here begins in early September; however, the freshmen spend their first month of university life in what we call “military training.” They learn marching drills in green uniforms from dawn until past dark for a month. It seems quite exhausting to me, but they seem to develop a great sense of unity with their classmates through the whole process. I watched their marching drill exhibition that they performed in the middle of campus at the completion of their training. It was pretty impressive to watch some 2,000 eighteen year olds march around the soccer field with such uniformity.

I have a new favorite thing – a bicycle. I bought it second hand from my neighbor at the end of last year. I love going out and exploring the local neighborhood. I discovered a beautiful and surprisingly quiet park along the banks of the Yangtze River, just a 15 minute ride from my apartment.

The weather here is still near 90 F at the beginning of October. I certainly don’t mind it. I’d much rather have hot than cold, and it will be cold soon enough, and from that there isn’t much relief here.

That’s all for now, thanks for reading.

student quotes

February 11, 2009

Wow, the last two months have been crazy. Rather than bore you with mundane details, I thought I'd let you hear what my students said to me via text messages and emails...

-nicetomeetyoutoothatisveryniceofyou.Canyouunderstandmessageinthis? (text msg from a young lady I met on the street. She apparently didn't know how to put spaces in her message using English.)

- hello:) Merry Christmas:) I'm Ezekiel:) we are friends forever. (text message from one of my students)

- Dear Teacher! Thank you for having given us the lively and perfect classes for half a year. these days really mean a lot to you. You must be homesick! But believe that we are all along with you !! Merry Christmas! Best wishes to you. (a Christmas text message from a student)

- hello ann. all of our class guys wish are merry christmas. happy and health every day. (a Christmas text message from a student)

- wish you a Merry Christmas! And good tidings I bing to you and you kin! (a Christmas text message from a student. I taught them "We wish you a Merry Christmas" in class. I think he was using the lyrics.)

- Merry Christmas! I'm jeffrey. i don't know how to translate it into English...so i sent my regards in Chinese?_? (Text message from a student that followed a long text message in Chinese that I couldn't read.)

- I open my wallet, finding no money. I open my pocket, finding no coin. I open my life, finding you. Then I know how rich I am! Merry Christmas. (Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I must have gotten this same message about a hundred times from different students. )

- Oceans apart you must be homesick during the exciting and peaceful ChristmasEve, though Ligongda (name of my school) couldn't afford you a true atmosphere that the USA does, the santa still pays a visit to our campus, right? Do not forget to wish a wish then comes the New Year! (a Christmas text message from a student.)

- i feel graceful on this thanks & giving day and i am so luck to have ever met the people like you! (a Thanksgiving text message from a student)

- Forever my teacher Happy Thanksgiving day. My English is exactly poor. especially speaking, hope you can coach me. the words take me so much time. (Student text message)

- Thank Giving Day. When we have the classes with you, you always give us a lot knowlege and play games with us. we were very happy at that times. Thank you! Best wishes for you! (a student's Thanksgiving text message)

- Happy Thanks Giving Day. your student (a students text message. I don't know which student.)

- Good morning teacher! I am Clarence, I want to get a answer from you. Whether my English name is a girl name? thank you. (Student's text message.)