Recent Articles by Leslee |
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Hannah |
Published:2006-04-25 |
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Category:China! |
Subcategory:At the School in Kunming |
April 14th 2006
The Children here are beautiful. I can not wait till the nation opens up and the Church is able to come. I see many people here that are ready. I want to be a part of it! There is one girl imparticular that I firmly believe one day will be a member. I can see it in her eyes and they way she speaks. I want to share with you part of a letter that I recieved from her. not to draw attention to myself, but to share with you just how ready some of these people are.
"When I talking to you I always have a special feeling, just like we were old friends and we shared our dreams, beautiful memories, interesting stories and talked about our families. There is also another feeling like an old sister, you taught me something and from your words I could felt there is something I should learn from you.
Thank you again. I also thank God because he gave me a wonderful friend. Yours sincerely Hannah"
This is the first of a few letters that she has written to me to practice her english. She speaks and writes really well!
Hannah is 17 and her dream is one day to come to america to live. She has already started to save money. She works really hard in school gets very good grades so she can go to a good Chinese University and then come to America.
April 25th 2006
There have been many more letters since this one three weeks ago. We have spent many pages sharing about our families. Stories of her parents and aunts and uncles. I did not make it that far, as jsut telling about my immediate family took up more pages than her entire extended! We tell eachother of our hobbies, she has many things she can teach me and I have told her I will teach her embroidery (thank you aunt linda!)
I do not have a chance to talk to Hannah often as she is in school from 6:00 am - 9:50 pm. She has a dorm mother that expects her to report to her dorm immediatly following the closing of class in the evening so she can get to her studies. It is most often in passing that we share a "hello", hug and "have a good day" and a gentle smile. She was able the other night to come over after class and we hung out for an hour! It was so fun. We talked and asked questions about eachother. She was able to be on a webcam for the first time. She spoke with my dad and asked him some questions. She loved it! She has talked about it everytime I have seen her since!
Hannah is an amazing girl, and I will be sad to leave her. When I get home I am going to contunue correspondance with her and cant wait till the day she will come to see me in my home.. Even if it is in 40 years!
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Goodnight Sweetheart! |
Published:2006-03-21 |
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Category:China! |
Subcategory:At the School in Kunming |
Goodnight sweetheart now its time to go, I hate to leave you, but I really must say, "Goodnight Sweetheart, Goodnight!"
Tonight 8 of us went out to play soccer. Collin our Native Coordinator came out with us, and Joe our cook joined us with 4 of his chinese friends. It turned out to be a great game! Our team won 4-1 Carrie making everyone of our goals, and I was the goalie when the one point was made on our team. You can definately see who in the family has the skills! I will get better! By halfway thru the game we had a crowd of probably 15 people sitting on the sidelines! Everyone wanted to see the Americans play soccer! We had alot of fun!
We were heading back to our apartments when Collin said we could go and tuck in our kids! We went up and first tucked in the "babies" (baby EDK). They belong to Jess, Amber and I. It was cute! These kids are 3-6 years old, and live 3-5 kids in a dorm room. No parents! They live here and go to school 7:00 am - 7:30 pm Sunday thru Saturday! I feel so bad. They were so cute in their pajamas jumping up onto their beds so they could reach us to give us a hug! They were so excited they jumped on the bed yelling "Teacher! Teacher!" I miss my babies! With the new rotation arrangement I will only get to see them and teach them once a month. I am really bummed! I feel bad but what I miss more than the babies with the new schedule is my ELE class. These kids are 9-12 yrs old and so freakin cute! We went back outside the babies dorms and sat and waited for the older EDK kids to come. The other teachers got to greet their kids as they were coming back from class (it is not just after 8:00 pm and they are just getting done with school!!) Amber got to see a few of her ELE class and I was sad that I had not seen mine. We walked the older kids to their bedrooms to tuck them in, I went back outside to hopefully catch my ELE kids. I did!! They saw me before I could see them (it was dark). All the sudden 5 kids come running at me yealling "Teacher Teacher!!" and jump and practically tackle me! I loved it! I love those kids so much! That first flock went on to their bedrooms and 10 more came. Everyone lining up for a hug! One of the last girls said "Teacher... (something something something (Chinese)) I said "No Chinese!!!" she shrugged and another boy Mike came over and says "teacher YOU!" and starts gesturing pointing to the other kids and yelling "No" "OK" I recognized this.. He was mimicking me! I said me teach you (pointing to all the kids) and they said almost in unison jumping up and down "YES! You teach us, NO other girl" I love them so much I wish I could! I want so bad to teach them. SO SO BAD.
It really made my night and my day to be able to go say goodnight to these kids where we are not in the classroom disciplining them, but able to run at them and give them hugs and kisses on the head! I was having a hard time earlier today with my new "class of the week" (it will change every week) I was struggling to know their names to call on them in class or to discipline. They do not turn a head to "Hey You!". I am sure I will get to know their names eventually, but I want my babies and ELE!! I will let you know if I get the motion passed to stop this new rotation!
I hope all is well in the states! I am NOT missing the weather I hear you guys are having in Utah!
I love you all!
Leslee
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Happy Birthday! |
Published:2006-03-20 |
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Category:China! |
Subcategory:At the School in Kunming |
Today was my birthday, and I wanted to take a moment to pay tribute to a girl named Kristen Pearson. This girl is amazing! I wish that everyone could know this girl! I feel so important when I am around her! She has made EVERYONES birthday the most important day of the year! When we were traveling on trains to get to Kunming from Homg Kong 3 days after we all met she got a cake at seven eleven, had brought candles from home and arranged a "party" for the 2 girls whose birthdays it was while we were on the go. For Cherstins Birthday she got on the net and found out the legal measurements for a tennis court and gotten yarn to those measurements and chalk and marked up the basketball court. Cherstin competed in Tennis in HS and misses it here in China. So Kristen was attentive to that! She bought her a raquet and some tennis balls. It really made Chersts' day! For Lora ( It was her unbirthday. WE dont want anyone to be left out) She really wanted to lay out on a raft in the middle of the lake. We were going to buy some at Walmart, but forgot last weekend. Kristen took charge of buying the hammer and nails and headed up a boat building group. All of this behind Lora's back! She has no clue! Oh yeah.. on the tennis court and the boat.. she does not do it on her own but recruits everyone and gets everyone excited to participate! On Cherstins we all "formed" the words "Happy Birthday" I made the best "A" there was! So back to Loras boat. We asked Collin if he had supplies to build a boat and he laughed at us! He told all his Chinese friends and he told us they all thought we were crazy! That evoked a greater will to make it work in Krist and Carrie ( Carrie was just as much the brains in this one) They got huge jugs and plastic bags and duct tape and covered the holes and ducktaped them shut. and got the butcher knife from the kitchen and hacked at the wood and built a plank and tied the jugs to the bottom. We flipped it over and carrie was the brave one to test it out (check out the pics on my page) It worked! We got a crowd gathering (do you notice a trend here? They are always gathering in masses!) and they watched us as carrie tested it out and got Lora to come out and sang Happy Birthday. She got on it and went out for a few minutes, it was dark by now so she had to come back in. All this is because one girl, Kristen, cares to make each girl feel like a princess on her day!
So today was my day! and she made me feel like a million bucks! She (as well as the other girls( but the other girls forgot)) took the time to learn "Happy Birthday" in Chinese. She had gifts for me to open infront of everyone after FHE. Then she had planned night games, one of my favorite things! We were not able to play as Kristen was sick (she wanted to play but we told her to go to bed). But she really is amazing!
I remember from when I was younger, every year getting a kite for my birthday, and then my family would go to Creekside, Canyon Rimm or Tanner Park and have a picnic and fly kites. So that was the one thing I really wanted to do. So right after dinner I got Tammy Amber and Carrie and we went and flew kites in the Soccer field! It was so fun! There was a beautiful sunset behind us to top it off!
I went back to my room and found a package from Tim and Cheri Maynes. My day couldnt have gotten any better! They had sent a photo Cd from our Horseback riding trip w the nieces and nephews. I now have a picture of my Sly boy and 5 kids from the ages of 2-11 on him! It is so cute! I love him and miss him! I am so glad that the Larrabees were able to take him in!
My Head Teacher Melissa covered my classes for me, and I sat in my apartment and talked to my older brother who I have not talked to in a few weeks, and drew. I finished a picture of Half Arabian National Champion Splash Of Fame. It turned out really good ( Check it out in my pictures). It was nice to be able to sit and do something I truly enjoy, and have not had time to do for a long time!
I better go, I love the fact that I am going to wake up in the morning tomorrow and it will be my birthday again because we are a day ahead here!
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The 5 Senses |
Published:2006-03-15 |
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Category:China! |
Subcategory:At the School in Kunming |
The most amazing thing I have done so far.. I will tell you it was to ride an elephant.. now.. Smell.... China is a rank country. I mean that in the nicest way! It is not uncommon at all (and infact quite common) to see a mother pull down the pants of her little boy or girl and have them go right there in the middle of the "town square" The world is their restroom! Grown men are doing it too! They adorn their resturants w cut meat. You know how you go to a mexican resturant and they have chili peppers drapped around the top of the wall? Here they have huge chunks of meat. They give off not the most pleasent aroma! It is amazing how gross. I dont consider myself to be the most sensitive smeller, but I have gagged on numerous accounts and quite litterally nearly thrown up. Felt.. Again that would have to be the elephants... I was sitting on its back, well neck kinda and I went to go pat it on the head, you know like I would my horse? It was not a pleasant experience! They have super thick coarse sparatic...wire like hair! I dont think I will ever pet an elephant again! Seen.... Probably the mountains in Dali? They were beautiful! They reminded me of home! One part looked exactly like Mount Timpanogas! Tasted? Well our cook is really good. Alot of the meals he cooks are really good. Oo! Pizza Hut... It is like a .. I dont know what to compare it to. Maybe a Olive Garden? It is a way nice sit down resturant! I dont really like pizza hut in the states, but man I do here! Maybe just because it is American, and it has the cheese I am used to on it (they import it) now on the flip side.. There have been some not so good things I have tasted! Mostly just bland noodles, and fish tasting french toast because they cooked it in the same oils from dinner the night before. I am not very experimental in my eating. I stick to what I know is good. What else? The most amazing thing I have heard? Well... There was a girl practicing her flute in the littlle area in front of my Apt last Sunday. She was really really good, I enjoyed that! I think I will buy a couple Cd's before I come home of some Chinese music. Some of it is so beautiful! |
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Singing In the Rain |
Published:2006-03-12 |
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Category:China! |
Subcategory:At the School in Kunming |
Last night I am sitting at my computer hurrying and finishing some things so I can go to my meeting at 7:00. When all the sudden I here this low rumble. I asked Tammy.. Is that thunder? She sais " I dont know. I think so." It lasted like2 minutes constant.. and it was really quiet. We decided that it was infact thunder, and that we would go out and see if it was raining and how hard etc. Well I guess there was some sort of squal right before we got out there, there were huge puddles and it was sprinkling. Tammy and I quickly grab everyone we can to come out and play!!
Carrie came out, Melissa, Jessica, Kristen, Meaghan and eventually Amber. We were running back and forth on the smooth cement and sliding (our flip flops would slip on the smooth cement). It was a blast! We would run to the puddles and try and splash and kick it up onto eachother. That was not getting the result we wanted, so we hurried and ran to the wash basin w 5 spouts, turned it on and began splashing eachother like that. we couldn't cup enough water in our hands so Melissa went into the nearest apt and grabbed a cup.. Meanwhile I went in to my apt and grabbed a 3 gallon popcorn type bowl and filled it up in my tub! I came out snuck around the corner and there was Carrie w one of her own! She got me good! I saved mine for Melissa though! And all she had was a cup! We had so much fun just goofing off! It started to downpoor again, we didnt mind! It was warmer than the water coming out of the tap! Amber during all this had gone over to Melissa's for our meeting, but seeing she wasnt there returned to her own room and called around. She got ahold of Tessa and she told Amber that that the meeting had been rescheduled. Amber asked where everyone is and tessa told her that she wasnt sure last she saw they were infront of the apt's. So we spot Amber coming around the corner and soaked her! Couldnt have had more fun on a sunday night in Kunming!
Dont worry its not all fun in games! We fit teaching in there somewhere! Check out the pics from the water fight on my page! |
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