The school year was the perfect storm of nastiness. The majority of students were the worst we had ever had - cocky, unteachable, and lacking ambition as well as personality. The new batch of foreign teachers were toxic - bad attitudes, hateful, and sleazy. Their anger was spewed to any and all, even demeaning Zach and I in their classrooms to students. What respect we had garnered with Chinese staff and students quickly dissipated and we were lumped in with "those foreigners." One brutal typhoon began the hutong drama that would last nine months.
It was a hard discussion, but we kept repeating that we did not want to finish in such a wretched way. Each year had held challenges and we had persevered. If given the opportunity, could year six be the redemption?
We signed the contracts in June.
We crossed the border in July.
We needed to leave China. It was the first time we knew that we had to leave rather than we just wanted to leave. We were so weary.
America was everything we needed to recover. Our community rallied; our calendars were full, laughter abounded, adventures were had on water and land, comfort food was eaten in abundance, and a Christmas surprise made us weep just two times. Little by little, the hovering dark cloud dissolved as we were repeatedly reminded of how much we are loved. This summer, our family and friends rescued us; because of them, we were able to board the return flight to China.
So, why has the blog remained silent?
I could not settle. I could not focus. I hated sitting in front of the computer longer than five minutes. I write best at night, but I have all 8am classes which curtails my night owl ritual. I continue to process and grapple with the intense emotions of the summer. It took me two weeks to even look through the pictures on my camera. I even outlined a summer ABCs blog post, yet it sits dormant. Yet, the biggest reason is that our wish came true by the end of week one. The beginning of year six showed us why we love this life and I have been reveling in the joy of such a reminder.
Our students rock.
The new foreign teachers are personable, talkative, and enjoy living in China.
We returned to a clean and mold-free hutong.
The pool boss actually clapped when I showed up to swim the first time.
Week two, Zach began coaching the girl's football team.
Week three, we took a quick trip to Hong Kong to meet up with dear American friends and celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival.
Week five, eleven Pakistani and four Ghanaian exchange students took our campus by storm.
Week six, we went to Guizhou.
Peppered among the big moments have been lunches, dinners, workouts, conversations, introductions, birthday parties, and reunions. We are busy. We are thriving once again. As Madeline L'Engle once wrote, "Maybe you have to know the darkness before you can appreciate the light."
I am grateful to be reminded of joy after such turmoil. I love our life.
