DEFINING MOMENTS - Winkler and Shatner

Last night we were watching a crazy show, 'Better Late Than Never' featuring Henry Winkler, William Shatner, Terry Bradshaw and George Foreman. LeRoy's brother, John called us to say the show tonight featured Hong Kong.

As we were watching, there was a segment filmed at the Intercontinental Hotel Presidential suite. The men were smoking cigars and discussing 'defining moments' in their lives. It seemed so odd in a comedy show to actually have a moment of seriousness. Both Henry Winkler and William Shatner shared interesting insight to the paths they both chose for their lives.

This morning, I asked LeRoy about 'defining moments' in our lives. As soon as I said that, I began to tear-up and could barely speak. My 'defining moment' was a Saturday in October 1991 when I picked up an abandoned baby girl out of a cardboard box on a main street in Nanchang, China. The emotions from that experience are still so strong even though it has been almost 25 years. I always tell people that was the worst and best year of my life! I knew that I knew that baby girl was the reason I came to China.

I don't know if everyone experiences a 'defining moment' but I'd like to hear from others that would want to share. Baby in a Box was written about this moment and can be seen Here

A Heart For Freedom

From by A Heart For Freedom  by Chai Ling

Hu Yaobang, who death triggered the Tiananmen movement, wanted China to have three reforms: political, economic and spiritual. Zhao Ziyang, who was dismissed for not approving the massacre, agreed with the first two. But Deng Ziaoping, the leader who ordered the massacre, wanted only one reform - economic reform - and that is what China has had for the past 22 years.

Still, as he nation emerges on the world economic scene, the fruits of prosperity are not widely distributed. Five thousand Chinese families control much of the nation's wealth, political power and military force. There is a growing middle class - certainly more than before 1989 - and their lives may be getting better; but for the have-nots in China, the story only gets worse. An estimated 468 million Chinese live on less than $2 a day.* They are forgotten under the shadow of the wealthy few.

I know believe that transforming China into a Jesus-following nation is the key to open democracy in that country. Spiritual reform will be the foundation for the rest of the reforms.

*The number of 468 million is based on 36.3% of the 1.3 billion population of China living on less than $2 per day, as reported in Human Development Report 2009, 'Human and income poverty.'

BRIDES OF CHINA

BIG BUSINESS

The wedding industry in China is big business.  On our recent trip to China, we returned to Qingdao where we lived in the late 80s.  Qingdao is known as a favorite tourist location for both Chinese and foreigners. the city has beautiful architecture, nice beaches and mountains over looking the Yellow Sea.

Late one afternoon, we strolled along the beach front and were amazed to see dozens of brides, grooms, photographers, their assistants, hair and make-up staff and tourists. On the one beach, I counted about 40 couples having their wedding photos taken amidst the beautiful scenery. There are six major beaches in Qingdao so there must have been many, many more photo shoots taking place that afternoon. 

Dave Ramsey, our son, joined the fun and took photos and video of the couples and their photographers. Some seemed to be enjoying themselves and others looked like they wanted be somewhere else! 

 The sea and setting sun made a beautiful scene.

 The wedding dresses were varied and some unusual. A few of the brides' dresses did not fit properly and had cloth sections pinned in the back where the zipper would not close. Staff worked out of the back of mini-vans. The couples would actually change outfits in the van. Then they would sit on small stools by the van while their make-up and hair were fixed.

 To get dramatic settings, the couples along with their photographers venture out on the rock outcroppings. One of the poses of this couple had the groom with a small video camera taping his bride's photo shoot. 

As we left the beach, we came upon this group from a province south of Qingdao. The six of them had driven a long way in one van. LeRoy joined them for a group photo. 

LAST DAYS IN CHINA

BEIJING FUN

Illegal photo standing in front of the Forbidden City gates. We were wondering why no other bikers were riding past.

After six weeks of travel in Hong Kong and China, we ended our spring trip in Beijing. We enjoyed four days of once again visiting China's capital city and historical sights. Teresa Woodland and her two children hosted us for 4 nights. It was fun meeting her children, Kaili and Kaishang, and catching up on news as we all came to China in the 80s with ELIC.

Legal photo as I was actually biking past LeRoy to get the shot

Teri let us use two of her bikes to travel to Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and Wufangjing area. Security was very tight near Tiananmen but since we were on bikes, we breezed by. Our only mistake was stopping in front of Forbidden City gates to get a tourist to take our photo. Evidently we were not supposed to stop and a security guard was on us immediately, waving for us to get going. The foreign tourist already had my phone so he snapped a quick photo before we headed on. My maxim for China has always been 'life in China is not always fun but always an adventure".

Dave with Kaishang and Kaili

Teri and Kaishang on the way to school

Sally Chen, assistant to the Ambassador of Sri Lanka in Beijing
She has worked at the embassy for 10 years. She was in our group in WF when she was 16.

Sally, her husband and daughter drove us to the airport to get our flight to Seattle.
Dave was also seeing us off before flying to Kunming.

Kaitlyn came with Tim to get us in Spokane.

No telling when we will have our next adventure in Asia. We've been involved in China for 30 years and it seems like 'home' to us. We just got new 10-year passports and 10-year China visas. We have luggage and go when we next get an opportunity. We will let you know our 'future' plans!

Thanks for joining us on the journey!

NORTHEAST CHINA NOW

ON TO WEIFANG

After a good visit with family and friends in Kunming, we flew to Qingdao where we were met by two friends and taken to Weifang. Our roots in Shandong Province include two years in Qingdao (1987-89) and three years in Weifang (1998-2001).

Weifang has changed extensively since we lived here but we have been able to find a few familiar places. All five of the original buildings left of the North American Presbyterian Mission that were on my "Eric Liddell Walking Tour' are still standing!

Our friends have been hosting us and filling us with the best of Shandong cuisine. I will not want to get on a scale when we return to the States.

Dave arrived in Beijing yesterday and hopes to join us in Qingdao. We will be taking a train to Qingdao Thursday.

 Memorial on the site of Weishen Civilian Prison Camp where Eric Liddell died and American paratroopers liberated the prisoners at the end of WWII

 Celebrated Mother's Day with Mark Song and David Chen at Wanda Plaza

Welcoming banquet attended by 16 people. I usually count the dishes served but was overwhelmed by the number and variety of food. 

Mark Song's mother let me watch her cook this meal. The last dish was homemade jiao zi (dumplings) that were delicious. 

Hearts & Hands Booth

Craft Sale This Weekend

Come to St. Joseph Parish this weekend for their annual fair trade event. Since I am in Hong Kong, the FTE committee members have volunteered to serve at the Hearts & Hands booth. My thanks to the ladies for making this possible. Come support many worthwhile causes that make a difference in the world.

One Small Gift:  A Ministry 20 Years Later

Who would think that a Mother's Day gift of earrings would many years later help a new ministry in China. Shelly Dettmer Schaller  was our ELIC teammate for two years in Nanchang, China.
She gave me a pair of earrings she had bought in Hong Kong. Every time I wore the Chinese coin earrings, women would admire them and want a pair. I started making them because I never saw them for sale in Hong Kong or China.

After moving to Kunming in 2004, I thought about adding them to the Hearts & Hands product inventory. My neighbor, Wendy Eldridge, was looking for a product that was attractive and popular for the former prostitutes at Eden Ministry to make.  I suggested using the earring design and that proved to be a very good idea. The first design was the beginning of the jewelry-making enterprise that provides employment for former prostitutes.

Eden Ministry produces beautiful jewelry but more importantly provides a safe haven for women forced into prostitution. Check out their website: www.edenministry.org

Thanks to Shelly's gift to me on Mother's Day, Chinese women are able to escape a life of bondage and have a means to support themselves through the help Eden Ministry provides.

Home is Where The Heart Is?

If it is true that home is where the heart is, 

what do you do when your heart is in 3 different places?

Spokane                                 Texas                          China

Ah, wait, I see the answer on the horizon.  There is a melody arising; their is a tune I'm a humming. I'm beginning to catch the drift and know the Truth of what is coming.

Wherever He leads I'll go.  

My heart is home in Jesus. That's where I must stay for the victory today. . . and the next . . . and the next.

Wherever He leads I'll go.

Oswald Chambers

They said to Moses, ’You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die’ `—Exodus 20:19

We don’t consciously and deliberately disobey God— we simply don’t listen to Him. God has given His commands to us, but we pay no attention to them— not because of willful disobedience, but because we do not truly love and respect Him. “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). Once we realize we have constantly been showing disrespect to God, we will be filled with shame and humiliation for ignoring Him.

Kunming Until Wednesday - We Think

We have been having fun in Kunming but the government doesn't like for us tourist to stay longer than 30 days at a time, so we have to vacate the country by next Friday or be subject to a healthy fine.
Also, trying to sort thru stuff that we left stored here when we left in April. Dave managed to give away/sell/barter all of our furniture after we left so we're down to files and clothes and knick knacks and books and books and a few more books. Books are heavy. Books make the cost of shipping go up and up. That does not make us smile.
Looks like we'll be flying to Hong Kong on Wednesday and hang out there for a few days.

Hearts and Hands

Jane has been assisting a Hearts and Hands for over six years while we were living in Kunming China and is continuing to help spread the word whenever she can. They provide jobs and skills for the deaf. Sadly, in China, The deaf are abandoned once their disability is discovered or are treated as totally useless in society. Hearts and Hands has had a long struggle but they have provided many sewing and carpentry jobs for many deaf and disabled in Kunming and you can view some of their products on their website by clicking Here.

http://www.heartsandhandschina.com/