Christmas week!

Wow… what a busy week and a half it has been.  

Christmastime is always busy and for me, it is very much so. I ended up having a good Christmas and week leading up to Christmas although it was very very busy. 

All week long, I taught the Christmas story to my students. Some classes simply listened and moved on, but some classes were very interested and asked many questions. I am praying for those who were interested. My favorite class of 11^th grade PE students even asked me if Jesus was a God and how did I know. I was able to tell them that he was the only God and about the Bible. It was very exciting. 

On a less spiritual note, we also made paper snowflakes and Rudolph ornaments and I was excited to see my students get to be creative! 

Famine No More tattoo

On Tuesday, my students and several teachers participated in WorldVision’s “Famine No More” movement. We fasted from eating for certain hours. I only fasted for 12 hours (technically closer to 20) but some of my students fasted for much longer. They are so compassionate and conscious of the world. I am so proud of them.  

Wednesday, I met Vanessa at Bus-7 (the church’s café) and we walked around the Confucius temple and the downtown area. Then she fixed us Oolong noodles and I ate with her and Elizabeth, a Taiwanese college student who has excellent English! After dinner, I went and did a little shopping at the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi (mall). Because I don’t have to get presents for those in America until January, I forgot about presents for my friends in Taiwan. 

Hot Pot

 Thursday was our faculty Christmas party! We went to a famous hot pot restaurant in Anping. Hot pot is really popular in Taiwan and it is very yummy. Basically you order the meat you want and the waiter brings it to you raw along with raw vegetables. You put it into a pot of boiling water and wait until it cooks. Then you eat it. Delicious! It was interesting though because sometimes I think they forget that I don’t speak very much Chinese. Then we played… dirty Santa! It was hilarious watching Taiwanese teachers fight over a stuffed bear that fold out into a blanket and a Snoopy pillow.  

Friday was the best day ever! At the assembly Friday morning, several students and I taught and sang Last Christmas to all the students. Then that night, the Student Council had a big Christmas party for all the students. They had a delicious buffet and a talent show of sorts, where the students did dances and sang and played the guitar. It was really fun. We played some fun games and gave out door-prizes! It really was a good time! 

Saturday was also good! I had a harder time with Christmas Eve than I did with Christmas because I was alone for a good part of Christmas Eve. But I did the best I could to make it fun. I did laundry in the morning, but after lunch, I went into town for a very late brunch. I ate a great American-style breakfast at the Rolling Egg Café. Then I went and got a hairwash, which is the most amazing thing ever. They give you a 30 minute neck massage, then wash and dry your hair. They don’t do manicures or pedicures here so this is the best pampering I can get. Then I did a little shopping for folks back home. At 3:30 p.m. I met some of the members of my small group and we went on an outreach. Basically, we walked around parts of the university campus nearby and invited people to the Christmas service. When we finished that, I went and checked into my hotel room. I decided that as part of my Christmas present to myself, I would stay in a nice hotel, so that I would not have to make the 30 minute drive to and from church on Christmas Eve and Christmas day.  It was so nice. A huge tub and a huge bed!! Then we had the Christmas Eve service. It was really nice. After that, members of my small group went to someone’s house and we had Christmas dinner. We had ham and mashed potatoes and gravy and broccoli and it was so delicious. 

Christmas day was so much fun and so busy. Although it really didn’t feel much lik,e Christmas, it was fun! After a delightful stay in my hotel room, I was at the church at 8:30 am to help with the children’s service. I was a group leader, which basically meant that I ferried the kids around and made sure that none of them got hit by a car or anything like that. After that, I went to the Bielby’s (an American family in my church) house for Christmas lunch. After making the mashed potatoes and accidentally burning Kevin, we had a delicious turkey dinner. Then it was on to Christmas charades, which the girls lost. It was so hilarious though. At first I got easy words, then they were hard. Imagine trying “to act out “nature”. Then we read the Christmas story and prayed together and I was off again. From there, I went to Vanessa’s house and had dinner with her and Teddy. Again, just fun hanging out and talking, plus being stuffed full of delicious food. I had to leave far before I was ready, but I had to pack because Monday I left for Alishan!! But that is a different e-mail! 

I have already outlined my thoughts on celebrating Christmas alone. Although, I did find parts of it very lonely, I am very blessed to have friends here that made it more fun. Jesus was indeed sent as the greatest gift of all!