Living it up.

I miss writing. Life becomes so busy that we loose the things we love. I suppose that may not be true of everyone, but that seems to be what has happened to me. I imagine that living in a foreign land has something to do with me not doing the things I once enjoyed. I realize that what I once knew is not quite what I know now. It hit me today that the people I was once so close to are half a world away and as of now 7 months behind. I feel distant from what once was and yet distant from what is now reality. The Father has been so good to me though. He is revealing to me that what gets accomplished is what we set out to do. If we live contently in our lives never challenging or disciplining ourselves we accomplish nothing. Again another lesson I learn from my dad. I miss conversations. I have them here, but they aren't quite like the ones I enjoy. I miss deep, thought provoking statements and questions. My brain is becoming jelloish and I want to be challenged.

Okay, that's the emotional/thinking part of my post. Let me fill you in on China.

The morning begins with the sun beaming in on my face at 5 a.m. because I have not made it to the market yet to buy curtains. I know, I've been here 7 months. I feed my fish, who remain nameless so if you have ideas let me know. (3 guppies, 2 neons, and a sucker fish) Shower, grab a yogurt, and I'm off for the day. I arrive at school, head to our morning staff meeting and eat my yogurt, normally with a plastic fork. I then head to my class to be greeted by 16 foreign kids who think they should have recess all day long and play soccer the rest of their lives. We laugh, learn, and live it up in 5th grade. They like to call me Miss Sparkie at times, and yes it gets old really quickly. I never know quite what to expect from them; I only know they will make me smile and laugh throughout the day. I head to Chinese twice a week for an hour each lesson. My Chinese is getting better, but I still have a long ways to go. It's so fun to be learning a language in another country. Some days I dream of Applebees, Cracker Barrel, Outback, etc. I know, food? I really miss driving too, but what are you going to do? I've been helping to instruct the 5th-8th grade girls with volleyball on Mondays after school. It has been a blast and I'm really looking forward to coaching next year. I've also gone to a Middle School to teach English to 8th grade students. That has been amazing and have some cool stories to share with you someday.

I like to go to the beach sometimes and relax, either reading a book or journaling. I also try to play sports whenever there's an opportunity. It's not as often as I would like. Of course Starbucks is always a good choice for my weekend and every once in a while I'll make a stop by Baskin Robbins. I've began to ride the bus more often, which is much cheaper and really the true China experience.

I suppose that should suffice for now. I'll be keeping this updated more regularly. Hope you have a great week! I love and miss you all!

Kira