Seems like China's been on my mind a lot lately, and as I've been telling anyone who'll listen, I really miss my China-home. It's seriously been almost a year since I left Beijing. (Really, this time last year was the "home stretch.") Look back at my April 2006 blog and see for yourself--how is it even possible that a whole year has passed since I taught my kiddos Go Fish, (or 10 months since I) had a bite of gong bao at the White Restaurant, played Settlers with Sue Perdue, drank yogurt from a straw, hung with Janice at Be For Time, caught the 609 to Wan shou lu (that was the number, right?) for a night out with the guys--probably Pete's or Dai minority food, drank flower tea, practiced my Chinese with a taxi driver, bargained hard for an awesome Chinglish t-shirt, taught my students, breathed China air, walked Real China Street, or rode on Ling Long Lu on the way to worship at BICF? All those amazing memories--but for some I have to think to remember now--where was that exactly, when was that, who was I with, and how do you say that again? I'm really itching--wishing, hoping--to go back, but at the same time I feel called to my church and to be home... BUT, there's another home I miss--and that's China. Something about that place and the people make me sure I'll be back there someday, and honestly I hope it's someday soon, before everything I recognize in Beijing is torn down and built over (though honestly, that could be already). But really, whether I never see the Beijing I remember again, I'll still be back in the place I loved and love--that crazy place called China with all those Chinese people and all the craziness. And when I'm there again, no matter where or when I am, I'll see a Chinglish t-shirt and I'll smile and I'll talk to a Chinese person and make a friend and hopefully before too long I'll smell stinky dofu, and then (and only then?) I'll be back home.
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