Welcoming a new school year

 XJTLU Freshmen Opening Ceremony - Fall 2012

Another school year begins.  This morning I attended the Opening Ceremony for more than 2300 new Freshmen and their parents.  They were welcomed by the school president, two vice presidents, a parent, a graduating senior, and a few others.  It was an inspirational time for me to see the new students with their parents and be reminded of the tough journey they had in getting to this point in their academic lives.  It was also a reminder for me of the sacrifice made and expectations placed by  the parents on our new charges.  I am honored and humbled to have the responsibility of having them in my classroom for the next year. 

Five ladies (2 younger and 3 older) were sitting at a table next to ours at lunch today.  They seemed like visitors in the area - they looked at the street map of Suzhou and conferred about where various things in town were located; they spent a long time pouring over the menu to order just the right combinations for the 5 of them.  It turns out that one of the girls is an incoming freshmen.  She and her mother came here two days earlier from a far away city in the west of China and met their aunt/sister in Shanghai who drove them to Suzhou (two hour drive).  The girl spoke English well and the mom seemed impressed with her daughter's ability to communicate with the foreigners.  Maybe it was a bit of relief for both that the daughter could understand and reply so competently as she enters an all-English speaking education for the first time.  Mom may not worry quite so much.  Mom explained (in Chinese) that later in the afternoon she would be saying goodbye to her daughter.  She mimed tears running down her cheeks.  I was reminded of the emotion involved by both parents and students of this milestone in the student's life.  Pray for us.  Classes begin September 3.