After two meaningful months of traveling around the States seeing friends and family we have arrived back in Shiyan. Although living out of a suitcase and not having much responsibility grew old (Wendy counted 14 beds in which we slept) the time shared with our loved ones was such a blessing.
It had been about 5 weeks since we had seen the Pritchards and we were excited to see them again. It's remarkable how close you grow to a family when you share life together in such a close way. The boys have been counting the days until the 'Pritchport minis' reunite. The two families flew from different U.S. cities and into different Chinese cities but arrived back at the apartment within 10 minutes of each other. It was good to be back together.
All of us are excited to be home- and excited that this feels like home- and ready to begin the year. We've all commented about the relief we feel that each of us is thrilled to be back. What a sad and difficult burden it would be if for some reason we arrived with hesitancy or with less than maximum enthusiasm. On the contrary, we are all excited to be here and feel prepared to jump into all of our responsibilities and roles. We think the semester begins on Monday but we haven't received our schedules yet. :0) After a year in China we're used to spur the moment planning.
The contrast between arriving on campus this year and last year is stark. It took us nearly a whole semester last year to figure out the best way to do things- homeschool scheduling, teaching in the college, getting involved in students lives, etc. This year we'll be able to hit the ground running.
A Cool Story----As our family walked around campus yesterday morning for the first time we came upon one of the dear older ladies who sweep the streets and keep the campus clean. As you might remember, these incredibly hard workers are considered to be quite low in the invisible caste system of China. It took a while last year before they would even hear us or look at us when we said hello because they are so used to being invisible to others. Now a half dozen or so are our friends. The four kiddos have an especially close relationship with them. Anytime our children are in their vicinity they light up, wave, and say hello. The kiddos have spent many afternoons with brooms in their hands helping "their friends" clean the streets.
Anyway.....back to our walk yesterday. As we approached one of the cleaners with her head down sweeping, our boys called out "Ni hao!" (hello). She looked up, dropped her gloves and broom, and starting waving her hands around in the air with shock and excitement. I can't even begin to describe the genuine joy of her smile and glee of her laugh as she greeted us. Wendy went over and gave her a big bear hug and the boys did the same. It was a beautiful scene and showed us just how much of an impact our children, especially, have had here.
