(Display Name not set)February 2005 Archives

Today, we got to experience a little bit of Chinese culture. Our sponsor school, Hoping Elementary, hosted a Lantern Festival Party for the JiJi and Nantou Teams. (Lantern Festival marks the end of a month long celebration of Chinese New Year. The celebration of Chinese New Year begins on the 16th day of the last month of the year and ends the 15th day of the New Year with a celebration of Yuan Hsiao Chie. A tradition of carrying lanterns to parks and temples has caused it, in English, to be called the Lantern Festival.)
We started the afternoon off having coffee with the two Principals that our teams work closely with. After chatting for a while, we set off to a nearby flower field, where we enjoyed an hour of photographing and picking flowers. (Side note: Flowers have nothing to do with the Lantern Festival; it was simply a fun thing to do.) After the flower field, we walked to a nearby outdoor restaurant, where we took more pictures and enjoyed a nice meal. After the meal, we all made a lantern. Because it is the year of the rooster, the DIY (do it yourself) lanterns were made to look like roosters. We took more pictures, and then walked through town with our rooster lanterns. Because some of us teach here in JiJi, we were able to see many of our students as we walked around town. The last place we stopped was a small night market and a small park that has been decorated for the celebration of Chinese New Year for almost 3 weeks. The night market and the park were filled with people. Vendors were selling drinks, jewelry, toys, and all sorts of foods. In the park, there were displays that businesses and different groups had made to promote the holiday. Many of the displays were hand made and carried the theme of “The Year of the Rooster”. Yes, our little town of JiJi seems at times small and boring, it was a lot of fun to get to spend the afternoon and evening with both the Nantou team and some of our Chinese friends.

Xin Nian Kuaile,
(Happy New Year)

Holly Polson
JiJi Taiwan

If you would like to see pictures of our outing, I will be posting them on my personal blog over the next few days. To read more about the Lantern Festival and to see some really neat pictures go to: http://www.index-china.com/index-english/Lantern.html

It is now the second week of the spring semester here in Taiwan. So far I am enjoying it much more than last week. It was a little bit more difficult getting back to teaching than I anticipated that it would be. I think I’m over the hump now, and classes are going well.
This morning I taught 5 classes before noon, which is normal for me on Tuesdays. Starting this semester though, my first class is a story time with the lower grades (grades 1-4, 2 classes per grade, 1 class each week). Today I had 1st grade, it was a blast. After reading through a story book twice, I played a game with the kids for the last twenty minutes of class. The students loved it, and I had a great time myself. Working with these kids is one of the best things around.
Throughout the afternoon I was able to take it easy back at the dorm. It’s nice to have a relaxed afternoon once in a while. I did get the dishes done too….
For dinner Mai made lasagna, the first time I’ve had it since leaving home almost 8 months ago. It was really good, (I had thirds).
Tomorrow I have Chinese lessons in the afternoon, then a trip to Jiji with my team to celebrate the lantern festival.
Friday after school I’m heading to Hualien with a couple other guys to visit one of the team members out there.
As you pray for us, please remember the Ying Pan and Jiji teams in this coming month. We have back to back teacher conferences next month (March 19th and 26th), and they are always challenging to prepare for. Christina has been doing a wonderful job of getting a schedule outlined for us, and now we will be moving on to the session preparing.
Please pray for endurance and health for each of us as well. Several of my team mates have been sick recently, and it is really hard to teach when you don’t feel well.
I think that’s about it…

From Nantou,
Chase Hiebsch

My first week back in Taiwan was really nice. I pretty much had easy classes and simple days so it really was a nice transition back into the swing of things. Nothing really new to report from the world of teaching.

Except this I guess. I had this really great chance to talk to a girl at my Thursday school. I haven’t gotten to know a lot of the kids at my Thursday school because I have around 200 - 250 students that I actually teach in the course of 5 classes. Remembering their names is hard enough and I just haven’t gotten to know them. I was sitting outside during the lunch break watching the kids play ball when this girl comes and sits next to me. I start to practice some of my Chinese on her (which always makes them laugh) and she surprises me by starting to use some English. In fact, her English was really good. So with my Chinese and her English we talked for about an hour! It was great. Then the bell rang and she had to go inside. At that point I realized I didn’t get her name. Gaaa!!! I’m so stupid sometimes. Oh well, guess I’ll get it this week.

I spent the first part of my weekend alone at the house. That was nice. I don’t get that much seeing as I live with 5 other people. But most of my team headed off to Hong Kong for the weekend and Holly went to Taipei to see a friend. So I had the house all to myself. Ahh that was nice. I need that more often.

I then went up to Nantou to spend the weekend with the other team and hang out with some of the TAs who came down to visit. That was very cool and great! I won at Dutch Blitz even though I sat at 90+ for 4 hands before I broke 100. As long as I won though I didn’t care.

The rest of my team got home a little while ago. I can know this because the house is not quiet anymore. Oh well, guess I’ll get off and finish my lesson plans for next week.

Before I go I’ll leave you with one thought. If it’s called Taiwanese, Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese; why don’t they call it Koreanese and Cambodianese?

Daniel
Ji Ji

for

You know you are in Taiwan when:
You find your self saying “I am sorry I don’t understand.”
You know the smell of stinky Tofu.
You have a list of English games.
You spell things on the palm of your hand.
You do your laundry in the bathroom.
You live at a school
Your washing machine sings.
You walk down the street and say “Hello” to people you don’t know.
You wash your dishes in the bathroom.
Your pastimes are going shopping.
All of the yo yo’s look different from the ones that you played with.
You find your self singing children’s songs in and out of the classroom.
You know what each letter of the alphabet stands for.
You know what Coco Momo is.
You use a toaster oven for an oven.
Your teammate might race the ceiling fan for fun.
You see a fork, knife and spoon and think it is strange.
You spend a lot of time on xanga.
You buddy list is full of people wanting to talk to you.
You teammates try to talk you into learning self defense.
There is no separation between your shower and your bathroom.
You crave a home cooked meal made by your mom.
You get hugged from kids from every direction.
You can hear the people in the next room.
Your bedroom used to be a classroom.
You see flowers that you have never seen before.
You can see pointsettias growing everywhere.
You have a dish dryer instead of a dish washer.

So if you are wonder why we all love it so much here, maybe this will explain the love in our hearts that we have for Taiwan.
Sarah Deluca
Ji Ji Taiwan

"Where do you think you'll be in five years?"

"I don't know. I never would have thought that I would be here in Taiwan five years ago!"

I replied to Christina's thought provoking question. Five years ago I had my world planned out, who I might marry, what kind of music/missions ministry I wanted to pursue. It was a good solid Christian life that would give me plenty of room to happily follow God's lead in the boundaries that I had drawn for myself and Him. Right? Like God is going to say "Oh that's a better plan then I originally had for your life. Why didn't I think about that?" I'm so glad He is who He is!

Tuesday was Chinese New Year, a day of new beginnings. Christina and I had full intentions of going to a English teacher's house and spending it with her and her family, but it didn't happen. Chase and Isaac ended up going to a teacher's house and came back with their stomachs full because of the Hot Pot they ate.

Hot pot is more or less a community dinner, one pan of boiling water is used to boil an assortment of veggies, meats, noodles, dumplings and of course tofu. You choose something, stick it in the boiling pot till it's done and then eat it! It's really quite simple, and very practical. Christina's been on a hot pot binge for the last few days. I think she finds it entertaining to watch things boil. Maybe she likes fishing, and since there are no fishing areas around, that's why she likes it. It's sort of like fishing, you eat what you catch. Oh the small pleasures that God brings along!

On Wednesday a Christian friend of ours (a lady from one of Isaac's churches) came over with another lady to do what she calls "fellowship". Ai Ni is a person you just don't forget. From the moment she got saved till the moment she dies she'll forever be praising the Lord! Nor will she ever be silent about God's love. Amen! She sang some songs for us and then had us all share about how an object reflects and challenges our walk with Christ. Then we prayed together in what she calls "Korean style". That is where everyone prays out loud at the same time. Ai Ni is the type of person that makes you want to know God more then you do already. Her zeal and passion for Christ speaks for itself.

The rest of this week we have no school, so Christina and I have been getting ready planning for things happening in this next semester. Please pray that God would give us wisdom as we are preparing for the months ahead. We have been privileged to teach about many American holidays lately, and with that the truth of how they began. In this next semester some of us will be preparing to leave Taiwan, and trying to say goodbye to teachers and friends here. Please pray that God would continue to use this time to sow seeds and reap a harvest here in Taiwan. Thanks you so much for all your prayers. Oh, and for those of you wondering I'm all better now! Thanks for your prayers of healing!

Mai Lewis
Luke 1:37
Ying Pan, Nantou

Well seeing as I missed my actual update day and I'm actually writing this a day late, it's Chinese New Year. Happy New Year, everybody! Only about a half an hour left in this year here in Taiwan. Then it's goodbye year of the monkey, hello year of the rooster. Mai and I were just outside with Isaac setting off little crackler thingys. Well, I suppose it was more like Ike was setting them off and laughing at Mai and I as we attempted to throw them hard enough to make them go off. Then we'd go chasing after them in the dark, find them, and begin all over again. Eventually Mai and I both got one to go off all by ourselves- yay...

Well the last couple of weeks have been rather eventful, as I'm sure you can guess. My camp team was involved in three camps over the course of two weeks. I think I can speak for my team in saying that all the camps went smoothly and we definately saw the Lord working. I had two great people to work with- Christina and Samuel were both very flexible and easy-going, which is a must when working with a crazy person like me. When I started doing strange things in large group, what did they do? Laughed and joined me. When I changed the schedule and hacked it to bits in the middle of the week, what did they do? Supported me and helped me try and explain everything to our awesome TAs. I want to thank you both for the help you were to me- you are absoluuuutely great! But the biggest thanks goes to the Lord, who seems to be teaching me more and more each day to trust Him no matter what happens. It's kind of hard to give a short synopsis of two weeks of camp because so much happened but it's hard to know how to give the "readers digest version". Please continue to pray for the kids and TAs we worked with, that the Lord would continue to work in their hearts.

And now it is the new year. Pray for this new semester that will be starting on Monday. Pray that the Lord will give us renewed energy and a renewed vision for the people He has called us to serve. Pray that we will give our best and not hold anything back. Pray that we would keep our focus on the Lord and that He would teach us more about Himself every single day. Thank you each for your prayers. I know I say this every time I write an update, but every time it is just as true. We really could not do this without the prayers of people like you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

A Nantou-ren at heart,
Kai Shi (Christina Moody)
Ying Pan Team

When I arrived here in Taiwan in September, all of my teammates had just finished teaching camps all summer. As you can imagine, I heard a lot of different stories…some of them good, and some of them not so good…so I really had know idea what to expect when I came here to Nantou to teach at winter English camps. I started out helping with the camp in Yong Le, switching after a few days to start a new one in Ying Pan and then moving on to a final one in Jiji this week. Whew! In other words they have been keeping us really busy. It hasn’t been too hard though because God blessed us with an awesome group of TA’s to work with during these couple weeks.

The beginning of camps God gave me a verse that has been my theme for service here and I think it is still just as applicable as our time here draws to a close.
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
God has created us and created specific works just for us. We may not always recognize them as something super spiritual or spectacular, but we are told that if we but receive a little child in Jesus name we have done it unto Him and I think that is one of the works that He is calling us to do here this week.

I also came here expecting to reach out and serve the TA’s, but in so many ways they have been an encouragement to me in their flexibility and willingness to go the extra mile. I sometimes feel that my part is so small in what I do, but yet God in His sovereign plan placed me here for a purpose. Again it may not be something spectacular, or significant in my eyes, but my prayer is that somehow during the short time we have left together, they may see more of Him.

Christina Furrow
From Hualien, serving at the winter camp in Jiji