10: Eating basically the same school food alllll the time. And every dish is filled with mysterious things!
9: My bed is really hard. We are always excited to stay in hostels because they actually have mattresses!
8: I'd say 1% of the leaves have changed on the trees. Happy Fall?
7: Feeling lost when I go travelling. We're never entirely sure if we're on the right train or what not. It's frustrating!
6: Men hawking loogies in the streets.
5: I miss my family. And my dog. And cat. IT'S NORMAL, I LOVE THEM.
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4: When I'm bored and am sick of Pinterest and there's no one to email and all the kids are in class and all the teachers are teaching and I don't know what to do with my liiiiife. Imma take up indexing...so we'll see how long that entertains me!
3: When a lesson doesn't go well or the kids get bored of your lesson. The almost WORST.
2: Not having legit church meetings to go to. We call in on Skype every Sunday. I love it but, let's be real, GOING to Church is different than just listening to it over the phone.
AND LASTLY
1: Not being able to take the Sacrament. This Sunday is my first time in 2 months I get to take it! I'm so excited!
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But what about the top 10 BEST things in China?! There really are a lot more than ten. And it's really hard to rank them so these aren't in any specific order. Except for number 1. after looking at the worst things,I feel like they are petty compared to all the golden things that come out of China. So the Top 10 Best Things in China are:
10: Yummy Chinese food! The best is street food which we get to eat when we travel: Chinese BBQ, the best fresh fruit EVER, these things we call Chinese McMuffins, yummy pastries, steamed sweet potatoes, fresh corn...the list goes ON.
9: Being able to act or wear or talk about whatever we want because a) we're Americans so people stare at us anyways, b) style here in China is awesome because ANYTHING goes and c) nobody understands us...so we can talk about whateeeeever we want in public...so that's niiiice.
8: We are celebrities wherever we go and I think it's hilarious! People always ask to take pictures with us...I don't know why they think we're so cool but it cracks me up!
7: It is so COOL to be immersed in another culture. I think everyone should have this opportunity some time in life. I've learned so much and have gained a greater appreciation for different ways of life and for my own culture.
6: China is BEAUTIFUL. I never realized how cool and gorgeous China really is. Lots of people go to China just to see the Great Wall, but I think they are missing out on even better places like Yangshuo and Huangshan!
5: Chinese BABIES!!! THE cutest things alive. I want to adopt all of them.
4: There's a little baby boy who we see every day as we walk up and down the stairs to our apartment. Every time he sees us, he says in his cute little voice "jie jie" which means big sister. It melts my heart!
3: TRAVELLING! Travelling in China is awesome! I love going to hostels and meeting people from all over the world that we are sharing rooms with. I love seeing new things and experiencing new things and meeting new people on the way. There is SO much beauty in China, which you've seen in my previous posts. I wouldn't trade the things I've seen/done in China for anything!
2: I am so much closer to my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I am constantly leaning on them for strength, comfort and guidance. My testimony has grown in so many things: gratitude, faith and trust that God will direct me, and most importantly I've learned the power of love.
1: MY STUDENTS! I love my students with all my heart. They make my day. MY LIFE. They make me so happy and I love to play with them and joke with them. The best is when we get to play outside of class. Sometimes I'll play ping pong with the 6th graders and they'll teach me Chinese. Or yesterday I played badminton (terribly haha!) with some high schoolers. The kids are amazing and so sweet and kind. They have the pure love of Christ--even though they don't know it. I will miss them the most when it comes time to leave.
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No matter what stage we are in life, there is good and bad. We have bad days and we have good days. We just need to decide what we want to focus on and try and see good days. Of course China has been hard! Anybody would be lying to you if they said coming to teach English in China was easy. But the good stuff is BEYOND worth it! So, if you have any inkling to come teach, DO IT. You will not regret giving your time to something as amazing as this. I'm glad I did. :)
Thanks for sharing! I enjoy reading about your amazing adventure. You are making a difference! Even for us boring people here at home.
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