Cities Where I Have Lived or Worked

A few days ago I came across a post where the author wrote about the cities where she has lived. My cities are not as exotic or as many as hers, but they do tell a story.


Helsinki, Finland--I was born on the outskirts of the capital city of Finland.  Can you believe we did not have running water or indoor plumbing for the first ten years of my life?

Siuntio, Finland--I moved to this small town (well, maybe it was actually a village) to join Youth With A Mission (YWAM). This is really where my adventure started.

Randers, Denmark--I worked here for a few months to help prepare for the 25th celebration of YWAM.

Singapore, Singapore--I was part of YWAM school here. This is also where I began my Chinese lessons, had my first taste of Roti and other Asian cuisine along with learning how to use chopsticks.

Taipei, Taiwan--My journey of learning Chinese continued in Taiwan. I spent four years here. Met my future husband here and made many lifelong friends.

Kona, Hawaii--This was a short time, but very meaningful. My husband and I attended a YWAM Discipleship Training School here. We enjoyed meeting people from all around the world (even met the King of Tonga).

Chengdu, China--Both of us ended up teaching in Chengdu for a short time. Unfortunately my husband became sick and we had to return to the states.

Frankenmuth, Michigan--This was my first place to live in the US after returning from Asia. Talk about a culture shock! I came from a city of 5 million to basically a small town. I remember asking people what is there to do in Frankenmuth (when you are not a tourist). Friends would reply to say, "There is a mall in Saginaw or Flint." Wow! Different world definitely.

Ann Arbor, Michigan--This is where I attended University and where I have worked for last 11 years. It is not Europe or Asia, but for a relatively small city it has the feel of being an international city. Here I have my favorite Syrian and Chinese restaurants. There is the small Korean diner that serves the best Bi-Bim-Bop (conveniently close to my favorite gym). Some of you might even have heard about our famous sport teams.....

What are some of the places where you have lived or traveled?

What tools do you treasure?

Smooth and round

perfect expression 

every time

gliding effortlessly 

Sharp and precise

erasable

non-permeable

needing a guiding hand

Just right thickness

edges are clear

easily readable

colorful

fine

blue

felt tip

0.3

purple

mechanical

ink

0.5

green

marker

bold

pink

pencil

medium

red

pen

I am so Proud of You

Parent-Teacher conferences can be very unpredictable. I am never sure which parents will actually show. Sometimes the parents do not show up at all; older siblings will come with their younger brothers and sisters.

I love meeting with parents, especially my new parents. But what really makes my conference hours special is when I get to see students that have graduated years ago now accompanying their younger siblings or acting as translators for parents or other relatives. I get to hear their stories!! Last night I heard two stories.

Sammy (name changed) came with his younger sister and brother. I had not seen Sammy in about three or four years. I heard how he is pre-med and getting ready to apply to medical school. I heard about him taking his second grade brother to the library, but not really knowing what level books to get for his little brother. After talking with his brother's teacher, he now understood what books are his level.
I also heard about his older brother who is getting married in a couple of months. I was smiling for a long time after Sammy and his siblings left!

Later in the evening I went to meet a 5th grade student's parents and had another wonderful surprise when Moe was the translator for his mother! Mow graduated last year after almost not making it! Here he was with great concern asking about his sister's NWEA scores and asking what could be done so that she would do better at school. All of this is even sweeter when you realize that Moe is taking great care of his sister who has a potentially terminal illness. He is such a loving older brother. He was also telling how he is doing so much better in college. He reminded me that his GPA when he graduated high school was 1.9, but after one semester of college, his GPA was 3.3!! I am so proud of him!

These are the stories that make it so worthwhile to walk extra steps, spend more time talking with them during my lunch or prep time, or stay after school to make sure that they are ready for the next day or for the next week! I am so proud of Sammy and Moe!

Does being brave mean I have faith?

                                   


Today I am writing my Slice of Life Story Challenge and linking up with Holly's Spiritual Journey Thursday. At Holly's blog we are writing about the different One Little Words that each of us have chosen. Today we are writing about Teresa Winterstein's OLW: BRAVE

                    

Is having faith the same thing as being brave?

When I was younger, I traveled to so many places. Some of them were difficult to get to. I was not afraid. I went with the idea that God is with me. He will walk before me, after me and next to me. I knew that if things got really difficult, He would even carry me. I had faith. I had faith in God's promises.

Then I moved to a country where life was much easier. I did not have boil my drinking water any more. Ice was once again safe. I could understand the language. Getting from place to place was easier and much more comfortable. Sometimes it felt like I did not need as much faith. I did not need to be brave as I was not going to an unknown place; I was just driving to work. The same way I go every morning.

As I have been pondering my on One Little Word (discover), being brave and having faith are also topics which have surfaced. Should I be more brave? How would I do that? Trying new things? Is that being brave? Taking a trip to a previously unvisited place. Is that being brave? Looking for a deeper relationship with God. Is that being brave?

What about you? Are you brave?

Writing Ideas--how do I collect them?

March Writing Challenge 2015

I like observing people. For example, if I am sitting at a meeting or just having a cup of coffee at the local cafe, I will often imagine what the people around me are thinking. I wonder what their life is like? Ones that are so intensely typing on their computer? Are they working in their next bestseller? Or what about the faculty members who cannot leave their phones in their pocket even for a few minutes? Are you really getting a text every few seconds? What could be the story there?

What about the person by the window who is quietly sipping a cup of coffee? What has happened in her life? What about the couple who come to the coffee shop with their devices? They each seem lost in their own typing. I don't think they even talk to each other after deciding what to order. What is their story?

What about the student that comes to school on a Monday morning and says, "I couldn't do my homework. My parents were fighting. They almost got divorced. I got really cared." How do I respond to her story? Do I know even a fraction of the stories that my students bring with them to school every day? Am I curious enough to want to find out?

I have realized that my ideas really come from practicing writing. Sometimes I start with an idea, but an other idea comes along and just takes over. I have so many draft posts where I have collected ideas. Ideas from other blogs that I have read, what I saw on twitter, pictures or graphics that have caught my eye, or conversations that I heard (or overheard). There are ideas on my phone. Pictures on my phone. Recorded messages that remind me to check something when the time is appropriate. There are thought that I want to turn into writing ideas. There are dreams that I could write about (be brave you know).

There are quotes--so many of them--about writing. I collect them. They encourage me. Inspire me. Push me forward. Challenge me. Keep me going when I want to give up. Quotes can bring out the creative side of me. They give color to my ideas.

At times, format that I am secure and feel comfortable with, is the one that I go with. I can do that. I can do that. But what about trying something new? That is scary! What if I get the format of the poem wrong? What if my lines do not rhyme like the expert bloggers who write poems all the time?  What about my words? What if they are not as descriptive as the blogger's whose post is right before or after me? 

I think I need to be brave (more about that on Thursday)! I can try something new! What will it be? A poem, a list or a story? I don;t know yet, but I will promise to try something new this month. Isn't that what exercising my writing muscles is all about? Stretching to reach a little higher.....

17 Reasons I Write

17 Reasons on the 17th day of the writing challenge:

1. Writing relaxes me.
2. I write to learn
3. Writing opens new worlds for me.
4. I write because there is both power and truth in words
5. Writing connects me to other writers.
6. I write to see the shapes that words take on paper or on screen
7. Writing gives voice to the words that I am pondering about
8. I write my frustrations in order to not store them inside
9. Writing translates everyday happenings into stories
10. I observe, therefore I write
11. Writing creates lasting memories
12. I write to ask questions and debate answers 
13. Writing helps me to make sense of the world around me
14. I write because words keep me company on a dark morning or on a bright evening
15. Writing makes me feel part of something much bigger and more important
16. I write because I want to practice the craft that I teach
17. Writing is what you do when you love it!

After reading Kimberley's post this morning, I just have to add two more items to my list. You can read Kimberley's post here.

18. I feel alive when I write

19. Writing gives me purpose

Then I read Michelle's post, and I felt that I needed to add one more item to my list. You can read Michelle's post here.

20. Writing is thinking

Package for me??

It was an ordinary busy day at work. I was in the middle of double checking testing booklets to make sure that I knew exactly who had been absent that morning and would need to catch up in the next few days.
Speaking   ü
Listening   ü
Reading    ü
Writing    Is that my phone ringing?

Hello?
"Jaana, you have a package here in the office."
Oh, thank you.

Right now I am wondering what package that could be. Am I getting a free book? A sample of something? 

I got back to my work and almost forgot about stopping in at the office.  I am so glad that I needed to talk to someone in the office as I then remembered to pick up my package as well!

Look at what was in my package!!!

Inside the package was this note:

Thank you for giving me the confidence to teach teachers! I will be teaching a class at S. this spring and your belief in me helped encourage me that I had something to share. Thank you - S.S.

Needless to say, I was blown away! I was so excited for my friend! She will be an amazing teacher of future teachers! Can't wait to hear what other great opportunities will open up for her in the future.

I had just one question, how could the office not tell me that the package had flowers????