The Thanksgiving Party!

The Thanksgiving party,  

No we didn’t eat turkey and mashed potatoes. It was a thanksgiving party for Joyce. When I arrived at the classroom where the party was being held the lights were out and the girls were all standing in 2 lines facing each other holding lit candles. They were singing a beautiful Chinese song about friendship and goodbyes. As they sang another student walked down themiddle of them with a large, gorgeous cake covered with whip cream topped with rows of fruit and lit candles on it with We Love Joyce in the middle. I could not control the tears. I was so moved by the sincerity and tune of the music. Even if I could not understand them I felt it.

Some of the women were crying as well. I got a text from one of my old students saying “have fun at your party, don’t cry like a baby.”  I know last time when I left I cried a lot. I honestly didn’t know I would ever come back so it made me very sad. This time I believe I will be back. I am not done with China. It is in my blood and I truly love teaching these students.

After I blew out the candles on the cake it was my job to cut it and serve it on the little paper plates they provided with the cake. The women realized we did not have enough pates so they tore them in half. They were only about 5 inches round as it w, so half of a plate was small.  They had bowls with candy in them and loved the cake. It was not as delicious as in the U.S. because it is not too sweet. I liked it though; it tasted like a sponge cake.

A few of the students wanted to perform a song for me. I cried again because of their courage to stand up in front of their peers and sing. They both had beautiful voices and I really enjoyed the song.  It is especially moving for me when I see them stretching out of their comfort zone to sing and give me a gift. As they would say “I have a gift to present to you.”

Each girl stood up and told me what they appreciated about the World Academy For the Future of Women. They told me what they learned from me.  Many of them have been so shy these past few weeks they won’t even share in the classroom. They always start by saying “I am a little shy, or I am a shy girl, and my English is poor.” But, they shared and that was really important to see them grow like that in the short 5 weeks I have been here. One of them said “you said you found yourself in China, I found myself in the World Academy.”  She then shared how she has gotten so much more confident and courageous since before she was a member.

Many of the students had a gift to present to me. It is so cute and kind how they always have something to give. I really do love how they are so willing to do anything for me.  I have to be so careful to tell them something is cute or I like it because they will go out and buy it for me or give me what they are wearing or have.

In my opinion these women are angels. I taught in open forum today about experience the sheer joy of being alive, and gratitude. They got it and repeat the things I teach. In advanced class I taught the gift of miracles. It was fun to have them share miracles they have had in their lives. Many of them are angels in my life. They have helped me so much. I have an easy stay here in China because of their service to me.

I have mixed emotions about leaving tomorrow. I miss home, Steve the kids and grandkids. I will miss these women and their powerful, kind, loving spirits. They teach me more every time I come about listening to me, taking it in, applying it and living it each day. They want their lives to be different and are willing to do anything to make their dreams come true.  When they hugged me they said,” I will work hard, and make you proud of me.”  I am already proud of them and their courage just to stand up and share tonight was amazing.  What a gift I receive each time I come here to love and be loved by women with hearts of gold.

It's Cultural Week!

It’s Cultural Week!

I have heard about this week but never been on Sias campus during cultural week. It is so much fun. All the foreign faculty staff play a huge role in making this week a success. Each day a different country is represented all throughout campus. Flags from the country are flown on campus. In Italian Square there are exhibits and people selling things from that country for the day. In the evenings there are many performances from that country.

I forgot what week it was and went out for my usual morning walk. As I approached Italian Square I saw crowds of people, venders, artists, students and music, and costumes. I was like a child in a candy store. There were so many beautiful things and such talent represented. I found myself wanting to buy something from each vender just to support them in their art. They were invited from all over China to this event to share their talents and sell their wares. The prices were so low I wanted everything but had to remember I also have to figure out a way to get it all home.

There was a wonderful little woman sitting on a small wooden stool tearing strands of palm tree leaves into long strands with her teeth. She wove them into grass hoppers and butterflies, put them on a long thin strand of leaf and sold them for 5 Yuan which is about 50 cents. Of course I bought some because I was in awe of what she could do with a palm leaf.

A man with a long black pony tail and thin beard and mustache was in the middle of the square with a large box and a drum and cymbals on the side of it. He wore a red traditional Chinese shirt and black pants and slippers.  He was dancing and hopping while he played the cymbals and drums. Inside the box were pictures the students paid money to see. When the man danced and played it made the pictures in the box move. I think this is an ancient version of the moving picture show.  I didn’t see the movie but enjoyed watching the man hop around and play the instruments.

Another woman stood at my side, she had a black piece of paper and cut a profile of my face from the paper in about 10 seconds. It was quite incredible how she could cut it so quickly and then pulled off the back and stuck it into a cardboard frame.

There were so many artists sharing their talents. In the evening there were many performances at the Roman theatre. Singers, dancers, kung fu and traditional arts were performed. I love China. I really do love the history and how so many of the people are carrying on the traditions of their fathers.  I know there are many reasons for me to be here but now I am grateful to learn more about the history of this country through their arts.

Picture Update

Traveling To Dengfeng

Traveling to Dengfeng, 

I traveled to the village of Zhou Shan in Dengfeng today. I have heard stories of the women in this village and wanted to meet them. I was grateful my driver Mr. Shen knew where he was going.

We drove through villages and cities on dirt roads, and rocky roads. We saw cave dwellers and village homes being torn down by large bull dozers. People were sitting out in the rubble scavenging through the dirt and rock as though an earthquake had shattered their world. The government wants their land, so they are moving them to high rise apartment buildings.

For some of the younger people they look forward to the change. The older ones who have lived there all their lives are sad and lost. As we drove by I saw men, women, and children walking around the leftover pieces of their lives. My heart was sad for them.

Zhou Shan is in the country side, with hills covered with trees that were turning gold and yellow with autumn approaching. There was a little stream that ran through the village. Children were playing with an old seat from a car. A woman was sitting at the entrance to her home on a small wooden stool scrubbing shoes with a brush and water. There were two forks in the road and the driver wasn’t sure which one to take. We only lost our way a couple of times, and he never hesitated to ask questions and get directions.

I admire Mr. Shen. He has been my driver each time I have come to campus. I request him for many reasons. He has a soft, kind face and smile, and is a patient and slow driver. He has been a driver for 31 years. He has a son in college and a daughter who is married.  He likes to cook homemade noodles for his wife. He does not speak English but we communicate through the students. I tell him he’s driving Miss Daisy. Any time I have had to catch a bus, train, or plane he always makes sure I get on before he leaves me. Today I needed to go to the bank when we arrived back on campus; he took me to get what I needed. Mr. Shen makes my visit to China easier.

When we arrived at Zhou Shan the women did not know we were coming. We pulled up to a gated community of white buildings with a marble courtyard and a garden with a small table and chairs. The students hollered out something and the women came out of a room upstairs. Olivia, my student told them I was there to meet them. As soon as they saw me they smiled and clapped their hands and came downstairs to greet me. The oldest woman was 68 and was so warm she put her hand in mine as we walked upstairs to their work room.

As we entered their work room it was different from other work rooms I had seen. It was clean, well lit and the energy was happy and calm. In the middle of the room was a large table covered with thick quilt batting, and a soft cotton batting. They had some darling child printed fabric they were cutting out to make jackets for children. There were three treadle sewing machines, and shelves filled with pieces of the jackets waiting to be put together.

I did not feel a rush from them to get things finished, or have a quota to get done. What I learned was this was a place where the women are carrying on the traditional handiwork that has been done for generations. They did everything from hand or on these old singer sewing machines. I looked at their fingers hardened with calluses and tape around some of them. This was a community center for women. There was a women’s association meeting room, a room for older people, and a women’s library.

Their handiwork was beautiful. I wanted to buy everything from them. They said people come from all over to their village to buy things from them. The most recent customers were from Hong Kong and Thailand.  They make tiger faced pillows and stuffed animals, traditional wedding dresses and bedding, shoes, wallets, wall hangings, quilts, shopping bags, computer bags, children clothing, purses and more. Everything they made was perfect. The best part was they seemed to love what they were doing.

There are 18 women who work here 7days a week from 8-5. They have a kitchen and cook lunch together every day and feel like they are all sisters. They get paid 18 Yuan a day which is $3 American money. I got the feeling it was not money they were after, it was the companionship of each other and spending their time doing something they loved. Of course they wanted us to stay for lunch. I asked them not to prepare me any meat. I was afraid they would bring out the pig or something.

I was able to watch and even help the older woman make homemade noodles. It was quite an effort. They chopped up vegetables thinly and sautéed them in oil, after scrambling eggs they got from their chickens.  There was a large pot of boiling water with a little colander on the top of it. When the noodles were done she dropped them into the water. One of the women was washing out the bowls and brought them in to fill with noodles, vegetables and eggs. We ate outside at the little table and chairs. They brought a liter bottle of homemade rice vinegar and a container of spices and one of ground up garlic and vinegar to put on our noodles. They were delicious! It was such a good soup and since I could put the spices in myself I really enjoyed it. After we ate our noodle soup they brought out the big pot of water the noodles were cooked in and set it on the ground. I was told this was soup and we now pour it into our noodle bowl and drink it up. That was unusual but I figured it had been boiled so why not. It just tasted like starchy water. The girls told me it is very good for you. I think they believe everything their mothers have told them.

The air outside was cleaner than in town and cool and crisp. The trees were hanging over our heads dropping leaves. The students were taking in deep breaths with each bite and saying something. When I asked what they were saying they said “we are breathing in happiness, because this taste like home.” In other words “comfort food”. They were so happy to eat something their mothers made. They said that when they were children their mothers would make this noodle soup and they would walk outside and sit down with the neighbors and eat and talk together.

The story the older woman told me was sad. She had 7children, 6 daughters and 1 son. She was teary eyed when she said she had to give away 3 of her daughters when they were born because she could not afford to feed them. Her son lives nearby and her daughters live further away but they buy her so many clothes she cannot wear them all. She seems so happy to be doing her handicraft with these women.

One of the stories I heard, that brought me to this village, was something these women did to change the law.  For generations the baby boys have always been cherished over the baby girls. The law stated that when a baby boy was born the placenta would be buried in the middle of the village. When a baby girl was born the placenta would be buried outside the village. These women went to the Elders of their village and challenged this law. They said the girls were just as important as the boys and they should all be in the middle of the village.  After some time the law was changed. I was so impressed with their courage to take a stand for something they believed in and would not back down. From this experience other women in neighboring villages have taken courage to do the same.  It has been such an inspiration to me to see what a difference a few can make and how it is spreading on to others.

This was a wonderful day. I made new friends and felt a connection with my heart to more women in this country I have come to love.

My KTV Experience

My KTV experience, 

I was told I couldn’t come to China and not go to KTV. I did not know what this was until the students explained it to me. It is a karaoke bar, sort of.  They rented a big room with a stage and cushioned benches with two big screens on the wall. A computer is available to choose the songs to sing. It was like a big party. We paid for the premium package for 5 hours we reserved the room and got a table full of snacks; fruit,nuts and seeds.

Girls came and went throughout the time we were there. I only stayed about 2 hours. It was very loud and the music was interesting. All the American songs were by Madonna, Brittney Spears, Brandy, Avril, Lady Ga Ga, and a few by the Beatles and The Carpenters.  The songs had the words and music videos of the singers but the actual songs were sung by someone else and slower than the original.

The students love this. They don’t even care how they sound they belt out the songs like they are trying out for the next American Idol. They do not seem embarrassed about their voices cracking or sounding bad. I am not a singer and thought there was no way I would sing. When I saw how it didn’t bother them, I decided to join them and sing my little heart out as well.

One of the men from the Men’s Academy was with us. Jackie actually has a good voice and you can tell he was experienced at this. The girls said he loves to sing and they always bring him when they go. He had the microphone up to his mouth and sang with feeling and emotion. He chose love songs and family songs with a story because he says “you can put your emotion into it.” It was fun to watch him really get into it.

I noticed the styles of dress in the music videos and dances of the Chinese songs. It seems to be fashionable to have uneven bangs, strands of hair even an inch longer than the rest of the bangs. The more ruffles, bows, studs, chains, and buttons on the clothing the better. It is all so cute. I would not wear it but it is fun to see the things they wear.

We got on the stage and danced away to the gangnam style song. They thought it was funny I knew the dance and could dance. They took a lot of pictures. I hope I don’t end up on someone’s we chat video but I have no control of that so I will let it go. We had fun.

After the KTV about a dozen students came over and hung out in my room. I think they are feeling the time nearing my departure and want to get as much as me as they can. I feel the same. I like to be with them because I know I won’t see them for a while. I think I will probably come back for their graduation. Many of my first students in 2011 are graduating in May and want me to attend. They call me their American mama and I need to be here for their graduation and for photos of course.