I’ve been meaning to post a picture of my braids while we were in Haiti. Not deep or thought-provoking, but they definitely were nifty!
We had the chance to visit with a college friend, Krista Stevenson, yesterday afternoon. She’s spent the last five years teaching university-level English in northeastern China with ELIC. The past year and a half she’s done intensive Chinese studies to facilitate her continued work in China.
Krista shared the thought that learning another language gives those people a “face.” Rather than hearing a 45-year-old physics professor speaking English at the level of an elementary student…she can understand him in Chinese more as who he is…an intelligent, studied, physics professor!
Her comment reminds me of the many professionals I’ve met both here and abroad who had to find second-careers after emigrating to another country. Whether the architect who now runs a community center, or the math professor who works as a janitor…I admire the strength, humility, dignity and determination that it takes to make a new life in a foreign land.
Krista also commented that in China, she does not stand out as being “American,” rather she is alien simply because she is a foreigner, “not Chinese.” Most of the places I’ve traveled, I’ve definitely felt marked as American, not just foreign…which is an interesting commentary on the immensity of the Chinese as a culture and society.
I made a yummy potato soup tonight – basically simmer diced potatoes and veggies (onion, celery, green beans) in chicken broth with a little pepper for 15 minutes or until tender. Then add 1 can evaporated milk with about 3 T. corn starch mixed into a little of it (to thicken). Boil and stir a couple minutes to thicken, remove from the heat and add some cheese. I added a little tarragon too. It hit the spot tonight. 
