All Things New

The pencil hits the page and I'm gone.

Leaf green jagged edges cut out of overcast skies trapped in a medicine bottle with no pills yet full of herbs spread into crisscrossed leaf green veins of life.

That girl with mindful beauty struts across the way, giving a look with her own heart that makes mine stop for a moment as ecstasy floods my being, but is just as instantly swept away by her wind striding past.

Placed in a new land with smells and sounds abounding in fresh thrills and obscurity while I carry my scent from lands past but clench a new purpose and adventure of mystical castles and incinerating lasers in the tentacles of overgrown mutated animal-creatures leading me into the next rite of passage.

I lift my pencil and take a breath.

I look up. I carry my notebook with me.

Today is filled with all things new.

A speck of dust in 太魯閣國家公園

A speck of dust flying by in a sudden gust of wind.

A single small pebble in a coast full of stones.

A drop of water in a small dried up waterfall.

Mountains shooting up into the sky as if the earth is being unformed.

Ravines lined with steep cliffs waiting to drop landslides of mountain sized stones.

Water bursting through cracks from immense pressure in a tunnel hidden deep within an adventurous path.

Venturing into 太魯閣國家公園 brings an immediate comparison so stark it's felt in your bones. As though a single piece of dust, or pebble, or drop of water, one must feel insignificant compared to massive mountains, breathtaking cliffs, and the natural phenomenon of a tunnel waterfall.

Through such a reflection, can you feel this scripture speak deep down in your core?

Matthew 6:30 "If God so clothes the grass of the field, which is here today but cast into the oven tomorrow, how much more shall he clothe you, oh you of little faith?"

God cares for every piece of dust, and pebble, and drop of water in 太魯閣國家公園, but even more amazing still, he cares for us so much more.

Being in the presence of this indescribable, ever-changing, glory evoking masterpiece throws you into reflection and praise, and, hopefully, ultimately leaves you with one conclusion: God loves you.

It's that simple.

Taroko National Park 太魯閣國家公園

What's so Good about Taiwan: Hot Spring Fish 溫泉魚

There is a phenomenon in 礁溪 (JiaoXi), Taiwan that I never heard of before. This may be something as common as money, but for me it's brand new.

What's not new is that there are hot springs in 礁溪. What is new is there are hot spring fish that give you a massage.

That's right, I said fish that give you a massage.

It's not a very nice massage; it's more ticklish than comfortable and feels like someone is pinching you, but thousands of people are sold on it as these hot springs are filled and cost about 70-80 NT just to put your feet in the water.

To put it in comparison, a normal hot spring with hot water, cold water, and showers costs the same price. So why pay so much for a weird massage? Because they're fish biting your feet! How cool is that?

Now these fish are not shy, they start biting you the second you put your feet in the water, and there are even different scales of them (obviously the larger the fish, the stronger the bite).

Unfortunately the hot spring fish are only available to bite your feet, but I'm sure some people have dived right in there to see what it feels like for a full fish-biting body massage.

Are you bold enough to try it?

Or maybe you already have. Let me know if you liked it.

What's so Good about Taiwan: Tourism

I finally had the chance to visit 花蓮 (HuaLian), Taiwan, which, of course, brought about the typical traveling experiences:

Limited personal time, loss of the normal routine, sleeping with strangers, trying new foods and visiting new places.

Most of the places you travel may feel almost the same to some degree because there are always people from around the world visiting there too.

I got lost... a lot... so I had to try to find some locals to help me with directions.

After asking three random strangers who I thought might be locals, I was stuck. None of them were from 花蓮 and I kept thinking, 'Is anyone even from here?'

Finally I started asking if they knew where the train station was, whether they were local or not. I asked three people while on my way just to make sure I was going the right direction, but was a little nervous because they all gave me very different time schedules.

The first person said it wasn't walkable and I needed to call a taxi.

The second person said it was about a 10-15 minute walk if I was willing to make the trip.

The third person (at this point I was 15 minutes away) said it was way over half an hour and thought the idea of walking there was crazy.

Later I made it back to the hostel and asked how far away the night market was.

The girl at the desk said under a half hour for sure and I gave a look that simply said, 'too far for me', to which she responded, "Are you an American? All the other Americans hear under half an hour and think it's no problem."

I said I'm becoming Taiwanese, but actually I was way too tired to make another long trip that day.

There's one thing I noticed that's different from the US and Taiwan during the trip.

It's when you're lost and you reach into your pocket to pull out your map, stop, unfold it, and reconfigure your directions.

If you do this almost anywhere in Taiwan, people will go out of their way to help you (this maybe because I'm a westerner though).

If you do this in the wrong part of the US however, people will know you're a tourist and possibly try to take advantage of you or even rob you.

Point being: I didn't use my map that much, just in case.

Let me know about your traveling experiences. Was it different in different countries?

Snapshot Preview: Perfect Skill

It was the same alley that the police decided to come down. As soon as they spotted Jorge, they blazed their sirens and sped towards him. Jorge backtracked and turned on the street by the hotel. He could hear the sirens in front of him getting closer too. There was no way to outrun them, so he decided to go down.

Removing the sewer grate closest to him and revealing the toxic smell beneath him, he climbed into the sewers as the police screeched to a halting stop and ran after him on foot. The sewage in Mexico City is a deadly combination of human waste, garbage, and hazardous chemicals from hospitals and factories. The large concrete tunnels are about seven meters tall.

Jorge jumped to the bottom, submerging his body in the toxic sewage that the rainy season caused to overflow. The police wouldn’t be following him in, but they knew where he was. They could block the major passageways that he would most likely choose to escape from, and hope that the dangers of the sewers would do the rest.

Jorge risked his life to escape from the corrupt police. Paddling through the thick sewage, chunky with debris, he hoped he wouldn’t hit a dead body before he found some dry ground. The smell was incomprehendable. It burned through his nose and into his lungs, like breathing in the stench of death. The misery of the sewage and the audacity of the police to open fire, badly wounding Father Juan, continued to heat up the fire that was ignited within him. To fire on a Catholic priest was despicable. The only thing he had done was to conspire with a revolutionary, nothing requiring death in Jorge’s eyes.

The farther he went, the more the fire grew, until his fears were realized, a body had hit him. As he moved it quickly out of the way, the cadaver rotated, revealing the haunting face of a little girl for a split second before it was sucked beneath the murky substance that swallowed up the dead. The image struck to his core. The injustice was too much. He couldn’t foresee how a little girl could end up with a fate like this. It was too late for this city, if they wanted to play rough, Jorge could match them step for step.

The fire was full-fledged, scorching his soul. It overtook all his emotions. It was powerful…intoxicating…it felt so good to him. It was an impassioned force that freed him from all compassion. He was no longer playing by his own rules. He turned back at once, determined to exit by the way he came in, which would be the least likely place they’d expect. He passed the little girl again, saying a blessing over her in his mind, even as he retained his hatred towards religion.

*      *      *

Gabriella continued to pray into the night. “…Oh, Lord, that you would bring justice. Purge the corruption from this city. Bring your kingdom here. Unleash your judgment on those who commit these lewd acts and on those who corrupt the innocent and upright. Let their dark hearts feel the full fury of your wrath that they may see their evil and feel remorse for their actions.

“Restore their fortunes again. Give them a new heart that beats to the song of justice and peace. Let them reflect your heart, and be the leaders you require them to be. Accomplish your plans in this city. Crush the wills of all who would oppose you and bring harm upon this city. Your will be done. I know you still love this city, Lord. Make it worthy of your glory.”

Read the whole novel herePerfect Skill

What's so Good about Taiwan: Children Edition

I walked into the classroom one time and my student yelled out, "Everybody Dance Now!" and instantly started busting a move right there on the classroom floor.

Now whenever I yell out the song he turns his head a little crooked and gives me a big smile.

The children here really care for each other. They want to do the right thing but they also want to have fun. As much as I remind them to do the right thing, they are reminding me to have fun.

The longer I teach, the sillier I become, because you can be super crazy and kooky in front of kids and they won't judge you, or they think, 'that's just foreigners for you'.

Some of my younger kids are even sweeter. One of the boys has been with me for a while and always likes to give me a hug and then smell me. I'm not sure if he thinks I smell good or bad, but my kids even like to smell my feet!

Another girl comes really close to me and says she has to tell me something. She gets right up to my ear and then puts her finger to her mouth and says, "Shhhhhhhhh!". She also likes to pretend she's the teacher and I'm the student. She puts her favorite stuffed animal pig 'George' behind her back and asks me, "left or right?" I usually guess wrong.

They are adorable and cute, but they know I love them, and because of this they feel comfortable to be open and goofy along with me. I try to get them to think beyond what a normal Taiwanese student can think and value their creativity.

And when Johnny steals Cindy's pencil and she starts crying because of it, I remember we take life too seriously a lot of times and we need to put the sunglasses on and just play it cool.

Feel free to share your own children stories!

What's so Good about Taiwan? Taiwanese English Edition

Taiwanese people love showing off their English.

I was at a 鐵板燒 restaurant eating and the cook was making my curry shrimp. Suddenly another customer started asking the cook about the dish and what it was like. Then he said, "好像那個咖哩蝦很delicious."

I smiled at the attempt to speak an English word in the presence of a westerner.

A minute later, the cook bent over and asked me, "Delicious是甚麼意思?" (What does delicious mean?)

I answered simply, "好吃".

I wonder what the man felt as he undoubtedly overheard the cook asking me that his English meant.

Maybe he was pretty proud that he used one of his vocab words, or maybe he felt a little silly speaking English to a Taiwanese man without being understood.

Anyway, Taiwanese people are great because they love to open up to westerners and show us how interesting, outgoing, and open-minded they are.

However, change the situation and put a man from Vietnam in my seat and I can tell you there would be no Vietnamese being spoken. It's nice to have others put interest in your culture, but it's a little unfair for them to not care about other Asian countries.

Next time you want to speak some English to a westerner, switch it up and use Spanish! Not only will it impress them, but you'll also get to see how well their Spanish is!

Adios!

Yes

You are enough

You are everything

You create and bring life



I love you

I need you

I long for you



Be my life

Be my breathe

Be my source



Hearing the voice of God

Let me say Yes



Though broken and battered

Let me say Yes



What is a missionary?

Someone who says yes to Jesus everyday


A Breath of Life

A long windy alley road.

An orchard on the right with patches of vegetables along the road.

There are small interconnected brick houses on the left.

A temple and more houses are coming up on the right.

A door is open on the left with an old man inside.

He's laying out on a bed next to a shrine.

He's too sick and tired and hopeless to get up.

A simple man comes from the opposite direction to enter the house.

He opens his mouth, "I've come a long, long way to see you. I've been sent to pray for this house."

He points up as he speaks and goes to the other room to get something.

He comes back with a glass of water.

"This is your water. It's an ordinary glass of water, but when you drink this water on this day, your house will be changed. Don't expect it on any other day. It is only for this day. Now, drink it, and take your blessing."

The old man flinches.

His head lifts from his mat.

The clouds form together overhead.

The sky darkens.

The smell of dirt and plants seeps into the room.

You can hear the sound of water splashing against the sides of the glass.

The simple man puts the glass to the old man's mouth.

He takes a small sip.

Wind sweeps through the room, blowing papers and dust into a whirlwind.

Cockroaches scatter in every direction.

A crack of thunder is heard outside.

The flowers in the orchard start to lose consistency.

The wrinkles on the old man's face disappear.

His muscles are regained and his strength is renewed.

He get up with his robe now tight against his body.

He walks to the doorway and smells anew every scent in the air.

The simple man speaks. "It's your second chance. Now finish what you need to do."

The old man takes one step out of the house.

"Go." The simple man orders.

The old man grabs the upper door frame and throws himself to the roof of the house, running across the interconnected houses.

Clouds filled with thunder and flashes of light follow him.

He somersaults out into the blue sky.

The world is set out before him.

Today, he can set things right because there is still life.

A breath given by God.

What's so Good about Taiwan? Night Market Edition

One time I asked my students if they ever went to a night market before.

They all raised their hands high. No surprise as Taiwan's night markets are the safe night life that brings an economic heart beat when everything else closes down.

But then I told my students there aren't any night markets where I come from. They gasped with open mouths as if I said I was really a female. I think I even saw some drool come out of one of their mouths.

In their big imaginations, they never dreamt of growing up in a place that you couldn't enjoy the delicious foods, carnival like games, and shopping experience with hundreds or thousands of people every night of the week.

So what would we do with no night markets?

Sit at home and go to bed. It's really that simple. If you ever went abroad to an average town, you know you're not missing out on anything.

But Taiwan has night market access points scattered throughout the country! It's as if the Taiwanese people think night markets are as necessary as hospitals and there has to be one in every city.

The best things about night markets is you can try several different foods all along the same street and not have to eat one big meal until you're sick of it. This way, you don't eat enough of the food to get tired of it and you can eat so much more.

It's like a party happening every night of the week and everyone's invited: the more the merrier. I bet it would be the perfect place for a wedding reception. Come to the night market tonight to celebrate my wedding; the food is ready, there's more than enough, and you can find anything you could ever want.

That's my experience, but let me know: What's your favorite part of the night market?

A Pad of Paper and A Pencil

It's my voice when I have no words.

It's my ears to hear from the Lord.

It's my dreams finding birth.

It's a story, a poem, an idea...

Every stroke and every letter brings life, creating a symphony of music that is consumed through eyes or told through mouths.

It can cry for help, unite through truth, and laugh in joy.

It's just a simple pad of paper and a pencil, but it unlocks worlds and futures and beauty in the imagination that is ushered in with every stroke and every letter.

It's dream becoming reality; the unthinkable becoming story.

It's my heartbeat:
Who I am,
And who I want you to see,
If you ever think of me.

Culture

What is culture?

Expectations

The way you think in relation to the bare bones of life; like eating, drinking, sleeping, transportation, marriage, family, and work.

These things will happen everywhere, but it's not how they look that makes it culture.

It's what your brain expects it to look like that makes it culture. In other words, it's what you've been acclimated or used to.

Moving a large distance away will inevitably bring you in contact with different cultures in the same way as meeting someone from a foreign land does.

You can go through the motions in another culture but it doesn't become yours until it's accepted in the mind and expected in everyday life.

When your expectations don't match someone else's, you may have conflict. When your expectations don't match anyone else's, you may have culture shock.

One of two things may happen in culture shock. (or even a mix of the two)

One: everything in the world around you feels wrong so you get angry and frustrated and judgmental.

Two: only your own world and thinking feels wrong and you have an identity and cultural crisis, leaving you lost, helpless, and insecure.

After time you will adapt, maybe accepting others for their own cultural differences, or becoming a part of a new culture and allowing your mind to re-adapt to new cultural expectations.

In the latter it may seem impossible to go back to old expectations. But, you haven't added another culture to yourself. Instead, you have reformed your current culture into something new.

We all have these blended cultures because we're all individually unique and give pieces of ourselves to each other.

It is the response to culture shock that will lead you in these two directions, but simply accepting a culture will not bring you into unity with it. It is becoming the culture that aligns your expectations and brings peace.

In the end we contain pieces of countless individuals and cultures and lands and families because we chose to open ourselves up and embrace something foreign, different, and scary.

Are you becoming new, culturally?

Do you expect it?

Culture: expectations in every aspect of life.