Neens here writing from super hot and sweaty Tianjin, China! So how shall I begin this blog ... let ... us ... see ... shall I start with stories about spicy scorpion skewer sticks? Amazingly delicious meals for ridiculously low prices? How 'bout the beautiful wonder of the world that is The Great Wall? Psshh naaaah. You came here to read about what we've been up to while visiting the children at Shepherd's Field Children's Village!
So, Mom and I arrived in China Sunday afternoon and on Monday, we were off on our first excursion with the kids to the Beijing Wildlife Park. Now, if you can remember your excitement as a little boy or girl heading to the zoo, just picture the anticipation and excitement as these little ones stood outside a giant bus for the animal kingdom adventure that awaited them. And BOY, was it an adventure. A huge sweaty adventure! (It was like a million degrees Celsius!)
First we were paired off with one child. It was super cute because this one little boy Connor immediately picked my mom to pair up with, grabbing her hand and holding on for dear life. Eventually they paired him up with someone else and she got paired with a spunky kid named Eric who serenaded her a couple of times.
Anyhow, I got paired with this four-year-old boy named Jackson whose special need, according to Mary, is that he's "too strong" aka BW Syndrome. He was so funny and bossy. At the beginning of our journey, he hardly noticed me. I think I was more a means to an end. I was the Jiejie he had to stick to in order to get to the animals as well as a useful travel companion. We walked the entire zoo holding hands (a rule) and him ordering me to walk faster, walk slower, fix his bandaid, hold his water, give him his water, feed him, fix his bandaid again. Meanwhile, I was trying my darndest to film whatever I could -- one of my goals on this trip. If you see some of the clips I took, you'll see a steady shot for about five seconds and then a sudden jerk. That was him pulling me away and yelling "Let's go!" in Chinese. It was awesome!
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| Mom with Connor |
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| Mom with Eric. Doesn't he look like an old man with wise tales? |
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| Meet Jackson! |
Yes, he was a bossy one, but he was also smart and sweet. Every time I said the name of an animal in English he repeated it perfectly. Lion! Tiger! Bear! And every time we were on our way to a different part of the zoo he would yell "Yay!" (I didn't know Chinese kids yelled "yay," too. Yay!). At one point he even shot me an adorable smile. I don't know how that happened, but I caught in on camera. See?
After the park, we went to a nearby restaurant and had a serious feast! It was a 12-course DE-licious meal. Though I do admit, I was slightly anxious as I watched Jackson INHALE his food. But, he made it out alright. Yeah, he had sauce all over his mouth and hands, which I diligently wet-wiped like the OCD parent I have a feeling I'll be, but by the end of our meal, he was one satisfied-looking little boy. Yay!
Also readers, let me pause to give a special shout-out to Jose, who sponsored this sweaty adventure. From the cost of the giant bus to the admission at the park for 49 people (26 adults, 23 kids) to the feast -- it all came out to about 5000 RMB, about $780. Sure it's easy to think, "Hey, that's a pretty good deal!" But it's also a priceless memory I know these children will treasure for a lifetime and a simple act that demonstrates the love of God for these little ones. So thank you, Jose!
When we were finally on our way back to campus, I was out. Too bad this little rascal wasn't. I had to fight the heat exhaustion and food coma to try to get him to sit like a proper gentleman. He eventually did (I think? I was in and out) and we eventually pulled up to Shepherd's Field's gates at which point he yelled, "We're home, we're home!" in Chinese. I was happy to be home, too, but a little sad he was no longer obligated to hold my hand. So, once we were off the bus, I pulled him into a tight hug. And can you believe it? He hugged me back. Picture my heart breaking into a million pieces and then reforming and then breaking and then reforming and then repeating. Yeah, I don't know what that image is supposed to invoke besides surprised joy.
Alright, thank you for reading and supporting us! Be back later with some more tales from our trip!
Nina out!
P.s. Don't forget to call Tsuei and Ugz!
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