Dear Family and Friends,
Directly after Mid-Autumn Festival, Yueyuen had their sports meeting. This is basically a time where my students get the opportunity to be kids again. We did not have class for three days, and the students had to participate in all different kinds of sports. I mean they were jumping over hurtles, running long distance, sprinting and even doing the high jump. When I was in high school, our sports meeting consisted of tug of war. This was a little more intense.
Now, if you have ever been to China, you will see references to the Olympics everywhere you go. You will see the Olympic rings on the sides of buildings, sidewalks and on flags all over China. The country is so proud of the Beijing Olympics and they have immortalized the memory. The Yueyuen sports meeting was basically like a little mini Olympics. It was pretty unbelievable to experience.
The first morning at 8am, the school held the opening ceremonies. This is when the classes literally marched onto the soccer field, led by their head student, and were presented to the principal. Each class had a sign that had been designed by a student in their class. Some classes even went as far as designing their own t-shirts. I have fourteen classes total of Senior 1’s. My students are basically the equivalent of American Freshmen. The sports meeting provided them the first opportunity for them to bond and create team spirit. They sit in the same classroom everyday all day, so it was really nice to see them in direct sunlight.
After the opening ceremonies, the events began immediately. First off, the students participated in sprinting. Some of the students here are extremely athletic. I don’t mean they are just good at sports, I mean they are so disciplined that they go to school for fourteen hours and on their breaks they are running on the track. Me, if I only had two breaks a day, I would have gone to eat and watch tv, but then again priorities. Now, not all of my students are athletic, so even if they didn’t want to participate, they had to for the sake of their class. So, sometimes you would see the super athletic kids in the short shorts with the bulging quads right next to the kid with the broken glasses wearing jeans and a t-shirt at the starting line. It broke my heart when I saw this. Spoiler alert; the kid with the jeans never won.
While watching the kids run, Leigh and I were approached by so many different students. It was the first time, where I was available for any and everyone to approach me. I have one little girl, we call her my nugget, who definitely does not clear five feet, but I love her so much. She wears this tiny purple track suit and tiny sneakers. I am pretty sure my hand wouldn’t even fit in her shoes. She constantly sat with me or walked with me from event to event. Every time I see her I just smile, because she is so darn cute.
I bonded with a lot of my other students too. Most of them were girls, and the boys mostly avoid me, so it’s just like High School all over again for me. I hate to admit this, but it is the first time I even remotely started to learn names. First, there is Sharon, who offered to take me to the grocery store in case I needed any help. Then there is Sonia, who is a little firecracker. She makes sure I know her name and every time she sees me, she screams out, “Teacher Eileen, what is my name?” For the first two days, internally my initially reaction was “Shit, what is her name”. Don’t worry though, I finally got it down on the third day. Lastly, there is Chris. She is a sweet girl, who is slightly awko taco, but she really wants to learn English and I enjoy talking to her. We have started to email so that is very nice. These are just three of my 1,000+ students that I see every week. I consider knowing three names to be a success.
I also learned that my students are very curious about American culture. They asked me some pretty interesting questions. A lot of them asked me about our sports meetings in America and I told them that they don’t really exist. This pretty much blew their minds. I don’t think they could grasp this really so they just changed the subject. The questions definitely kept me on my toes though. One student came up to me and asked “In America, do you all have a lot of sex friends like on television?” I just looked at her with this open mouthed expression of sheer fear and responded with “I don’t know what you mean?” I tried to desperately change the subject, in order to not start an international incident but she kept at it. She then asks, “Like friends that you have sex with.” I look at her with a tight lipped expression and finally just said “No. I think television exaggerates it”. Finally the subject was dropped, but I panicked like someone’s kid was asking me where babies come from. Even though I had a minor panic attack, the sports meeting continued on as usual.
I think my favorite event to watch though was the high jump. This is a classic underdog story. When I reached the event, there are only two boys left in the game. First, there is “Short Shorts” wearing his jersey and looking all macho while he is doing all of these extremely intimidating stretches. Then you have got “Glasses” in the other corner who is all hunched over and looks like he has no clue what he is supposed to do. Well “Short Shorts” jumps over the bar, which is so high I am pretty sure I couldn’t pull myself over it. Then “Glasses” comes out of nowhere and completely clears the jump. “Short Shorts” has this look on his face like “WTF Glasses”. The bar keeps going up and both boys keep clearing the bar. Finally it gets so high and neither “Short Shorts” nor “Glasses” could clear the bar. “Short Shorts” goes for a second try, and fails to make the high jump successfully. Then you see “Glasses” push his glasses up his nose, roll the cuffs of his jeans up and starts the short run to victory. In the end, “Glasses” walked away the victor, and I felt like nerds all around the world walked a little taller that day.
At the end of the sports meeting, students were awarded for their athletic skills on a podium. Six female students were dressed in traditional Chinese garb and presented the victors with their awards. After, the head teachers of their classes would go up to the podium and thank the students for their achievements. It is very evident that the student’s victories are the teacher’s victories as well. This culture puts great emphasis on pride and responsibility. I have enjoyed watching the children learn the true definition of responsibility at such a young age. This is only one of many different examples of this.
Unfortunately, after the awards ceremony, we had to go back to class. I went to my office to see the other Senior 1 teachers, and gossip about our students and show off pictures of my new nephew. When I show pictures of baby Bryan to Connie, she tells me “He has very sexy lips”. I told Connie that in America, you cannot use the word sexy to describe anyone under the age of 18. She did not get my sarcasm. She then tells me that my schedule has been changed. Now, I teach 14 classes in 4 days. I am ok with this schedule change since I now have no classes on Friday, but Connie is worried. She is afraid that I will be worked too hard, and says she fears for my health. I told her that it is ok, and that in America I sometimes had to work 14 hours in one day, let alone in a whole work week. I don’t think I convinced her.
I actually had to cram all of my classes into Saturday and Sunday, because on Monday, we were going to have another vacation. This week I decided to teach my students about “Growing Pains” in America and China as well as introduce them to my nephew Bryan.
To begin class I taught them how to sing "Happy Birthday", and had them sing it to “Baby Bryan”. It was most definitely my favorite moment since getting to China. Since finding out about the baby’s impending birth, I have been scared about leaving. I already love this little guy so much and I wanted to be there when he entered this world. I made the choice to go anyways but have been anxious about not being there. When I saw my kids get so excited about the baby and sing with such enthusiasm, I knew that I had made the right choice. My kids in China were helping me give baby Bryan things that not many other children will ever get to have. I look forward to showing him this video in years to come and telling him that he is loved all around the globe.
On Sunday night, I had my last class before going on vacation for Nationals Day and let me tell you, my kids were spitfires. So when starting class, I said “Now class, this is a very special day for Teacher Eileen. Do you know why?” I got answers from it’s your birthday to it’s your father’s birthday, and I just kept responding “No. Keep guessing.”This was basically just a ploy to get them to speak in English. Then this little boy, with all the gumption and confidence he could muster, stands up out of his seat and yells, “you finally got a boyfriend.” I stood there for about five seconds processing and said, “No, but thank you for pointing that out”. He was so embarrassed and I think he legitimately thought that was the answer, so I gave in and finally told them my nephew had been born.
Unfortunately, my self- confidence level continued to decline during the remaining 35 minutes of class. While teaching about growing pains in America, I showed my students pictures of me from high school. Now there is this little, and I mean little, boy who has glasses that are broken so he wears them backwards and upside down. I don’t think they actually work or perhaps they are not his, but his name is Dot Com and I love him so much. He is so curious about everything, but he has absolutely no filter to the things that come out of his mouth. When the first picture of me from high school appears he stares at it with an open mouth glare like he can’t believe what he is looking at, and then he turns and faces me and says, “Teacher Eileen, you used to be skinny.” I just turned to look at him and see the girl sitting behind him reach forward and slap him across the back of the head. I just say, “Thank you Dot Com. I know”.
As the night progressed, Dot Com continued on a roll. I allowed my class to sing along with Adele’s music video of “Someone Like You”. After that was over, Dot Com turns to me again with the sweetest expression and says, “Teacher Eileen, you look exactly like Adele with no makeup”. Once again, I just responded with “Thank you Dot Com”. When the bell rang at 10pm on Sunday night, I gladly took my defeated self home and went for a long run.
I enjoyed myself immensely during the week. I actually got to interact with the teachers and students on a more social level. In China, I have learned to always be prepared for the unexpected. I didn’t expect the sports meeting to be so much fun, but Leigh and I loved every minute of it. Nanyue has now given me one more memory that I will treasure for the rest of my life. Love and miss you all so much! I will write soon!
Love,
Eileen
Directly after Mid-Autumn Festival, Yueyuen had their sports meeting. This is basically a time where my students get the opportunity to be kids again. We did not have class for three days, and the students had to participate in all different kinds of sports. I mean they were jumping over hurtles, running long distance, sprinting and even doing the high jump. When I was in high school, our sports meeting consisted of tug of war. This was a little more intense.
Now, if you have ever been to China, you will see references to the Olympics everywhere you go. You will see the Olympic rings on the sides of buildings, sidewalks and on flags all over China. The country is so proud of the Beijing Olympics and they have immortalized the memory. The Yueyuen sports meeting was basically like a little mini Olympics. It was pretty unbelievable to experience.
The first morning at 8am, the school held the opening ceremonies. This is when the classes literally marched onto the soccer field, led by their head student, and were presented to the principal. Each class had a sign that had been designed by a student in their class. Some classes even went as far as designing their own t-shirts. I have fourteen classes total of Senior 1’s. My students are basically the equivalent of American Freshmen. The sports meeting provided them the first opportunity for them to bond and create team spirit. They sit in the same classroom everyday all day, so it was really nice to see them in direct sunlight.
After the opening ceremonies, the events began immediately. First off, the students participated in sprinting. Some of the students here are extremely athletic. I don’t mean they are just good at sports, I mean they are so disciplined that they go to school for fourteen hours and on their breaks they are running on the track. Me, if I only had two breaks a day, I would have gone to eat and watch tv, but then again priorities. Now, not all of my students are athletic, so even if they didn’t want to participate, they had to for the sake of their class. So, sometimes you would see the super athletic kids in the short shorts with the bulging quads right next to the kid with the broken glasses wearing jeans and a t-shirt at the starting line. It broke my heart when I saw this. Spoiler alert; the kid with the jeans never won.
While watching the kids run, Leigh and I were approached by so many different students. It was the first time, where I was available for any and everyone to approach me. I have one little girl, we call her my nugget, who definitely does not clear five feet, but I love her so much. She wears this tiny purple track suit and tiny sneakers. I am pretty sure my hand wouldn’t even fit in her shoes. She constantly sat with me or walked with me from event to event. Every time I see her I just smile, because she is so darn cute.
I bonded with a lot of my other students too. Most of them were girls, and the boys mostly avoid me, so it’s just like High School all over again for me. I hate to admit this, but it is the first time I even remotely started to learn names. First, there is Sharon, who offered to take me to the grocery store in case I needed any help. Then there is Sonia, who is a little firecracker. She makes sure I know her name and every time she sees me, she screams out, “Teacher Eileen, what is my name?” For the first two days, internally my initially reaction was “Shit, what is her name”. Don’t worry though, I finally got it down on the third day. Lastly, there is Chris. She is a sweet girl, who is slightly awko taco, but she really wants to learn English and I enjoy talking to her. We have started to email so that is very nice. These are just three of my 1,000+ students that I see every week. I consider knowing three names to be a success.
I also learned that my students are very curious about American culture. They asked me some pretty interesting questions. A lot of them asked me about our sports meetings in America and I told them that they don’t really exist. This pretty much blew their minds. I don’t think they could grasp this really so they just changed the subject. The questions definitely kept me on my toes though. One student came up to me and asked “In America, do you all have a lot of sex friends like on television?” I just looked at her with this open mouthed expression of sheer fear and responded with “I don’t know what you mean?” I tried to desperately change the subject, in order to not start an international incident but she kept at it. She then asks, “Like friends that you have sex with.” I look at her with a tight lipped expression and finally just said “No. I think television exaggerates it”. Finally the subject was dropped, but I panicked like someone’s kid was asking me where babies come from. Even though I had a minor panic attack, the sports meeting continued on as usual.
I think my favorite event to watch though was the high jump. This is a classic underdog story. When I reached the event, there are only two boys left in the game. First, there is “Short Shorts” wearing his jersey and looking all macho while he is doing all of these extremely intimidating stretches. Then you have got “Glasses” in the other corner who is all hunched over and looks like he has no clue what he is supposed to do. Well “Short Shorts” jumps over the bar, which is so high I am pretty sure I couldn’t pull myself over it. Then “Glasses” comes out of nowhere and completely clears the jump. “Short Shorts” has this look on his face like “WTF Glasses”. The bar keeps going up and both boys keep clearing the bar. Finally it gets so high and neither “Short Shorts” nor “Glasses” could clear the bar. “Short Shorts” goes for a second try, and fails to make the high jump successfully. Then you see “Glasses” push his glasses up his nose, roll the cuffs of his jeans up and starts the short run to victory. In the end, “Glasses” walked away the victor, and I felt like nerds all around the world walked a little taller that day.
At the end of the sports meeting, students were awarded for their athletic skills on a podium. Six female students were dressed in traditional Chinese garb and presented the victors with their awards. After, the head teachers of their classes would go up to the podium and thank the students for their achievements. It is very evident that the student’s victories are the teacher’s victories as well. This culture puts great emphasis on pride and responsibility. I have enjoyed watching the children learn the true definition of responsibility at such a young age. This is only one of many different examples of this.
Unfortunately, after the awards ceremony, we had to go back to class. I went to my office to see the other Senior 1 teachers, and gossip about our students and show off pictures of my new nephew. When I show pictures of baby Bryan to Connie, she tells me “He has very sexy lips”. I told Connie that in America, you cannot use the word sexy to describe anyone under the age of 18. She did not get my sarcasm. She then tells me that my schedule has been changed. Now, I teach 14 classes in 4 days. I am ok with this schedule change since I now have no classes on Friday, but Connie is worried. She is afraid that I will be worked too hard, and says she fears for my health. I told her that it is ok, and that in America I sometimes had to work 14 hours in one day, let alone in a whole work week. I don’t think I convinced her.
I actually had to cram all of my classes into Saturday and Sunday, because on Monday, we were going to have another vacation. This week I decided to teach my students about “Growing Pains” in America and China as well as introduce them to my nephew Bryan.
To begin class I taught them how to sing "Happy Birthday", and had them sing it to “Baby Bryan”. It was most definitely my favorite moment since getting to China. Since finding out about the baby’s impending birth, I have been scared about leaving. I already love this little guy so much and I wanted to be there when he entered this world. I made the choice to go anyways but have been anxious about not being there. When I saw my kids get so excited about the baby and sing with such enthusiasm, I knew that I had made the right choice. My kids in China were helping me give baby Bryan things that not many other children will ever get to have. I look forward to showing him this video in years to come and telling him that he is loved all around the globe.
On Sunday night, I had my last class before going on vacation for Nationals Day and let me tell you, my kids were spitfires. So when starting class, I said “Now class, this is a very special day for Teacher Eileen. Do you know why?” I got answers from it’s your birthday to it’s your father’s birthday, and I just kept responding “No. Keep guessing.”This was basically just a ploy to get them to speak in English. Then this little boy, with all the gumption and confidence he could muster, stands up out of his seat and yells, “you finally got a boyfriend.” I stood there for about five seconds processing and said, “No, but thank you for pointing that out”. He was so embarrassed and I think he legitimately thought that was the answer, so I gave in and finally told them my nephew had been born.
Unfortunately, my self- confidence level continued to decline during the remaining 35 minutes of class. While teaching about growing pains in America, I showed my students pictures of me from high school. Now there is this little, and I mean little, boy who has glasses that are broken so he wears them backwards and upside down. I don’t think they actually work or perhaps they are not his, but his name is Dot Com and I love him so much. He is so curious about everything, but he has absolutely no filter to the things that come out of his mouth. When the first picture of me from high school appears he stares at it with an open mouth glare like he can’t believe what he is looking at, and then he turns and faces me and says, “Teacher Eileen, you used to be skinny.” I just turned to look at him and see the girl sitting behind him reach forward and slap him across the back of the head. I just say, “Thank you Dot Com. I know”.
As the night progressed, Dot Com continued on a roll. I allowed my class to sing along with Adele’s music video of “Someone Like You”. After that was over, Dot Com turns to me again with the sweetest expression and says, “Teacher Eileen, you look exactly like Adele with no makeup”. Once again, I just responded with “Thank you Dot Com”. When the bell rang at 10pm on Sunday night, I gladly took my defeated self home and went for a long run.
I enjoyed myself immensely during the week. I actually got to interact with the teachers and students on a more social level. In China, I have learned to always be prepared for the unexpected. I didn’t expect the sports meeting to be so much fun, but Leigh and I loved every minute of it. Nanyue has now given me one more memory that I will treasure for the rest of my life. Love and miss you all so much! I will write soon!
Love,
Eileen
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