Students















I'm getting to know the students better, a very interesting group who come mostly from rural backgrounds and are often the first in their families toattend university. They have high hopes, and in a nation that turns out graduates faster than it creates opportunities, they study hard. To get here at all, they had to be talented.

Students interested in English may attend "English Corner" an informal two hour gathering providing conversational practice. While students approach my office hours in terror, they enjoy the informal atmosphere of English corner. Again and again, I am asked to give private lessons, and I always decline. My time means more to me than any money I could earn. The students have taken English since elementary school and need conversational practice.So I make a deal with the students: they can join me on outings to the grocery store, bus rides to the bank, and excursions to the ticket office.Along the way, we speak English.

Above: Students at last week's English corner.

On your knees















In Asian societies, people often squat when performing tasks. Outsiders can
only approximate the behavior, especially if they have bad knees. In case
you're interested-- and you probably aren't-- I have grown proficient in
using Asian toilets. And somehow I manage to sit at low tables in coffee
shops and restaurants.

Above: The tables in this Korean restaurant were a real challenge.

An election in Migora.

The Chinese call our country 'Migora,' and say I'm 'Migoran.' Last night, I discussed the 'Migoran' elections with a Chinese friend. The Chinese view George Bush and his party are viewed as completely evil. She commented, "How wonderful-- you get rid of a bad government just by voting!"

Place of worship

The house church meets in my friend's apartment later today. I was asked to provide some baked goods. It had been months since I baked, and I got a little carried away. My fellow worshippers will have to take home some of the output.

I have mixed feelings about house churches. They are cozy, and in a country where public churches are subject to surveillance, they offer a sense of privacy. But house churches can become cliquish. There is the ever-present danger of the church's deteriorating into a social club.

Above: A portion of the baked goods I produced this morning

Below: The women from the house church assemble for tea and coffee at a shop downtown.

Do you have a problem with authority?

In my years as a social worker, I was continally told I had problems with authority. Joe's superiors in the church oftentold him the same thing. Of course I have a problem with authority! So does every American.

The university chancellor told me I was needed to teach a prep course for the TOEFL exam. This is a test of English profieciency for foreign students wishing to study in the North America, New Zealand, or Australia. I told the chancellor I'd love to, but I'm already teaching 14 hours. No problem, said the chancellor's assistant. There are two younger American teachers, recent graduates, and 4 hours could be transferred to them. I said, "Have you asked them? How much will you pay them for the extra work?"

The chancellor's assistant stared at me in disbelief. They did not expect to pay my young colleagues extra. But of course, the colleagues would say yes. "We will tell them the university has decided they must teach these courses. And they will, " said the chancellor's assistant.

Very tactfully, I explained this strategy would not be effective with Americans. The university would have to ask, not give orders. And since my colleagues would be doing extra work, they had to be paid for it. The assistant, a thoughtful young woman with whom I quite friendly, stared at me in disbelief. "How do Americans get anything done?" she inquired. "In society, there must be discipline, and people must do as they're told."

As I say, in America everyone has problems with authority. Thank God!

Above: Our university is located in the beautiful city of Weihai, whose harbor is shown here.

Government Security

At the moment, my Yahoo email is mysteriously blocked. My ETSU email and this gmail also go down periodically. Marie Cope sounded worried about me last time I talked to her. Not to worry-- occasionally Americans are deported, but nothing worse. Most deportees are evangelical missionaries who fail to respect government policies regulating their activities. I'm sure I have "observers" in my classes, and occasionally our Dean tells me he enjoyed my class when he listened invisibly at the door! To be fair, I've known American principals who did that. A number of my students are members of the Communist Party. The latter will ask me about my views. One party "boss"-- a student in my faculty seminar-- inquired if I knew what Marxism was! I replied, I told hime this was part of being educated, and he beamed. I try to be discrete about what I say in class. II can say almost anything if I preface a remark with, "This is obviously not a Chinese perspective, but in my country, we think..."

Foreign teachers are segregated in a special residence-- a very pleasant building with spacious apartments. We pass a desk when we enter the building, and I'm told personnel keep careful track of our movements. Anyone who visits us-- students or friends-- must complete several pieces of paperwork each time. This is done for "security." My Chinese friends don't see why the tracking of visitors upsets me. They are fascinated when I explain the American concept of privacy. I don't think they understand it unless they've spent time in the West.

Above: The symbol of Tiananmen Square.