following an unknown path

about a boy

I will soon be able to add one more thing to this list of things that I am.

In a little over four months my sister is going to make me an aunt!!  She is a little over 19 weeks pregnant with my little nephew, who will be named Nathan Lee.

Nathan means "gift of God" . . . what a wonderful name!!

I am so excited for my sister and brother-in-law.  This is something they've wanted for a long time now.

Can you see him there?  The first one is a full body shot and the second one is of just his face.  Beautiful, right?

And, yes, I'll be perfectly honest, it stung at first.  Why would God, the giver of all good gifts, give my younger sister both a husband and a baby before me?  "Doesn't he care about me too?" my heart longed to know.   

It's like the time I asked for a clock radio for Christmas.  My grandmother had prepared two of them (one for each of us), but Sarah opened hers first.  In my selfishness, I actually cried, "that's mine Sarah!  You opened my present!"  I walked over and ripped it out of her arms.  Sigh . . . what sin!  I still remember how guilty I felt when I realized how blatant my selfishness was on that Christmas Eve.

There were many tears shed the night I first found out she was expecting . . . as once again I mourned the fact that I am not yet a wife and not yet a mother.  My selfish, sinful heart once again cried out "That's mine, Sarah!  You opened my present!  Why do you get one and I don't!  I want one, too!!!"

But, since then . . . after repenting, my heart has been filled with nothing but joy for my sister.  I am so happy and can't wait to meet little Nate this summer when I get to go home for the first time in two years. 

Oh, yeah, and if Sarah is able to hold that little bambino inside to full term or longer, I will even get to see my sister 9 months pregnant.  How cool would that be!?!?!   But, for now, here is my beautiful pregnant sister at 19 weeks:

i now "officially" look like my mom!!

I saw this over at An Open Book, and thought I'd see if a computer algorithm agrees with most casual observers that I look like my mom.  It did. :)

(P.S. My dad's name is not "dan" . . . I mistyped "dad.")

a woman's heart

My sister sent me this quote last week.  It was encouraging to me, so I thought I'd share it with you. 

"A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man should have to seek Him first to find her."

(I searched online to see if I could find the source, it looks like it is probably from Maya Angelou.)

Christmas Past, 1981 (part 2, a repost)

Today my guestblogger, my mom, finishes the story she started yesterday.  (Just FYI, the pics are from 1979 and 1980--it's the best I could do with what I have here with me in Taiwan.)

It was a warm Texas December night and a very special one for us (ok – very special to me, the sentimental one!).

It was our first time decorating a tree with a child old enough to participate.  We purchased a small Christmas tree from the local grocery store and carted it home on top of our Pinto station wagon. Ken crafted a tree stand out of scrap wood and we placed the tree on top of our end table, hopefully out of the reach of our toddler’s (Sarah’s) grasp.  We placed the lights on the tree and Amanda and I began hanging ornaments.  She was so excited we were celebrating!  I was so excited – I got to keep the traditions!

It came time to turn off the overhead lights and plug in the Christmas tree lights.  As soon as the lights on the tree began shining, Amanda, overcome at the beauty of what she was seeing, spontaneously began to exclaim “Oh! Oh! Glory to God in the Highest! Glory to God in the Highest!  Glory to God in the Highest!”  She raised her arms and began dancing around that small glowing tree praising God, repeating that phrase over and over just as the angels must have done on the first Christmas night.

I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed worship as genuine as the worship I saw that night!  Worship from one with such a pure heart and pure motives – a precious three-year-old, who knew only that we were celebrating the birth of Jesus and that our Christmas tree was shining just as the heavens were the night of His birth when angels praised God and proclaimed His glory. And, she wanted to celebrate and praise Him in the same way!

That Christmas, God gave us just what we needed through the faith and actions of a three-year-old child.  That experience changed our perspective on Christmas celebrations.  We both realized that a Christmas tradition held its meaning only in the heart of the person participating in the tradition – you could focus on the warm and fuzzy feelings felt by reliving the tradition or you could focus on the original intent of the tradition or you could focus on the One for Whom you were celebrating as you participated in the tradition.

In our family, we choose to focus not on feelings or original intent, but on the Reason we were celebrating.

Each year, as we decorate our tree, it is a family tradition to tell the story of the night we worshipped with Amanda around our first family decorated Christmas tree. We seek to have the same worshipful heart as a three-year-old who, though only looking at the lights on a small Christmas tree, saw a sky filled with a host of heavenly angels proclaiming God’s glory at the birth of His Son and joyfully joined in the angels’ praises.

Now that is giving meaning to a Christmas tradition!

~Joi

Amanda: Isn't that a great story!! I just LOVE it!!  My mom is so right . . . when we look at our Christmas traditions--or any traditions for that matter--we can foucs on one of three things: (1) warm, fuzzy feelings, (2) original intent, or (3) Christ. 

For me and my sister (I think she would agree with me), that now as adults, because our parents focused on Christ at Christmas, the "warm, fuzzy feelings" of the holiday didn't dissappear but were intensified.  It is not that our traditions became stoic--how can worship of the long-awaited Savior be emotionless?  No, the "fuzzy feelings" didn't dissappear, they just were not the reason we did the things we did. 

As adults, my sister and I anticipate Christmas traditions because we are excited to worship the King of kings and Lord of lords; we look forward to being able to express our love for him in unique once-a-year Christmas ways.  Through participating in Christmas traditions, we enjoy being able to proclaim "Oh! Oh! Glory to God in the highest!!" and "Jesus, we love you!!" 

This is a repost from last year.  Originally posted here.

It was a warm Texas December night and a very special one for us (ok – very special to me, the sentimental one!).

It was our first time decorating a tree with a child old enough to participate.  We purchased a small Christmas tree from the local grocery store and carted it home on top of our Pinto station wagon. Ken crafted a tree stand out of scrap wood and we placed the tree on top of our end table, hopefully out of the reach of our toddler’s (Sarah’s) grasp.  We placed the lights on the tree and Amanda and I began hanging ornaments.  She was so excited we were celebrating!  I was so excited – I got to keep the traditions!

It came time to turn off the overhead lights and plug in the Christmas tree lights.  As soon as the lights on the tree began shining, Amanda, overcome at the beauty of what she was seeing, spontaneously began to exclaim “Oh! Oh! Glory to God in the Highest! Glory to God in the Highest!  Glory to God in the Highest!”  She raised her arms and began dancing around that small glowing tree praising God, repeating that phrase over and over just as the angels must have done on the first Christmas night.

I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed worship as genuine as the worship I saw that night!  Worship from one with such a pure heart and pure motives – a precious three-year-old, who knew only that we were celebrating the birth of Jesus and that our Christmas tree was shining just as the heavens were the night of His birth when angels praised God and proclaimed His glory. And, she wanted to celebrate and praise Him in the same way!

That Christmas, God gave us just what we needed through the faith and actions of a three-year-old child.  That experience changed our perspective on Christmas celebrations.  We both realized that a Christmas tradition held its meaning only in the heart of the person participating in the tradition – you could focus on the warm and fuzzy feelings felt by reliving the tradition or you could focus on the original intent of the tradition or you could focus on the One for Whom you were celebrating as you participated in the tradition.

In our family, we choose to focus not on feelings or original intent, but on the Reason we were celebrating.

Each year, as we decorate our tree, it is a family tradition to tell the story of the night we worshipped with Amanda around our first family decorated Christmas tree. We seek to have the same worshipful heart as a three-year-old who, though only looking at the lights on a small Christmas tree, saw a sky filled with a host of heavenly angels proclaiming God’s glory at the birth of His Son and joyfully joined in the angels’ praises.

Now that is giving meaning to a Christmas tradition!

~Joi

Amanda: Isn't that a great story!! I just LOVE it!!  My mom is so right . . . when we look at our Christmas traditions--or any traditions for that matter--we can foucs on one of three things: (1) warm, fuzzy feelings, (2) original intent, or (3) Christ. 

For me and my sister (I think she would agree with me), that now as adults, because our parents focused on Christ at Christmas, the "warm, fuzzy feelings" of the holiday didn't dissappear but were intensified.  It is not that our traditions became stoic--how can worship of the long-awaited Savior be emotionless?  No, the "fuzzy feelings" didn't dissappear, they just were not the reason we did the things we did. 

As adults, my sister and I anticipate Christmas traditions because we are excited to worship the King of kings and Lord of lords; we look forward to being able to express our love for him in unique once-a-year Christmas ways.  Through participating in Christmas traditions, we enjoy being able to proclaim "Oh! Oh! Glory to God in the highest!!" and "Jesus, we love you!!" 

This is a repost from last year.  Originally posted here.

Christmas Past (1981) (a repost)

I, Amanda, asked my mom to share one of my family's favorite Christmas stories.  So, today and tomorrow she is guest blogging here at following an unknown path.  Now, without further adieu, let my mom take you back 25 years, to the Christmas of 1981 . . .

Christmastime is supposed to be a time of joy and celebration, but there was conflict in our household.  My husband and I disagreed for most of our newly married four years on how we should celebrate Christmas and neither of us wanted to give up any ground.  However our children were getting older (3 years and 18 months), and we needed to reach an agreement on how our young family would celebrate this season.

I am the sentimental one in our family.  I love the Christmas season, all of it: the lights, the tree, the presents, cookie baking, surprises and secrets, being with family and of course, celebrating the Reason for the Season – God becoming a man and dwelling among us in order to fulfill His plan of redemption.

On the other hand, I don’t think my husband has a sentimental bone in his body!  He is very practical, very logical, extremely well-grounded in Scripture and very matter-of-fact.  This particular Christmas, he was finishing his education at seminary and had learned that most of our traditional Christmas celebrations began as pagan rituals.  He would come home after seminary classes and explain to me what he had learned in class and the conflict would begin!  He didn’t want our family to take part in any celebration that did not glorify God.  With such a youthful intensity to do only that which glorified God, he didn’t want us to participate in some of the traditions I loved because of their original intent.

Technically I agreed, I certainly didn’t want to be a part of anything that didn’t glorify God!…..but I couldn’t imagine Christmas without all the traditions I had grown up with and loved nor could I imagine not sharing those traditions with my children. 

After much discussion and heart searching, we decided we would keep Christmas traditions as a part of our celebration (yeah! – I could still have a Christmas tree!!), and purposefully seek to make the true meaning of Christmas the focus in our family by telling the Christmas story often to our young girls and singing religious Christmas carols with them. 

It was our routine to read or tell bedtime stories each night to our girls; and, during this season, the Christmas story was a much repeated favorite.  Being a natural storyteller and intent on making sure his daughters knew the true Christmas story, Ken would tell the birth of Jesus with great enthusiasm and drama.  We weren’t sure how much their young minds comprehended, but we were genuine in our desire to glorify God with our Christmas celebrations.   Yet, Ken still was uncomfortable about having the Christmas tree and other “pagan” celebrations in our home, but God was about to give us a sign.

Come back tomorrow to find out how.
Joi (aka Amanda's mom)

This is a repost from last year.  Originally posted here.

I, Amanda, asked my mom to share one of my family's favorite Christmas stories.  So, today and tomorrow she is guest blogging here at following an unknown path.  Now, without further adieu, let my mom take you back 25 years, to the Christmas of 1981 . . .

Christmastime is supposed to be a time of joy and celebration, but there was conflict in our household.  My husband and I disagreed for most of our newly married four years on how we should celebrate Christmas and neither of us wanted to give up any ground.  However our children were getting older (3 years and 18 months), and we needed to reach an agreement on how our young family would celebrate this season.

I am the sentimental one in our family.  I love the Christmas season, all of it: the lights, the tree, the presents, cookie baking, surprises and secrets, being with family and of course, celebrating the Reason for the Season – God becoming a man and dwelling among us in order to fulfill His plan of redemption.

On the other hand, I don’t think my husband has a sentimental bone in his body!  He is very practical, very logical, extremely well-grounded in Scripture and very matter-of-fact.  This particular Christmas, he was finishing his education at seminary and had learned that most of our traditional Christmas celebrations began as pagan rituals.  He would come home after seminary classes and explain to me what he had learned in class and the conflict would begin!  He didn’t want our family to take part in any celebration that did not glorify God.  With such a youthful intensity to do only that which glorified God, he didn’t want us to participate in some of the traditions I loved because of their original intent.

Technically I agreed, I certainly didn’t want to be a part of anything that didn’t glorify God!…..but I couldn’t imagine Christmas without all the traditions I had grown up with and loved nor could I imagine not sharing those traditions with my children. 

After much discussion and heart searching, we decided we would keep Christmas traditions as a part of our celebration (yeah! – I could still have a Christmas tree!!), and purposefully seek to make the true meaning of Christmas the focus in our family by telling the Christmas story often to our young girls and singing religious Christmas carols with them. 

It was our routine to read or tell bedtime stories each night to our girls; and, during this season, the Christmas story was a much repeated favorite.  Being a natural storyteller and intent on making sure his daughters knew the true Christmas story, Ken would tell the birth of Jesus with great enthusiasm and drama.  We weren’t sure how much their young minds comprehended, but we were genuine in our desire to glorify God with our Christmas celebrations.   Yet, Ken still was uncomfortable about having the Christmas tree and other “pagan” celebrations in our home, but God was about to give us a sign.

Come back tomorrow to find out how.
Joi (aka Amanda's mom)

This is a repost from last year.  Originally posted here.

my origins (aka: where I am from)

I am from storybooks and
Cabbage Patch dolls,
from a box of 124 crayons.

I am from cinnamon rolls, banana bread,
and gravy poured over broken biscuits.

From yellow and green gingham,
the CareBears, and pink and blue bows.

I am from the new, new house
in a little bit of Forth Worth.

From the parsonage next to
the small-town church
with the two story slide.

I am from mud pies,
picnics in the front yard,
porch swings and rocking chairs.

I am from “life is not fair”
and “I told you so.”

From washing windows on Saturday
and it’s your turn to empty the dishwasher.

I am from preachers,
Sunday school teachers,
and the church pianist.

I’m from Jesus Loves the Little Children,
and Great is Thy Faithfulness.

I’m from pajama days
and a little black pick-up truck.

From chicken and dumplings,
chips and salsa, peppermint birthday cakes,
and don't forget the Diet Coke and Bluebell.

I'm from Podunk, Arkansas
and Smalltown, Texas.

From huge family get-togethers, days on the lake,
and Christmas at Grandma’s.

I am from the woman who tossed cold water on her rowdy boys,
the high school sweethearts who married,
the boy who was tricked to run down a steep hill,
the strangers who met on a bus.

I am from the boy who jumped off a bridge and broke his nose,
from the girl in the fluffy pink sweater who hated her curls.

I am from Dot and Joe, Mildred and Euel, Joi and Ken,
from love and laughter, faith and family,
hugs and kisses.

~*~*~*~*~

Giving credit where credit is due: Poems like this have been circling the web for awhile now--I first remember seeing them in the winter/spring of 2005.  They are inspired by George Ella Lyons' poem "Where I'm From." And, there is even a template to help you get started if you'd like to write your own.

Tiffany and Becka's adventures--day 8

Let me take you back to the last week of July . . . (Needless to say, I have some catching up to do on my blog.)

After being here for an action packed week and after a very emotion-filled Day 7, the girls and I decided to take a little break.  On day 8, a Wednesday, we slept late, caught up on email and blogging, and just hung around the house.  It was a welcomed rest.

Mid-afternoon, after downing some wonderful fresh fruit slushes, we headed into Kaohsiung to go to an afternoon market that is popular with the teens and young adults of Kaohsiung.  It is situated in between some of the major department stores downtown.

Two of my students joined us and after some browsing and shopping, we deiced to go take some sticker pictures.  This is a popular thing for young people to do when hanging out with friends.  There are these stores filled with picture-taking machines that turn the photos into stickers.

After you've posed 8 or 9 times, you get to choose which poses you like best and then decorate them.

_____

Here are two of the pictures we took--keep in mind these things are very tiny stickers.  Aren't they fun?! 

_____

After the pictures, we had some scrumptious roasted chicken sandwiches.

_____
Then, moments later, Tiffany and Becka had their first of many "dong gua cha."  Yes, it was on day 8 that my cousins fell in love with winter melon tea. 

_____
With teas in hand we ended the day by going to an English Bible study and sharing with new friends how Jesus had changed our lives.  What a perfect ending to a relaxing day!

a special banana

The only pictures we have from day 7 are of a very special banana!! 

Two bananas inside one peel.  So, it's twins--Siamese twin bananas!! 

At the top they were joined together, but at the bottom they were separate.

See?  Isn't that fun and very unique? 

Tiffany and Becka's adventures--day 7

Day 7 didn't quite go as planned.  It was supposed to be a total "play in water" day with lots of swimming in beautiful clear waters and playing on white sand beaches.

We started the morning by going to a great snorkeling place.  We rented snorkeling masks and some flippers.  Tied Gilby up to a coral reef thingee and got wet.

Tiffany and Rebecca took off to go snorkeling, while I gave my students quick lessons on spitting into the mask  to clean it and on breathing through your mouth while floating in the water.  They tried for awhile, and I went to check on Tiff and Becka.

The water was mostly shallow, but there was this 3-4 meter space that was a little deep--maybe 10 or 12 feet deep, and then it got shallow again.  My students got to that part and tried to decide how to best cross.  They had told me they were all swimmers but didn't feel confident in their swimming ability--most pools in Taiwan are no more than 4 feet deep, so "swimmers" can stand up at anytime. 

I helped one across with her holding onto my ankle, and thought the others were going to go rent some life jackets.  I hadn't seen Tiff and Becka in awhile--coral reef rocks blocked my view.  So, I went to go check on them while my students went to go get life jackets. 

Tiffany and Becka were fine and having fun, so I headed back to where my students would be.  I heard one of them scream my name, so I started to swim a little faster.  As I rounded the coral rock that blocked my view of where they were, I saw one of my students floating bottom up in the water far away from the other girls. 

All I saw where Judy's pink shorts bobbing in the water--an image I will never, ever forget. 

Panic flooded my heart.  Adrenaline flooded my bloodstream.  And, I swam as quickly as I could to get to her.

After I got to her, I pulled her back across the gap until I could stand, flipped her over, and started breathing into her mouth.  As I started to breathe for her, I realized all color had left her face except for her purple lips and that her eyes had rolled into the back of her head.

At this point, I thought she was gone, and the first thing I thought was "she is not a Believer yet.  Don't let her die!"  Then, I screamed "NO!" from the depth of my gut as I silently started to pray, pinched her nose and started to breathe into her again. 

All kinds of images and thoughts flooded my head in rapid succession, but I continued to breathe for her as we slowly dragged her up until the water was much more shallow, and we could lay her on the ground.  The other students had yelled for help and a nearby snorkeling guide came over to give us instructions.  At about the same time, Judy started breathing for herself!  Praise the Lord!!

Within about 10 min she threw up, and I felt much more relived.  We finally got her sitting up, but her eyes kept rolling back into her head.  Every time this happened, my heart fluttered and I told her "Don't go to sleep, Judy.  Come back to me.  Stay awake."  Her eyes would come back, and she would stare at me. 

Eventually, we got her to an ambulance and off to the hospital.  Two of the other girls went with her.  This left me, Tiffany, Rebecca, and two of my students--I pulled us into a circle and started to pray aloud for Judy.  For about ten minutes I was shaky and could do nothing--the adrenaline rush was over.

Judy made it.  She is alive.  God saved her.  It was a miracle.  She knows it.  Her friends know it.

Later that day, when I had taken Tiffany and Becka to go eat lunch, I called to check on Judy.  She answered the phone with "thank you for praying for me"--not "thank you for saving me."  I smiled.  I loved that she knew it was the power of prayer that had saved her. I loved that her friends had told her that I was praying and had missionary friends praying for her too.

After she had been released from the little town hospital, we were all sitting around waiting for the taxi-van back to Kaohsiung.  We sat and talked about God's love, God's grace, God's power--His miracle saving power.  One of the girls said, "I didn't think I would ever see you again.  It really is a miracle that you are sitting here with us this afternoon."  Judy, an idol worshiper, told us it was the Christian God who saved her because she had a Christian friend who told her a long time ago that she was praying for her each day.

When we got back to Kaohsiung, I convinced Judy to go to a better hospital to be checked again.  She was admitted for two nights to watch for signs of fever and other complications from "near-drowning."  However, she was fine.  Again, praise the Lord!!

When I think back on that day, I can't but be amazed about how great God is.  The timing was perfect.  Had I been there earlier when she was fighting to survive--I might not been able to save her.  Had I been there any later--she might not have made it.   The fact that I had my wits about me and peace in the midst of it all is miraculous.  The fact that CPR in the water worked is miraculous.  The fact that I could even remember how to do CPR after learning how ten years ago is miraculous. 

Yes, day 7 was nothing short of a miracle.  Please pray for Judy and her friends.  I can just envision this being something that God will use to draw many, many to Himself.  And, I can't wait to see how!!

Tiffany and Becka's adventures--day 6 (part 2)

After several outdoor stops and riding around on mopeds in the HOT sun, we needed to cool off.  So, what better way than to enjoy some fruit and ice?  Me and my students introduced Tiffany and Rebecca to what would be their first of many "chaw bing" delights. :)

~*~*~*~
After an early evening swim, we celebrated two birthdays on the beach--Afra's and Anna's.  It was my first time to ever have cake on the beach!! :)

~*~*~*~

Then we had dinner off the street--Kenting Street turns into a night market at night with lots of souvenir shopping and great foods to try.  The girls were able to have some of their faves--Taiwanese fried chicken and freshly squeezed-to-order fruit drinks.  I, on the other hand, got to enjoy squid and try duck's tongue for the first time (let's just say it is harder to chew than pig's ears).

~*~*~*~

Before Tiffany, Becka, and I crashed and fell asleep (while the others went back out to the night market street till 3 in the morning) . . . we went back to the beach to play with sparklers.  Fun!!

~*~*~*~
Finally, one of the cool things is that all along Kenting Street, right behind all the street vendors and above all the souvenir shops are small "hotels."  And, the fun thing about these hotels is that they have rooms with beds for EIGHT people!  That's right--eight girls, one room.  Fun, right? :)

~*~*~*~

And, that's it for day 6.  Once again, if you want to you can look at all the day 6 pictures on flickr (there are over 200 from that day alone).

Tiffany and Becca's adventures--day 6 (part 1)

On Day 6 we went to Kenting.  Kenting is on the southern tip of Taiwan and a vacation spot for many.   The three of us (and Gilby too) joined five of my students who had just graduated for a few days of summer fun.

We rented mopeds and then took off. . . . Rebecca was our "on moped photographer."

~*~*~*~

Our first two stops were the South and East Gates and city wall in HengChuan.

~*~*~*~

There was a row of yellow lantana and black butterflies everywhere. It was so pretty.

~*~*~*~

After that we stopped to see the famous "out of earth fire."  Natural gases escape from the ground and can be lit.  Kind of neat to see, but hard to photograph and REALLY hot!!

~*~*~*~

We then went to the east coast side of the southern tip--jia-le-sway.  We were here to cool off just a bit and to dip our toes in the Pacific Ocean.  But, in reality, Tiffany and Becka got a taste for the Taiwanese people's love of photo-taking. :)

~*~*~*~

We made two more quick scenic stops before rounding the most southern tip of the island and heading back to our hotel completing our circle around the bottom of the island.

~*~*~*~

Day 6 was a long day . . . so, I'll talk about the rest of the day later.  Of course, you can look at all the day 6 pictures on flickr (there are over 200 from that day alone).

a travelling we go

Tiffany, Rebecca and I are off to the northern part of Taiwan.  They have just 4.5 days left here with me.  As we will be busy seeing and doing lots of new things, the rest of the day-by-day updates will have to wait till I come back on Thursday.

Have a great weekend and week . . . and I'll "see you" later.

P.S. Again, thanks to those of you who helped with the contest voting.  Winner will be announced on Monday.  Even if I am third, I still will get my very own xshot so that I can bless you with even more pictures. :)

dun xia

Tiffany and Rebecca have been having fun trying to "dun xia" (蹲下) (ie. squat down) like the Taiwanese do:

The only way Tiffany and Becka can do it and still keep their feet flat on the ground without tipping over backwards is if they are on an incline:

Tiffany and Becca's adventures--day 5

This day started off by just going to a local mega-mart for lunch and a little shopping.  We had "teh ban tsao"--food that is prepared right in front of us.  It was yummy if I do say so myself. 

The girls get a kick out of the prices here--because here the dollar sign is sometimes used for New Taiwan Dollars, so things seem really over priced (like these $990 t-shirts).  There are also many things for sale here that you would be hard pressed to find in the States. 

Mega-marts here are multi-level complexes.  So, the "escalator" is actually an inclined people-mover that has special tracking for locking in the wheels of the carts. 

After our shopping trip, Andy (one of my former students) took us to Lotus Lake for some sight seeing.

First up was the Tiger and Dragon pagodas, but sadly they were under construction.

So, we went to the Spring and Autumn pagodas next.

Before going in the dragon and inside the dragon.

After exiting the dragon. 

We then toured a Taoist Temple.  Seeing people actually bow and worship idols for the first time can be a life-altering event.  At the very least it gives new perspective to the book of Isaiah and the rest of the Old Testament as well.

 

We stopped briefly to enjoy a water lily pond.

Then we saw a huge idol which is actually a temple.  There are two more likeness of this same god of war inside the huge one.

As we walked around the lake to the different sites, we stopped and took some fun pictures. :)

Our last stop on Lotus Lake was a Confucian Temple.  A volunteer came and gave us a guided tour.  So, I learned a lot of new stuff--I'll pass on my new knowledge on another day.

For dinner, we had Japanese/Korean style BBQ.  Where we cooked our food on a BBQ grill right there in the middle of our table.  Pretty cool, huh?

It was an "eat till you are full" resturant, so here are Andy and me with the "menu" where you can keep ordering from for up to two hours.

More Day 5 pictures can be found on my flickr account.

Tiffany and Becca's adventures--day 4

Day 4 with Tiffany included a trip back across the island.  But, first we took a few pictures at the hotel.  Taiwan's aboriginal people live on the east coast.  We were staying in the PaiWan Tribe area.  There are 12 different aboriginal tribes in Taiwan in addition to the Taiwanese (Hokkien) people, Hakka people, and Mainlanders. 

We took the afternoon "off" and rested a bit.  Then for dinner, we had DimSum with Larina and her parents in downtown Kaohsiung. 

Of course we rode our mopeds there.  Although their backsides ached a little from the trip, they truly enjoyed the experience and the night scenes here.

Then, the best part of the day happened!!  We went to a Taiwanese night market!!  If you have not been to a night market while in Taiwan, you haven't really been to Taiwan. ;)

We were kinda full when we got there, but still we tried some new things . . . like "tea in a bag" and a chocolate covered frozen banana.

And, we played some "night market games" too!

And, did some shopping and lots of just looking at new stuff.

But, perhaps their favorite part of the whole night was "fishing" for turtles with tissue paper hoops.  The paper gets wet and breaks so it is not an easy feat at all.  But, Tiffany got four and Rebecca got two.  I was impressed!!  So, now there are turtles living in my home too.

More Day 4 pictures are on my Flickr.

Our night market trip was thanks to Andy, who was our awesome tour guide! 

on mopeds at night

One of the great new things people visiting Taiwan get to experience is riding a moped!!

Saturday night, Larina (a former student and good friend) and I drove Tiffany and Rebecca to Kaohsiung City by moped.  The girls took this opportunity to film just how crazy it can be!

Don't worry mom, Janice, and Grandmothers . . . I promise I am taking good care of them.  And that they remain very safe. :)

Tiffany and Becca's adventures--days 2 and 3

On the 2nd and 3rd days of Tiffany and Rebecca's trip to Taiwan, we went east to help with the end of a week long mission trip/English camp. 

But first we had to cross the mountains and drive along the beautiful coast.

I'll have to go into more detail about the camp later when I have more time.  But, God was at work in Taimali and it was a blessing to be able to be a small part of it.

One of our responsibilities was to cook and serve 300 hot dogs!  We cooked them in an out door kitchen.  I have three words to say about that: IT WAS HOT!!!

Friday evening we had a celebration event.  Taimali is an abrigional village of the PaiWan tribe.  So, during the worship time of the celebration, some of the ladies started doing a traditional group dance around the sitting area.  So, we joined in as well.  It was a great experience.

But, perhaps the best part of the whole weekend was that 16 people were baptized Friday night!!!  Praise the Lord!!  (I promise to write more about that experience later.)

i want to be a mommy

(I know nothing about Kellie Coffey except for this song.)

Many women in my family (including me) have PCOS, which is the leading cause of infertility in women.  1 in 10 women have it. 

The powerful emotion that this song evokes causes tears to stream down my face.  I long to have a family, to be a wife, to be a mom . . . this singer has tapped into my heart of hearts, but even she has more than I do.  She has a "husband to love." 

It would be so easy to be bitter and envious.

But you know . . . in reality--in the nitty-gritty-in-your-face-this-is-life reality--I would still choose to be single and childless if it means God is better glorified in my life.  Oh, make no mistake, being a wife and a mother is something I really, really want!!!  But glorifying God is something I want even more.  (Clarification: Not that he wouldn't be glorified if I became a wife and a mom, but only He who knows how he can best be glorified in my life.)

Tears continue to fall.

He is all-powerful--He can do what he wants when he wants. 

He is all-good--He is a gracious, loving Father who gives good gifts and keeps his promises.  He has met my greatest need of all and blessed me way beyond I deserve. 

What right do I have to be bitter or envious?  None whatsoever.

Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. (Psalm 73:25)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1:17)

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Two Additional Thoughts
First, you know what else? Even though her song is powerful and brings tears to my eyes each time I watch it, I am not sure I would be willing to die in order to become a wife and a mom.  Namely, the pragmatics of it just don't make sense.  If I died to become a wife or a mom, well then I can't really be a wife or a mom now can I?  I'd be dead. 

Second, after I first heard this song . . . I later thought about the One who HAS died for me.  . . it is humbling.  I am grateful for His tender loving mercy and everlasting grace.  How undeserving I am!  . . . yes, the tears are falling again.

They are HERE!!!

My cousins.  My cousins are HERE . . . in TAIWAN . . . with me right now!!

Well, ok, they are sleeping in my guest room.  "Operation Stay Awake" worked well!!

Wel, ok, there was one small glitch, they both crashed on our last train of the day.  But that's ok it was only a 10 minute ride.

They got here at 6:30 this morning, and then we (plus Ellen) were off for a breakfast of fried dumplings and new zany drinks (i.e starfruit juice with sour plum, banana milk, and passion fruit green tea). 

Then, we did a VERY Taiwanese thing--we got our hair washed.  When you get your hair washed in Taiwan, they bring the water to your head in a little bottle and shampoo is in their hands.  Tiffany and Rebecca (my cousins) didn't see the shampoo in the hand and thought that their water bottles were filled with "magic shampoo" that didn't need water to work. :)

Oh, yeah, and I walked out that salon with straight hair.  I don't have a pic of it on my camera though--so you'll have to wait.  Let me just tell you straight hair is LOT more WORK than curly hair.

We then went for tour of Ellen's school and then had a great family-style Chinese lunch.  YUMMY!!

Then after a not-so-quick trip to the bank, we rode the high speed rail back to Kaohsiung.

Then in the evening we went to an Bible Study in English--tonight was all about learning who Jesus is based on reading Scriptures about what he did while on Earth.  Let me just tell you there is nothing sweeter than watching people fall in love Jesus, proclaiming he is good, realizing he has power over the spirits.  Sweet.  Just sweet I tell ya.

It's been a LONG day . . . and tomorrow begins early too.  We are going to the east coast to help out with the end of a week long summer camp.  So . . . off to bed I go.

Did I mention that I am just SO EXCITED that my cousins are here?!?!?!

design styles

When I was in Dallas last summer, I got to stay with both my sister and a good friend from college.  I have always admired both of them for their decorating abilities. 

LeAnn always made our college dorm look cozy and inviting.  Sarah has always had cute rooms and decorations.  Whenever I visit either of them I have to guard my heart from coveting after what they have--both their decorations and their knack for decorating! 

Which is kinda funny since their styles couldn't be more different!!  LeAnn is more homespun cottage with a touch of romantic or country depending on which room you are being hugged by at the moment.  And, I love it.  Her home is so warm and inviting. 

Sarah, on the other hand, uses a more contemporary style with a touch of Tuscan from her beautiful wrought-iron accessories that adorn nearly every room in her new home.  And, I love it too.  Her home is also warm and inviting--just in a different way.

I love that as women, we get to add touches of beauty to the world around us.  I enjoy visiting Sarah and LeAnn's homes to see how they are creating beauty in their living spaces, to see how they are expressing parts of their personalities through decorating the areas around them.

Since I love both of their styles and then have my own style preferences too, it shouldn't be a surprise what the results were to this really fun quiz I took from hgtv.com.  According to their twelve questions, my design style is "eccentric with a touch of sweet and classy."

They say: "for you, it's all about the mix.  Any style is welcome in your world as long as it complements something else.  You're drawn to funky interiors and eye-catching color combinations (think red and blue, orange and turquoise, purple and gold).   You like contrasting patterns and unconventional architecture.  You enjoy furnishings that remind you of your travels mixed with modern pieces and offbeat antiques." I think they hit the nail on the head (except for maybe the color combo thing).

They also suggested for decorating inspiration, I should look at rooms in one of these three styles: eclectic, southwestern, and Mediterranean. Of these three, I like the eclectic best.  Some of the Mediterranean style rooms appeal to me; however, I personally don't care for the southwestern style in my own living space. 

I do, however, like the styles they call contemporary, transitional, and Asian (I wonder why?). Oh, and just for FYI, I really like this Asian style living room.

 [The top photo is my "pre-pink" bedroom; my mom made the curtains for me.  The bottom photo was taken in my living room two years ago (and not much has changed since then).   My mom and I sewed the pillows in Texas, and my students helped me stuff them and stitch them closed here in Taiwan.]

So, what is your decorating style?

Dragon Boat Races (video)

I found one of Sam's videos from last year and some of mine from 2004. 

So, below you can see and hear what Dragon Boat Races are like--at least here in Kaohsiung, Taiwan! :) 

Here is Sam's video:

Video from the beginning of a race:

Video from the end of another race:

If you want to pretend you are actually here watching, you will need to go find a steam room or some place where you can feel extra sticky from all the humidity. :)