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Joshua Tree
13 years ago
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
For The Brothers and Sisters in China
Hello Everyone,
So this is going to be my attempt at blogging. I have tried a few other times but nothing has really stuck so here goes with this one.
Ok, well where to start? I was thinking about this for a while now as I was customizing and configuring out this thing and talking with a good friend and Brother I have figured it out....what in the world has happened to me since coming back from China, yeah it has been almost 2 years now!
First and foremost I must start this entry by saying how blessed I feel to have had such an opportunity to have gone to China for the work I did. So many of you are in my constant thought and the love i have for many of you is like that of my own blood family. I miss all of you and wish I could be with all of you for a big bowl of dog hot pot or sip tea in a balcony or sing in an over crowded apartment.
So, since China....Well when I got back I was still wondering what in the world i was going to do! Well a door was opened by His Grace as a position working with the youth (teenagers) at my old church opened up. I started working part time about 3 weeks after i had landed. I soon found out that working with youth in the church is never a part time position and i went full time after about 2 months. The job was awesome! I loved it! Yes it was alot of work and my schedule was crazy at times but i had an amazing time. It strengthened in me the idea that i could work in a Church or other ministry for a while if teaching didn't work out all that well.
During my time working for the church I found out so many of the things that I had learned working with the other foreigners there helped me be a better servant to the youth. I had a new apperication for submission as a leader and a greater respect for those who are over me. I am not saying everything was great between me and the people over me all the time, but many things that would have caused me to want to rebel or resist I tried to take with an open heart. I am not saying that i was perfect at this, but I know there was a difference.
Well after about a year of doing the whole youth thing, i was let go by the church. Not fired, but let go. I started working for an ESL school teaching mainly 20-40 yr olds advanced English. It felt very comfortable to do and was a small paycheck, which I was happy to have. A week later i started subbing in the school district that i grew up in. My week became, work in the morning get home work at night and then go to bed. I did this schedule from February till about this past Octubre. I went to sub for a class that had no permanet teacher and 3 days later i was hired as a long term sub. I continued to work at the ESL school till the term was up and then quit. My students at the ESL school were so great. I felt a connection with them as I had just too recently been in a similar position as many of them were in. I still keep in contact with a few of them and I consider them my friends.
Well now I am a long term sub for a 2nd grade class. While 2nd grade (6-7 years old) is not my first choice to teach, i do love my class. Yes, they are very cute, but at the same time can be a handfull. I already have many a great stories from my class that i will start to share at a later time. But i will have this sub position until February when the regular teacher is suppose to come back in.
Oh, yeah, many of you already know, but i must mention this, I have an awesome girlfriend. I know many people in China and America have already talked a bit to me about this, and yes i am very happy right now. Here is some dirt for you.....We met at Pepperdine while we were both students, but never really thought of eachother in any way other than being friends. This past May i saw her again at the Pepperdine lectures and we then started to message each other on myspace and facebook. A few months later we had coffee, then a little after that had our first date and the next thing i know i am changing my facebook status. Kelly is truly a blessing in my life and I am so glad our great Father let our paths cross.
There is so much more i could write about from these past 2 years, but i will make this breif for now. I have a feeling, after writing this blog, that I won't have a problem finding things to write about. I think for the next blog it will be a multi-part blog about what I feel i have learned from my time in China.
To all of my Brothers and Sisters in China I miss you and hope that we see eachother sooner rather than later.
Much Love,
Allan
A few pics for you
So this is going to be my attempt at blogging. I have tried a few other times but nothing has really stuck so here goes with this one.
Ok, well where to start? I was thinking about this for a while now as I was customizing and configuring out this thing and talking with a good friend and Brother I have figured it out....what in the world has happened to me since coming back from China, yeah it has been almost 2 years now!
First and foremost I must start this entry by saying how blessed I feel to have had such an opportunity to have gone to China for the work I did. So many of you are in my constant thought and the love i have for many of you is like that of my own blood family. I miss all of you and wish I could be with all of you for a big bowl of dog hot pot or sip tea in a balcony or sing in an over crowded apartment.
So, since China....Well when I got back I was still wondering what in the world i was going to do! Well a door was opened by His Grace as a position working with the youth (teenagers) at my old church opened up. I started working part time about 3 weeks after i had landed. I soon found out that working with youth in the church is never a part time position and i went full time after about 2 months. The job was awesome! I loved it! Yes it was alot of work and my schedule was crazy at times but i had an amazing time. It strengthened in me the idea that i could work in a Church or other ministry for a while if teaching didn't work out all that well.
During my time working for the church I found out so many of the things that I had learned working with the other foreigners there helped me be a better servant to the youth. I had a new apperication for submission as a leader and a greater respect for those who are over me. I am not saying everything was great between me and the people over me all the time, but many things that would have caused me to want to rebel or resist I tried to take with an open heart. I am not saying that i was perfect at this, but I know there was a difference.
Well after about a year of doing the whole youth thing, i was let go by the church. Not fired, but let go. I started working for an ESL school teaching mainly 20-40 yr olds advanced English. It felt very comfortable to do and was a small paycheck, which I was happy to have. A week later i started subbing in the school district that i grew up in. My week became, work in the morning get home work at night and then go to bed. I did this schedule from February till about this past Octubre. I went to sub for a class that had no permanet teacher and 3 days later i was hired as a long term sub. I continued to work at the ESL school till the term was up and then quit. My students at the ESL school were so great. I felt a connection with them as I had just too recently been in a similar position as many of them were in. I still keep in contact with a few of them and I consider them my friends.
Well now I am a long term sub for a 2nd grade class. While 2nd grade (6-7 years old) is not my first choice to teach, i do love my class. Yes, they are very cute, but at the same time can be a handfull. I already have many a great stories from my class that i will start to share at a later time. But i will have this sub position until February when the regular teacher is suppose to come back in.
Oh, yeah, many of you already know, but i must mention this, I have an awesome girlfriend. I know many people in China and America have already talked a bit to me about this, and yes i am very happy right now. Here is some dirt for you.....We met at Pepperdine while we were both students, but never really thought of eachother in any way other than being friends. This past May i saw her again at the Pepperdine lectures and we then started to message each other on myspace and facebook. A few months later we had coffee, then a little after that had our first date and the next thing i know i am changing my facebook status. Kelly is truly a blessing in my life and I am so glad our great Father let our paths cross.
There is so much more i could write about from these past 2 years, but i will make this breif for now. I have a feeling, after writing this blog, that I won't have a problem finding things to write about. I think for the next blog it will be a multi-part blog about what I feel i have learned from my time in China.
To all of my Brothers and Sisters in China I miss you and hope that we see eachother sooner rather than later.
Much Love,
Allan
A few pics for you
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