Big dirty love of mine

Cold, dirty, God forsaken city. I use to subconcusly think that about this city. I couldn't wait to leave and I felt so purposless here. Simply surviving a week at a time untill that special day when I could say farewell to the smells, sights, and sounds of Harbin. I wondered why any person of their own free will would ever choose to stay in a place like this. But now I find each day that passes I love this big, cold, dirty, noisy city of 10 million more, and more. I don't know that I've reached the point of  wanting to "live and die here". That being the question my friend is always throwing around. But I know that my origonal plans of leaving in August of 2012 and never comeing back are certainly changing. I don't want to be a teacher though, I'm considering language school. I dream of being able to speak Chinese,  and to actually be able to live here and talk to the taxi drivers and sweet little children and the shop keepers, to ask the fruit venders how they're doing and just be myself. I'm also trying to think of a Chinese name I like, I was thinking firefly or bright or hope or something like that. What do you think?

Cold adventures!

 Yes! It is quite possible every post till spring will involve the word cold. Last weekend I got to spend my Saterday hanging out with a friend, exploring central street. We got Coffee from Harbins first ever starbucks, wherein I may have found Christmas present ideas. Later we played on the frozen river it was a beautiful day!

 

Cold Days of Joy

Doesn't this picture just look cold? It was! At any rate, it's true it has been cold and I haven't liked it much, and by cold I do mean cold, for example it is 5:30 pm and it feels like -6F outside. I'm seriously considering getting one of those down quilted cotes that goes down to my ancles. Well enough of weather reports and on to more important things. I got to skype my parent and my one brother and sister in law were there. (he has been in Egypt) It was lovely to see there faces and laugh with them again. Also we had our first thursday night worship meeting at the local YWAM base. It was amazing and so refreshing, unfortunatly it got cut off short by a neighbor who didn't like the noise. We prayed and sang over the city and it felt so much like, this is what I'm suppose to be doing. And the building itself was just so peacful, I feel I could go there every day to pray and worship and ya it just felt right there. Well on another topic, this wednesday I went again to my friends house for arts and crafts night, this week we made paper snowflakes for their window. I must say theirs is the prettiest window at night you can see their Christmas tree and the snowflakes, and a solar system the boys made and wax paper cross suncatchers. I have no work tomorrow and so a chinese friend has planned a day out doing fun stuff. In the mean time I've been working on my Chinese and also on Christmas presents for my adopted little neices and nephews. I'll show you those later, here's the song I'm learning now.

Wǒ néng gěi Ní shénme?

                 D

wǒ néng gěi Ní shénme ?

              D/B

Ní shì héděng pèi dé 

                   G

wǒ néng shuō shénme huà 

  D/F#-A/C#

gòu gǎnxiè Ní ?

                 D  

wǒ néng gěi Ní shénme ?

D    A        Bm

nǐ běn wèi zhìgāo shén 

       G           D

qiān bēi jiàngshì wèile rén 

D      A       Bm

wèi wǒ zuì shòu xíngfá 

       G        D

wèi wǒ zuì dīng shízìjià 

D     A      Bm

nǐ bǎo xiě wèi wǒ liú 

      G           D

shǐ wǒ nénggòu dé zìyóu 

D               Bm

nǐ wèi wǒ shè shēngmìng 

       G           A

shǐ wǒ nénggòu dé liánmǐn 

Bm7-F#7-G        D   

yēsū yēsū wǒde jūn wáng wǒde jiùzhǔ 

Bm7-F#7-G        D   

yēsū yēsū wǒde jūn wáng wǒde jiùzhǔ

Our Hearts are Warm

The cold dry air here is bitter on my face, but do I stay inside? NO! I've been busier then ever, scampering about the city all bundled up hats, sweaters, coats, gloves and lots of layers on every part of me. It's December 2ond and most people are counting down to Christmas, a time of happiness and good cheer, a time for eggnog, cookies, decorations, lights, good music and loving hours spent with family. This will be my first year to not be home with my family, and I will be spending my Christmas at work 7:30-7:00 just like any other busy Sunday. But somehow I seem to not be too upset, you see I think it puts into better focus that though I'm not celebrating at home, I am still be celebrating the same thing, the reason why I'm not at home. I'm celebrating the birth of Christ, the comeing of hope, the dawning of a light, and the redemption that was given. It is difficult to be here sometimes, this city feels so cold and empty and dirty, everyone is always busy, but no one ever seems to be really doing anything. It'll change though. 

Advent here in Harbin

I love kids, I love Christmas, I love crafts projects, decorating and what nots. Unfortunatly I don't have my own house, I'm not married and I have no children. But untill that wonderful time comes .... I have a friend here in Harbin with 5 children and an apartment that could use decorating. So I've started and Arts and Crafts wednesday night project with her kids. This week we made an advent calender. First I cut out these little boxes and the boys wrote a number on the outside of each. Then we put a tag with a name for Jesus and a scripture reference on it, these they can read each day and then hang on the tree, we also added candy for them and then tied them all up, it took a bit to decide where to hang them but I rather like what we finally came up with. They number 1-24 from the bottom up so each day they can simply cut them off.