"When I remember, I will remember this..."
Zhou Jong (Leo),
with his deep and resonating voice.
A serious student of English
and the basketball court,
always willing to help others,
an expert translator
and knower of all things lucky and unlucky.
He knows the virtue of patience
is free,
that it doesn't cost anything at all.
He knows that love fills hungers
deep inside all of us,
and he is always ready
to offer food
to satisfy our desire
to be loved...
Wang Lei (Tracy),
the one with the million yuan smile.
Amazing in her warmth,
walking into her students' hearts and minds
with a fire that burns ever bright.
She offers her knowing to us, too,
a phenomenal translator
of English and Chinese.
She stretches all of us
to embrace new words,
new ways of knowing,
with a beautiful and smiling invitation.
Ahao Rui (Michael),
with his cell phone
glued to the palm of his hand...
Whose "show and tell"
is his arms and hands,
strong muscles to protect his family,
to keep his friends from danger,
to show his love
to the ladies in his life.
A man who has had to grow up
so much faster than his friends.
He is older than his age,
taking over the role of father in his family
after he lost his father to heart disease.
He is generous of heart,
strong in giving,
and smiles through his sorrows everyday.
Li Dong Mei (Abby),
whose eager smile
and soft laughter
are often covered
by an embarrassed hand.
She reaches out to each of us
for the English words
she longs to say.
She is a traditional woman
filled to overflowing
with kindness, strength, beauty,
and calm.
She is wisdom,
among us,
holding our hands
with her gentle touch.
Wang Juan (Cindy),
our trailblazer,
who understands
in the essence of her being
that the path less taken
leads to a far richer destination.
That the courage to move forward
into the unknown
can offer gifts
that surprise and amaze.
She is a sturdy, independent spirit,
very alive in our presence.
She leads us to places
we might have been afraid to explore
on our own,
always with a gentle, guiding hand
and words of patient encouragement.
Wang Jia Zhou (Joe),
our twinkling star,
the "romantic" of this teacher family
who traces his heart with his fingers,
allowing us to see the kindness
we already feel from him.
He is our jokester,
the one with the everlasting smile.
He smiles through tears,
for he is the man of his family,
the son who misses his beloved father
every day.
Joe tells us he is
"a little boat, a ripple in your world."
But we know
that his presence in our waters here
keeps up afloat,
keeps us from drowning when we struggle,
keeps us sailing forward
with harmony and confidence,
even when the winds blow strong...
Chen Jing (Alice),
our Renaissance Woman,
gifted in the arts of song and dance.
She is our steady drummer
on the basketball court,
twirling the sticks
of traditional Chinese drums.
She gives energy and rhythm
to our nights without electricity.
She helps us find one another
in the dark.
I watch her conduct
as all of you sing
"Bijie, my beautiful hometown",
and we are certain that we could
follow her lead
safely
anywhere we wanted to go.
She is a lover of kites
that soar to the faraway clouds,
and she assures all of us
that we, too, can fly and soar
to heights even beyond our imagination.
Chen Zhaoxia (Audrey),
namesake of my own daughter,
with soft, lovely curls
surrounding her face.
She is our Drama Queen,
a royal lady
bringing every character alive,
making them real,
like magic before our eyes.
She reminds us
that the best marriages
are between the best of friends,
and we long for her world
where she shares everthing,
without hesitation or secrets,
with her husband-friend.
Tian Yulan (Bessie)
our nurturer,
our Mother Earth
who takes care of all of us,
who cares for her baby son
as he coughs through a sleepless night.
She is a gentle lullabye
in a night of restless sleep.
Her smile is sunshine
in the darkness.
Sincere and genuine,
there is an honesty about her
that draws you close,
calling you to be her trusted friend.
When she walks into her classroom,
she leaves all sadness behind
and invites her students
to swim and float with her
in an ocean of new learning.
He Shi Wei (James),
father extraordinaire
and husband walking equally
alongside his wife.
He is the master dancer,
the leader of the motions through space
that move us closer and closer together.
He surely was born dancing,
moving his feet and hands
to the rhythms of his mother's singing.
And now, he offers such harmony to us,
guiding the flow of our bodies
through both time and space.
Zhan Chun (Diana),
goddess of the moon,
with a smile
that is glowing and bright
in the summer sky.
Her students swarm around her
and she is Mama to their many needs.
Her eyes shine,
two luminescent stars in the sky.
And her mind is filled with knowledge,
with wisdom she lovingly shares.
Yan Yun (Shirley),
a phenomenal single girl,
alive and alert,
rejecting sleep
she prefers to dance her days.
Lover of nature
and all that speaks to her
in the forest of the day.
She shares solitude with the moon,
quiet and peaceful
at the close of each day.
Ma Ben Hui (Gabby),
whose heart is larger than the sky
,a "love heart"
always beating in rhythm with others.
A believer in using the mind to grow,
she guides her students
to knowledge
through games and playing.
She is tenderness,
a gentle teacher
who loves her williing students.
Jiang Han (Annie),
our straw seller,
offering her goods
to build a perfect house
that is safe and warm.
She creates her own destiny,
carving out a journey
through the stars in the sky.
She lets her light
shine and shine,
and we gather beneath her,
grateful for the illumination,
grateful for her willingness to spread
both warmth and joy.
Zhou Liang (Anthony),
our beloved Mother Pig
and father to a five year old son
who is both lovely and filled with sunshine.
"Don't be shy" is his motto in class,
his words to encourage all of us
to be unafraid to try something new,
to be unafraid to push our voices to be heard.
He is always laughing,
a most happy spirit,
shouting "I love you" to every one of us,
knowing that yesterday is gone,
tomorrow is yet unseen,
and today is the time
for being alive and happy.
He is a force in the universe
and boldly declares what truly matters
in the business of being alive.
Chen Ting (Ruby),
whose life is filled
with a briliant, colorful rainbow.
She is a bird
with lovely wings
soaring through the sky.
Her heart beats pure fire
that will melt over you,
soft and warm and comforting.
She is the woman by the window
gazing at the nighttime sky.
She is a strong and bold peace,
her body filled
with all the energy of the universe.
Jiang Xue (William),
whose "lover" lives
in his books,
in his eyes,
in his mind.
His smile is a present
you can open
over and over again.
A philosopher,
a teacher,
a miracle of the world,
he can carefully read
the heart of each of us,
hoping someday to be a psychologist
in a world filled with both sadness and joy.
Jiamg Xue (Cecelia),
the lovely woman
with the curious eyes.
A dancer, across the floor,
drifting from partner to partner.
She is a sunflower in a field of grass.
She is friend,
confidant,
a brightness
in each of our days.
Peng Fang (Amanda),
whose books are her lovers,
hiding under chairs,
in crates,next to her bed.
These "lovers" await her
curious touch.
Her books
are the friends
who are always present,
always waiting for her
to open them to the light,
to magically make them come alive
by the soft touch
of the palms of her eager hands.
Tao Quiyue (Della),
always on the very edge of her seat,
her curiosity is contagious.
She is a hesitant artist,
but our time together
nudges her to have an open heart
to discover the artist hiding within herself.
Sometimes the darkness
rattles a trembling sound in her steps,
but she welcomes the moon
as it rises,
glowing in the light it shines
on ther smiling face.
And she welcomes the rain,
assured flowers will always bloom
from watered soil.
And so she waters her spirit
with fresh flowing streams,
and she cannot keep from drawing,
from dancing,
from singing.
And my dear students,
I wish for you
the determination of Rudy
to follow your larger than the sky dreams
and to never, ever give up.
I wish for you
the wisdom of Akeela,
to know when you need the gentle push of a coach
and when you can learn
all on your own...
I wish for you
the open heart of Ms. G,
who sacrificed her time...
and even her marriage,
to give her students a voice
in a world that had been deaf to them
before their class became a family...
I wish for you
the passion of Dr. Larabee,
for the power of words,
knowing fully and confidently
that big words are simply little words
put together.
That words spoken and written
have the power to truly change the world.
I wish for you the patience of Amy
as she tries to teach her baby geese to fly,
knowing that the two greatest gifts
a parent can give a child
are roots and wings.
And my hope is
that one morning
when you awaken
to the song of a bird,
a bai ling bird,
that you will pause in your journey,
look up into the blue, blue sky
surrounded by the mountains of Bijie,
and remember me.
If you listen carefully to my song,
you will discover my wings
wrapped around your open hearts,
and you will hear me whisper
a love song
in your listening ears.
Know that you have the power
to bring light
to even the darkest of places.
Know, too,
that your faces
are forever engraved
in my grateful heart...
Namaste,
Ms. Marianne (Bai Ling)
This may be my last posting from China. All of the volunteer teachers representing our teaching sites from across Guizhou Province arrived in Guiyang today for the Closing Ceremony of the Summer English Language Institute.
