Dear Praying Friends,
Whew! What a week!
 |
| A note from a student. |
As I’m sitting here writing, I
can hear the rain falling outside, the click clack of computer keys in the office, and quiet hallways…
almost (due to the kids on nap time). I can smell mold, the incense burning at
the temple next door, and the stinky tofu stand. The sky is gray and misty, the
walls are white, and the chalkboard is green. This place, though my home, still
seems a little strange.
But, I’m sure for the children,
we seem even stranger. This week, the kids made comments on our hair, our eye
color, our skin, and so forth. In the middle of class, one boy said “You don’t
know! Aren’t you Taiwanese???” I had to laugh. “No. I’m American.” (Of course,
that’s all translated from Chinese.) You would think, one look at me would tell
that I’m NOT Asian. But, these kids talk at me in Chinese like it’s never
occurred to them that I might not understand. The more I can understand the
children’s comments, the more I am reminded what life is like from a child’s
perspective.
 |
| CEI logo |
This week I have been SO
GRATEFUL for the prayers of fellow Believers. We had two classrooms of children
-two thirds of which were boys, a low English level, and short staff. There
were days, (actually, night classes) that were a challenge. The boys… It felt
like the evening classes were just contained chaos. By contrast, the next
morning in class, they were good as angels, having been warned of loosing their
recess if they were not respectful.
*That’s new to them; I’m told
that the Taiwanese teachers in schools dish out track-and-field laps for bad
behavior. Loosing recess is scary to them. The culture and expectations here
are so different, that the same tricks that would work for kids in the States
don’t work on the 4th graders here and vise versa.
There is a Typhoon hovering
Taiwan right now. It’s rained for 5 days straight. Between flooding and
mudslides, there’s a lot of damage in many cities, (though not Douliu, we’re
just wet). Please pray for the many
families that have lost loved ones and homes due to flooding and mud.
A Grateful servant of Christ,
Barbara 蘇以樂 |
| The kids are a little nervous about putting this combo together. |
 |
| "I like to eat sandwiches!... Do you want a sandwich?" |
Comments