Thankfully January in Beijing has proved so far to be milder than December was, and it has been a welcome treat to get to go outside for P.E. time this session. Our Class C, led by Preston, is made up of 15 students mostly from Gansu who are medium and lower-confidence level speakers. Krista, while still in the US until Jan. 18, is providing advice, admin support and encouragement along the way. Students are excited to be planning a welcome-home party for her that will also be their first meeting. It will most likely turn into a “photo” hour or two.
Class C discussions have ranged from body parts to nuclear proliferation. Needless to say, lesson planning has required some additional creativity in order to build in appropriate challenges for the majority. So far the class is very happy with their learning environment and they appreciate Preston’s speaking cadence and his ability to ensure they conversation starters for lunch and dinner. It’s always the little things that count. :0 We also have a 16-year-old from Beijing in the class who volunteered to be the Party Planner. His mother calls daily to check in on his progress. So you can see, the class is a highly motivated yet diverse bunch.
The student population dwindled to less than 50 students this month because Spring Festival falls very early this year on Feb. 3. That means that teachers are off in mid January so they can be home cooking, cleaning and preparing to celebrate the 15-day Chinese New Year with their families. It also means that the batch of students who did attend is overly anxious about securing train tickets home. We anticipate that next week they will only have eyes for Spring Festival – even as they prepare to give their speeches!
That said we prayerfully are looking forward to February when there is potential for a typical training session or TIP Mandarin like last year, where we can practice Chinese. Regardless, we hope to see a former student or two and meanwhile recover from the nasty colds that have plagued us both even as we live on separate continents.
Krista will be back in Beijing on January 19 and we are looking forward to the reunion. Aunt Joyce is undergoing radiation treatments and her health situation, while not improved, is stable. Krista’s parents and brothers will be taking over support and care for now. Despite the challenges of caregiving, Krista has enjoyed the time in California where she got to play many hours of Mexican Train (dominos) and Spot It (cards) with her nephews, Mom and Aunt. She also was blessed with a visit from Tracey, a friend from China.
Preston is working on a post about Marry’s fabulously interesting and cold wedding, but the photos are already online. Take a look! And thank you all for your prayers and support as we have often struggled through this time apart.
Marry's Wedding: http://www.flickr.com/photos/40596876@N06/sets/72157625607284225/
3 comments:
I will be VERY interested in the explanation to go with the wedding pictures!
I'm so glad Krista's work is done in CA and she will be home soon.
Enjoyed reading the update and viewing the photos.
Dude. The pack v. stillers. Come on, man. Gotta wager something or another, don't we? This summer, my baby brother and I shook Elvis Costello's hand behind the Napa Opera House we had just performed. We saw his bus out back, grabbed a sixer and sat on the curb and waited. Sure enough...he declined our entreaties to grab "a quick one" at the bar across the street. It was midnight and he was wearing sunglasses. Not many people can do that, but Elvis can. Earlier we had made a pack to go on a beer run when Elvis invariably played Alison...but he did do King of America, the soundtrack of our yosemite adventure. She said she was working for the ABC news, it was as much of the alphabet as she could use...
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