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August 24 MOVEDTo anyone who cares, This blog is done, a chapter in our online lives... closed.  These days, I find myself occasionally posting stuff at a new place. That would be HERE. As it stands now, it's a mess of a few things. In future days, I hope it will evolve into a mess of many things. Should you choose to venture over, you'd be welcome. Jason July 16 Second Semester Reading
Second Semester MoviesSummer blog-cleaning... If anyone cares what movies we've watched and enjoyed in the past few months, here's a handful. Movies Loved by Us or Our Students (Term 2) "Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" Great story, decent movie. You've got to understand: I LOVE those
books. So any movie is going to have trouble meeting the standard
already in my mind. Worthwhile, for sure, but a bit disappointing to
this fan. "Grizzly Man" Never heard of it? I hadn't either. A documentary on the life of Timothy Treadwell, who lived several months each year among Alaska's grizzlies. Strange fellow? You could say so. Odd film? Yeah. But I quite enjoyed it--interesting look into one life. "Luther" Strong movie following the life of Martin Luther, famous figure of the Reformation Movement. Enjoyable, informative, and even inspiring. A painless way to ingest a bit of significant history! "Band of Brothers" Not exactly a movie, but we've been watching it lately. WWII mini-series that shows much of the war experience of those who lived it. I cannot imagine. "Groundhog Day" We recently re-watched this one after years since first seeing it. I forgot how funny Bill Murray is. Blog Future?I'm debating what to do with this blog. Just continue on? Wind it up and move to another one? Wait until work starts and tie a blog to that new role? Stop altogether? My answer likely hardly matters to any but me. But if you show up one day to see a link to another blog or a sign saying "Closed for Good", now you won't be surprised. Summer TimeWell, it feels like forever since the last post. We're back in Canada in the middle of July. This is our month to be free for travelling, visiting family and friends, and trying to sort out some life details before we enter a new pattern of life. My job starts on August 1 at the Glen Elm Family and Shannon will begin searching for work before this month is up. Those things alone will ease us into daily routines. Looking for a place to live in Regina is also one of the more interesting things right now. We'd love to buy a place to call our own, so we've done a lot of thinking about mortgages (man, does that sound like a big word!) and have done some online browsing of Regina real estate. It's kind of fun and certainly exciting though it is a big step and one in which we're curious about God's plan. Words like "simplicity" and "contentment" hit hard in my mind, and sometimes the "grab as much as you can" feel of buying a house doesn't jive easily. I'm not saying it's bad to buy a house. I'm just a guy who hates debt and has no desire to have life squeezed more than necessary by financial burdens. So that leads to a handful of questions that we as a couple need to answer before making such a major decision about such a major chunk of our change. That's all. A mundane matter like a mortgage has felt quite spiritual in the last week of thought, and I like that. Imagine... a life where the common and the sacred mingle and mix... and it just feels right!  Today finds us in Calgary, visiting Shannon's sister Rebecca and her family. The week's allowed us to visit a handful of friends (Heather, John & Angie, Malcolm "Mike Weir" & Suzanne, Curtis & Heather) that now call Calgary home and to spend relaxed time with Steve & Rebecca and their three kids. It's been fun! Add to that a Rider victory over BC (I never doubted it for a second!), and that's a pretty decent week. June 27 Farewell ChinaWell, tomorrow is the day.
We've known that June 28 would be our day of departure for months, now it's on top of us. And I'm still having trouble getting a grasp on that. Since marrying, we've never lived anywhere longer than three years, so in that sense, Shiyan was as much home as anywhere. And the thought of leaving is still a bit tough to accept. Don't misunderstand though: We really do feel like this is the right time to return home; no doubt there. It's just going to take some adjusting.
To try to take the edge of the 'adjusting', we've been reading some articles we found along with workking through a useful booklet that a friend directed us towards. The questions in the booklet have already provided us with some useful questions to consider and discuss, and Shannon's already commented at how helpful even the first stages of such discussions have been.
So if you're in Regina any time soon and run into two spaced-looking folks, just smile and wave and realize that they may still be working through that magic booklet!
And if you think of us on Wednesday evening, you can know that we will be just arriving in Regina, Canada, to a few welcoming family and friends--that part will be great! June 25 From BeijingWell, here we sit... in Beijing.
The day of goodbyes came and went in Shiyan, and about as well as one could hope for. There were tears shed, to be sure. But there were also lots of smiles, hugs, and laughs to offset (and add to) the pain of leaving. Our week leading up to leaving had been full of activity and low on sleep, including consecutive nights of bedtimes at 3 AM, 4 AM, and 4 AM again. Note to self... this type of schedule does not contribute to greater emotional stability. But we did achieve all that needed achieving and enjoyed the people closest to us as much as possible in those final days, so we have no regrets whatsoever.
The train to Beijing was nicely uneventful, and we were both crashed within a couple hours. The night's sleep was a bit rough, but we'll get a better one tonight.
Tomorrow is not sleep-in day. We've off to visit one more section of the Great Wall. This time: Simatai, one of the less restored and more adventurous sections. We're looking forward to visiting this one since it's often almost empty and nothing like some of the tourist traps we've been to in the past.
The following day will afford us some final shopping in the land where every product on earth is made, and Wednesday will bring us to the airport. We're aiming to make the most of this 3-day buffer zone between Shiyan and Canada, so here we go.
We'll see some of you in just 3-4 days... and that seems impossible!
Much love to those who love us! June 24 Last night in ShiyanWell, it's 3:30 am on our last night in this town, and I guess we'll be heading to the train station in about 12 hours (which has me realizing just how short on sleep I'm going to be by the time I get there!). This week has been a wonderful one, full of surprise visits and meaningful last times with friends here. It has crossed my mind many times how and why loving people can be so painful though! Having to leave our dear friends here, those who we have journeyed with for a few years, feels honestly like some kind of pain! I remember back to having to leave our families for the first time and how hard that was, but I knew I'd see them again in a year's time! It's pretty tough to know that I may not see these special friends for a long while...and many things will have changed when we meet again. We can never come back to this time and this place with these people. Our hopes for them are many, and our experience tells us that He is faithful beyond expectation. We will keep asking that He continues the good things he has begun in their lives, and wait to hear the details of it!
This little town has brought us so many blessings. It all seems so surreal that tomorrow we will leave the home and culture we've had for three years and return to our homeland. While thinking about leaving and what we'll miss from China, many things come to mind... -falling asleep to the sound of thousands of croaking frogs -late April when the smell of jasmine flowers fills every corner of campus -the variety and freshness of the vegetables and fruit that can be found -heat and humidity (beats goosebumps anyday!) -being on the high end of the pay scale (when will that ever happen again?!? ) -being within train distance to anywhere in Asia -the extra status you being a foreigner and that people usually listen when you say something -walking out onto any street at midnight and meeting vendors willing to cook you delicious meat on a stick, fried rice, or whatever you ask for! -the amount of people that can be seen in any direction that you look (so much activity to watch!) -the MSG that gets loaded into the dishes in every restaurant that make them taste SO good (haha, this one was a joke to see if you were still with me, we won't miss that too much) But all these pale in comparison to how much ache our hearts feel at having to leave the 15 close friends we have here. I can't find words for it at the moment. It is purely selfish on my part, but I can't help wanting to be around to see what happens next in their journeys. They each have a unique and powerful story to tell and it is not over yet! But our part in it is finished for the time being, perhaps we will find out why in the future. He is faithful and has never failed in giving a child what is needed when it is needed. We will return to Canadian soil in one week, and there are many things we're looking forward to, but at the moment they seem a world away and hard to put our minds on. We will have a few days in Beijing and hope to try to get our minds around the changes that we are in the midst of. I will have to write a happier, more excited blog about things I'm looking forward to in coming home, but that will be in a few days. For now, I just know that tomorrow will be a tough one because loving people a lot hurts, but I will be taking comfort in the fact that no one knows this better than our heavenly Father. And He still chose to love extravagantly and never regretted it for a second. I'll end with a quote from the dear Mother Teresa, someone who followed the Great example and found one of the secrets to loving: “I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.” I'll keep working on it I guess. Goodnight for the last time from Shiyan... -s Waking UpNo, I'm not typing in my sleep, though yes, I am recovering from several too-late nights in a row. Actually, the recovery may have to wait until we're back on Canadian soil. Sleep seems to be in ever-shorter supply as our time in Shiyan ticks down. We leave Shiyan in two days. I know that sentence is just a statement to any who read it. It's just a fact. But to us, it's a loaded sentence. And it hits. And it hurts. And it's just been starting to affect my tear ducts. I'm exceptionally gifted at denial. I can block every thought of an impending event up until almost the very last moment. All year, I've known that this Saturday was coming, and I left it at arm's length--a year's worth of arm. But time moved on, and 'Saturday' started butting into daily life: I had to book air tickets, I had to plan and grade exams, June appeared on my calendar, people started emailing about our coming back to Canada. All of a sudden, there was no denying that my 'year-long arm' was a lie. The day was coming. So I shortened my limb to a 'one-month arm', and I held on to it dearly. And now here I am again, forced to admit that the 'arm' in my mind is nowhere near the reality. We leave Shiyan in two days. Our past ten days or so have been so special! I'd love to tell you about them, but I fear doing so. I'd speak of things that touched our hearts: Of notes received, memories made, stories shared, and heart-revealing moments of sharing and 'praring'. And I wouldn't have the words to express the feelings involved and the emotions that flow even as I sit here now. And then you wouldn't have the ability to 'hear' what I really meant to say... even if you really do care and desire to understand. Leaving is hard. Goodbyes are never fun. Everyone knows these things. I'm just now sitting in that funny spot where my heart is actually starting to get in sync with the reality of the situation around me, and I must admit to feeling some shock and some sadness as it happens. The blessing of it all? Such feelings suggest that we're living a life worth the trouble. They confirm that love is indeed worth giving, even though it will hurt sometimes. To use Eldredge's phrase, maybe I'm reminded that "living from your heart" is the only way to live. Anything less is just posing or playing. I slip into posing and playing sometimes, to be sure, so the beauty of such feelings as these might be simple: They put me back in touch with really feeling alive. Tearful and tough as they are, I wouldn't trade these moments and these feelings for anything. Now the long, 'likely terribly teary' train ride to Beijing... that I might trade. But I'll deal with that when it arrives.  Pitter PatterWell, it broke. The live-in humidifier that was Shiyan this week finally erupted today... and the rains came down! And even still, most of the day was a cooker. Tonight it started pouring pretty good, and the air finally had a slight coolness to it. Plus: It's finally getting bearable outside. Negative: It's going to take forever for laundry to dry. Negative #2: We have a roof that lets water seep in slowly but surely. Get your mops ready! June 19 Sweet SundayWe are into a week of 'lasts' here. Yesterday was our last Sunday, and it was a special one. Meeting friends in the morning, we bussed out to a local dam, where a good-sized resevoir is collected. All 20-30 of us boarded a double-decker boat and headed out. Onboard, we shared lunch, Talked and sang together, and then hit the water for some swimming. Yesterday was another in a week's worth of HOT days, so the water of the resevoir felt like a small piece of heaven. Having learned my lesson in Thailand, I am pleased to say that no sunburns took place either... at least not below my neck. It was memorable time, to be sure. Heading home, we were expecting a small group of friends who'd missed the day-trip to visit us. We were surprised by more than usual, and we were thrilled to participate in an unusually meaningful and touching time: Great sharing about life and prairs from deep down... it was a sweet time, one for which we gave serious thanks. I wish I could explain more, but my expressive juices and typing passion are minimal right now--I'm blaming it on a lack of ice cream in my system.  In the quest for meaningful 'lasts', we are praising for the fantastic final weekend that we enjoyed in Shiyan. And now I'm off to 'refuel'. Do You Wanna Get Rocked?Let's get... Let's get... Let's get... Let's get... Let's get rocked, rocked, rocked, rocked, rocked, rocked. (Enter electric guitars) In my pre-WCC days, I was a Def Leppard lover. Still am, though I haven't listened for years. How can you not love a band with a one-armed drummer and a knack for one-word titles?! Anyway, all things 'rocked' were in my mind a couple nights ago. I was sitting on the steps outside a local supermarket waiting for Shannon to arrive. It was already dark (nearly 9 PM), and that stone step just got feeling real special. I likely should have given it a name. In my mind's entertainment center, there was a praise song spinning and NBA highlights on the tube. I recalled earlier in the day watching Game 4 of the NBA Finals. That was the game where Shaq got rocked. Yes, I'm speaking of the 7'1" and 350-pound Shaq, and yes, I did use the word 'rocked'. I'd like to have a wider vocabulary but sometimes there's only one word that truly works. Witnessing the game that morning, I called out in surprise to Shannon (who honestly thinks I love sports too much but lovingly pretends to be interested sometimes), "Shaq just got rocked!" Her reply: "Who on earth could rock Shaq?" Answer? Jerry Stackhouse... with a full head of steam, laying the shoulder into the chin of one airborne Shaq. The conditions had to be perfect... and they were--and it made for some must-see TV. And it got things rocking... Back on the steps... My mind got more focused than usual. Between my mind's CD and the people passing by, I recalled a verse where a loving Father tells a nervous child, "Do not be afraid. I have many people in this city." I had nothing like fear in me at that moment; it was the second part of the verse that struck me like a Stackhouse of bricks. "I have many people in this city." In this province. In this nation. And then the people walking by came into a new light. They ceased being strangers whose hair or clothes I critiqued and about whose lives I thought nothing as they entered and exited my life within the same second. They became mysteries: "Is he one of those ones?", "What is He doing in her life to lead her that way?", "What potential to rock this land might lie in him?". And things kept rocking... I was back to Shaq. His getting rocked was an unthinkable thought. I'd have never believed it, if I hadn't seen it. Perhaps there are more 'unrockable' things just waiting to be rocked. I recalled one of the greatest highlights of my short hockey career: Rocking the big guy, who my friend Kevin deemed as 'unrockable'. When the unbreakable break and the unbeatable fall, something just makes my heart sing. My song shifted to praeir (work your phonics on that one): "Please rock this city. Please shake this province. Rattle the foundations of this land, and lay Your shoulder into the chin of all who are here." And now the rocking was rolling... Hockey-nuts Canadians love a good body check, and that was the image in my northern mind. So it should thrill your soul that we were next in the street-side parade. My land (soon to be homeland again) needs a rocking. And so the flow continued: "Rock my land. If we are skating with our heads down, lay us out. If we have forgotten the One over all, rattle our cages and sit ur down. Rock the Queen City. Shake Saskatchewan. Lay the Big shoulder into the whole of the 'true north', and make us truly strong and free." I'd heard such thoughts before. But I'd never felt them like I did that night. And it felt good; it felt right. It felt like that thrill you get when oxygen re-enters your lungs after you just got thumped--you know you're alive. And you know that there's a lot going on in this world that you don't see, and it thrills your soul. And you know that if Def Leppard belted out their song-starting question, "Do you wanna get rocked?", that you would shout out a "you'd better believe it". Friday, June 23, 2006... the most recent rocking of one Jason. May the Rocker be praised, and may He be most active in the days ahead. June 16 Shiyan SaunaOn this day, the thermometer in our kitchen window is reading 38 degrees! Add to that heat a bit of typical Shiyan humidity, and I suppose there's no mystery remaining as to why there's a river running from our glands! The solution? It's a perfect day for ice cream! Actually, in a land of 15 cent ice creams, I've met few days that weren't ideal for such goodness.  June 11 Yo Yo Yangshuo!We arrived in Yangshuo this morning around 7:15 to discover an empty and dead West Street. For those of you haven't been to Yangshuo, West Street is NEVER empty or dead. Must have been a late night at every cafe in town--I noticed that they're showing every World Cup game live at every place on the street--those games don't begin until about 10 PM here, and last night had three matches back-to-back-to-back. Might have to get in on some of that myself if an attention-grabbing matchup happens while we're here! The Bamboo House, one of my favourite places to stay anywhere, is once again our home for these few days. So what's the plan? Well, not much. That is half the beauty of this place. Some reading, some biking, some good food and drink, some countryside exploration,... exactly what we were looking for before entering our final ten days in Shiyan. Last night's "hard sleeper" train tickets were exactly as advertised: It was a hard place to sleep. Between snoring grandmas, jerky stops and starts, and less comfortable than normal bunks, our zzz's were definitely less than the prescribed amount. So Shannon is napping right now before our night out on the river, and I'll attempt to get some reading done as soon as this post is up. Signing off from one of my favourite places... we'll talk again soon. June 10 Catching a BreathAny time before 6:00 AM seems like a time that clashes against the idea of relaxing... but not today. Shannon and I are headed to Wuhan on an early bus before catching an afternoon train south to Guangxi province. Yes, you should recognize that name--we've been there twice before! It just might be my favourite spot in China. After a flourish of activity, our classes and exams are finished, and we've decided to explore that countryside one last time while a train ticket is still all it takes to reach those hills. The past ten days or so have flown by! When the end of something special approaches, one often finds onself hoping that the conclusion will be memorable, a special kind of special (to totally kill that word). We certainly feel that desire as our time to head home approaches, but "special" isn't always a create-able sensation. One can force it too much and then just end up at "awkward" instead. So it is with gratitude that I look back on what has indeed been a special ten days: Three close friends have made major Decisions about their lives, a handful of special visits have happened, a couple handfuls of parties with people we love have come off without any hitches. Add to those a few moments of affirmation that our efforts here have counted for something, and there have been more than a few reasons to smile and savour these days. Then just for a twist and a dose of humble focus, last night provided one of the most deflating and sobering moments that I've ever had. It involves a friend in the midst of serious questions about whether walking the narrow road is really worth it. That is theshould be asked, so I'm thrilled when someone actually asks it. The kick-to-the-stomach feeling hit me when it became clear that the narrow road in question was actually a system (You know the R-word?) instead of a Way, Truth, and Life. I'm not sure my friend was even able to see the difference as he shared his scattered thoughts. Classic struggle... but will we ever escape it?! You ever wonder why we're so prone to trade gold for gravel? Diamonds for dust, anyone? I'm in the midst of the stupidity with everyone else... likely helping spread it too. The truth of it just hit especially hard last night. Truthfully, I'm grateful that my friend is at this fork in the road--it should have been reached long ago but may have been wandered around. Funny how forks like this have a way of resurfacing until they're decided upon. And even then, they need re-choosing nearly every day. If you're thinking of your Love today, search it out a bit. Why do you Follow? Is it worth the cost? The Ads say it's a bargain. If you're finding anything but that, it may be worth testing your Product. The fakes out there go way beyond Chinese DVD shops. Buy carefully, friends--and Speak for my friend if you would; he is in need of a big-handed Touch more than anything else. Much love to you all! If you're free this week, grab a ticket to Guangxi. We'll meet you in that little corner restaurant that sells the only cheesecake that I've ever heard of in China! question that June 05 BloggingAs of late, I've intended to blog every day. I mean, there's been something to write about each day. The problem? The days have been very full lately, and with only 3 weeks left, blogging about the day's events instead of simply being immersed in those events (and getting ready for tomorrow's!) has simply fallen back several steps. As this morning gets going, I'm set to roll on my Spoken Exams. All 75 of my nursing students have short interviews with me this week. Today I'll do about 40 of them! Yeah, this will be a long one. Hopefully, I'm still actually listening by the last one! My final class goes tomorrow afternoon; more of a year-end wrap-up than an actual class, but I've got a scavenger hunt to prepare along with a few guitar songs to practice later tonight. Throw in a long-delayed trip to the tailor today, and Monday will be done in about a blink of an eye. And then the blogging struggle will be back... Jason's BirthdayI thought I'd get on here and fill in anyone who cares about the past few days. It'll be details only because it's late and Jason's been sleeping for an hour already, but the past few days have been quite special, and VERY full. So as not to get too far behind on this journalling thing, here are a few details... June 1 Jason turned 29 (and aging very well  ). We had a pizza party for his birthday party, which our good friends all like. Two of the girls and I spent most of the day trying to create a cake that would rival last year's...we thought since this was our last year in China that it had to be something Chinese. We came up with the idea to make it in the shape of the country and it turned out pretty good; we even got Taiwan in there to make them happy. Haha! And if you look in the picture, you'll see that we also carved a melon to say "happy birthday" and made a boat out of a canteloupe that includes Jason and I sailing to Canada with 12 of our Chinese friends. (Check out our 'high noses'!) There were about 20 of us for the party and we had study afterwards and talked about marriage. Many of them have been thinking about this as they are graduating and moving on to new cities where they will be away from the group and Family they have known for the past 5 years. It was a good chance to be open and chat about something so important...many of them we have journeyed with for over 2 years and it almost feels like they are our children in some ways, and in my heart I know I want them each to find that one person who they can share themselves with and walk their Walk with; someone who can challenge them and encourage them along the way. Some believe this will be difficult in a country where there are few Siblings (out in the open), but we have also just finished Learning together about the fifth NT book and we know the power and plans that are possible through the workings of the Spr1t! I get so excited when I think about what is in store for them in their future! And almost can't wait to come back in a few years and see for myself what has happened in their lives! Too awesome!!! So this was Jason's birthday...I am still married to the greatest man in the world (and next year he'll be even better! Hooray for the aging process!) and China has been so great for us to learn more about each other and how we can become better together. What a talented, funny, capable, and loving fellow I've caught myself. When I married him I thought I had done well...I'm finding out 8 years later just how fantastic he is. Happy birthday, babe!  Up next: Some pics from the great day... June 01 The First of JuneAfter my morning class, we made a run to one of the big supermarkets to pick up pizza supplies for a lunch pizza party tomorrow. The sidewalks and shops were nuts! Yes, I mean more nuts than usual. At least half the children of China seemed to be out with friends or parents. On top of that, every kid seemed just a bit more... kiddish than usual: Skipping, dancing, smiling, and dressed up just a bit cuter than usual. It took us a few minutes to remember. Today is a holiday over here: Children's Day! As a justice-seeking youngster, I once sought such a holiday in Canada. In a quest for equality, I scanned the calendar to find a day for fathers and mothers. Valentine's Day was undoubtedly for those with a "lover" (as my students always say). Occasionally, one would even hear of special days for teachers, nurses, secretaries, librarians, construction workers, McDonald's hamburger flippers--though everyone knew these weren't real holidays. I blamed in it on commercialism and teachers who wanted students to smarten up for at least one day each year. But what about the children?!? Figuring that I was on to a major breakthrough that would would no doubt lead to a rewriting of both constitution and calendar, and be depicted in a major motion picture, I took my finding to my surest audience... my mom. Without even looking at my arguments or sympatizing with my being victimized, she replied with one sentence: "Kids' Day? Every day is kids' day." I wondered today how many of the millions of kids in China realized just how good they've got it. Hear me kids: MILK IT FOR WHAT YOU CAN because it won't last forever... unless... your name is Jason. My students always laugh when they learn that June 1 is my birthday. They must figure that I've lucked into the Fountain of Youth or something--I mean how can you possibly age if you're born on Kids' Day?!? I'd been having some feelings lately that I wasn't maturing as much as I was hoping, like I expected that I might be further ahead when I hit 29... I guess we've figured that out haven't we?! Seriously though, this should be a special day. I've got a couple classes to teach, full of students that I enjoy. Then tonight will see our home full of some of our closest friends here for some high-quality Visiting followed by some good 'ole birthday partying. Two friends named Cathy and Shirley approached Shannon about making a birthday cake for tonight. From the length of time, they've been in the kitchen, I think they must be either building the Great Wall all over again or rehearsing a Broadway production. I've seen neither slaves nor costumes come in or out of that sealed door, so I may be off. But whatever it is, the word epic can likely be used to describe it. I'll let you know tomorrow. Wherever you are today, hug a child. Any random one will do, but grab him/her and make it count! Love from here... |
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