Here on the Other Side

Chinese bicyclists do not wear helmets (see above). I have never understood why more of them don't get hurt . Maybe China is under some sort of enchantment. But does the protective magic apply for Chinese graduate students in the US? We do not want to find out.

Li Songshu, a beautiful young graduate student, will be attending seminar with the guest professors. She has been staying at our house until the dorm is ready. Songshu bought a bicycle at the Johnson City Walmart and has been humoring us by wearing a helmet.

An Impressive Position

All summer, I've waited for our Chinese teacher training projects to happen or to fall through. For weeks, they would do neither. Then, Nanjing fell through. With my abounding optimism, I waited for the NCUT (North China University of Technology) project to do the same. But it didn't. At this moment, the twelve participating professors are en route from Beijing.

I will be teaching in the project. I have drawn up schedules and itineraries. I have even been scavenging kitchen equipment for dormitory kitchens.

I think I deserve a new title for the service I am rendering to ETSU. The university abounds in program coordinators, deans, chairs and vice presidents. I prefer the designation CHIEF COOK AND BOTTLE WASH. The title is not a metaphor. I actually procure and wash pots (see above).

My apologies

I make every effort to write this blog in plain English, and not in the academic Gobbledeegook I sometimes use in my work. In a previous entry, I stated that our Chinese visitors were coming to ETSU "for a month of American pedagogical studies and language and cultural immersion."

I meant to say that our visitors are coming to learn more about America, its education system, and its language. We have no plans to teach them to speak Gobbledeegook.

Thanks to the ever-reliable Dennis Cope for calling this lapse to my attention.

China is coming to us

People asked why I wasn't blogging. In part, the problem was exhaustion. Three trips to China in one year take something out of a person. I've been resting a lot.

There was another reason. For months, I have been absorbed in an effort to bring twelve professors from China to the ETSU campus for a month of American pedagogical studies and language and cultural immersion. It took a lot of effort. Until I was sure it would happen, I did not want to post anything on the web. Many times, I thought it would fall through. But now, we have things in place. Two weeks from Saturday, we will be greeting our visitors.

Below: Dr. Knight meets with Vice President Li and Mr. Guo at North China University of Technology in Beijing. Picture was taken last March, when the project was first discussed.

Below: Students at North China University of Technology

New Desk

Today our friend Dennis Cope came over with BART--which is what he calls his Big Red Truck-- and together with Joe, they carted away the small formica-topped desk I was given at age 14. The thing is virtually indestructible, which is why I had it so long; but placing a computer on top of it was crowded. For years, I've been piling papers on the study floor and reading articles in bed. Finally, I have replaced it with something that fits how I work.

Joe and Dennis were so efficient that I didn't have time to take a picture before my old desk disappeared. The desk pictured below is similar.

Above: BART and Dennis. Below: the new desk and computer console.

Reentry continues

My last trip to China was over two months ago. I'd been told "reentry" went on a long time, but I thought it would have been over by now. Reentry has combined with the exhaustion generated by a full year of teaching, two thirds of it in China, and not much down time in between. I miss my friends in China, with whom I exchange frequent emails, but I'm very glad to be home. Every day, I take a walk and enjoy the mountains, or else swim at the Bassler Center. I poke my head in the office from time to time. When I go for a drive, I still notice our printed in English, not Chinese.

Ritual events such as the Cherokee Church Quilt show help enable reentry. Last week, I began writing an article based on research I did with David Liu comparing American and Chinese styles of teaching reading. It takes a very long time to reenter America.

Above: Ruth visited from Minnesota and helped keep the quilt show organized.

Below: Prize winning quilts.

Know thy neighbor

Like many of my fellow bloggers, I have been thinking a lot about the massacre at Virginia Tech. I think we all agree that there is no foolproof way to insure safety in a society as complex as ours. Often, when tragedy occurs, we think of the mechanical things we can do to protect ourselves:check points, security cameras, better locks. And sometimes these are appropriate. But I can't help thinking that real security comes from community.

The Bible says we should love our neighbors as ourselves. Can you love other people without knowing them? I'm a tolerant person, so I don't actually hate other people; but half the time, I don't know who my neighbors students and colleagues are. I'm busy, and I respect the privacy of others. I don't want to be a snoop. This is mutual. But taken too an extreme, this attitude leads to a breakdown of community.


Last weekend, when Joe was away, I attended worship at St. Mary's Catholic Church with my friend Charlotte. I found I knew some of the people there-- I just didn't know them in this context. I learned that one of my former students (above), now a first grade teacher, is in the Knights of Columbus. I had heard of this Catholic service organization, but had no idea what it did until I researched it online after the service. I ran into my colleague, Dr. Lee Daniels, seen below with his daughter.


Often, when we speak of building community, we think of creating it within our own circles of church, school, neighborhood, and workplace. But in a complex world, we have to reach beyond. \

2nd below: scene from St. Mary's Church.