I'm sitting here on my bed, my laptop propped up on my knees typing and I am thinking to myself, "I am moving to China!" Can you believe it? China!! The communist country! Actually, I don't see the communism as being a real problem. I see it affecting my life a little bit but not entirely. I'll just have to adjust the way I live... I assume. I think that how I got to wanting to go to China is the real question. There were a lot of to's in that sentence, haha. Anyhow, the how. Let me start from the beginning. I believe it was the second semester of 9th grade and I had just started a new school, Stone-Table. We had Latin class and I was really worried because I knew languages weren't my stronghold at the time but something happened! I could remember a majority of the words, verb endings, and sentence structures without even trying. It just clicked. I became the student that finished first and so fast when doing in class homework that I helped everyone else. And of course I did lots of things wrong but it didn't stop me. At that time, languages just seemed easier and I didn't think much of it. I didn't have the Christian mindset just yet. I didn't think that this "thing" was a gift from God. I look back and I remember what I was thinking. I was so happy that Latin was easy for me. My teacher, Mr. Thomas loved Latin and I loved being good at it and impressing him! I think the reaction when you get from getting 70's to 100's on a person's face is enough to drive you to learn more. I give Mr. Thomas that credit for introducing the possibility for loving languages. Latin ended that year and summer came. I was very disappointed that we weren't going to be doing Latin and that we were starting Spanish. I took Spanish in 6th grade but I forgot that I did. How sad is that? My teacher was a heavier woman with blonde hair and glasses. I remember Spanish class for maybe 5 minutes for an entire year and that's it. I remember a girl getting lead in her eye and going to the hospital and learning the word for movie theater in Spanish. However, none of these memories or the fact that I even took Spanish in 6th grade returned to me until I was in 11th grade. I don't know why but it didn't until then. I took Spanish in Elementary school but it was a lost cause. My teacher was named Mrs. Maria Sandavol, Latina, had a daughter who looked just like her, and signed my yearbook in Spanish in the 4th grade and I had no idea what it said at the time. I asked her but she didn't tell me. I read it recently and it simply said, "Espero que tengas un bueno verano." (I hope that you'll have a great summer). That might be wrong but I believe that's what she said... Anywho, I started 10th grade Spanish with a little frustration and not knowing any Spanish. I remember Mr. Thomas writing on the board, "Como se llamas?" and he wanted to know if the class knew what it meant. I raised my hand and said, "Come see my llamas." and I was serious. He thought I was joking and I decided it was better that he didn't know I was. I remember one of or the first word in Spanish I learned was "fecha" which means date. I had a notebook and had written all of the words down (15-20) and tried to memorize them all that night. I must give a lot of credit to my Spanish learning to working at Chick-fil-A. I tried talking to them in Spanish and as time progressed I grew to understand it more and more. I would talk with Victor, David, and a man from Peru. I forget his name now... Oh, I also talked to this nice Hispanic lady who spoke no English. I remember exactly what she looked like. She was short, had a little girls almost bowl haircut and has a gentle nature. I asked her, "Quieras aprender un palabara larga en Ingles?" (Do you want to learn a long word in English?) and she said yes. I said the not abbreviated form of DNA and she was stunned. She taught me what napkin was in Spanish and I was more than thrilled to learn more. I'd spend hours learning more and more Spanish everyday! I spent up to 5 hours a day on Saturday sometimes. I told Mr. Thomas that and he said, "I wish I could do that but I have a family." I laughed. Spanish class was about over and my Spanish had grown a lot. Mr. Thomas and I would speak in Spanish with each other and have tons of fun. I didn't know enough to say too much but we could talk and just speak in the simple present tense. Oh, how do I miss the old simple days of present tense. Just in case you didn't know.. Spanish has about 15-17 tenses based on how you look at it. As Spanish came to a close we had a midterm and I was loving every minute of it. This was the only exam I was excited to take and that is saying something if you know me! It has to do with the fact that I can understand someone that doesn't even speak my language and know what they are saying. It just gives me excited butterflies! Even to this very day. Just thinking about the feeling it gives me makes me happy. After a year and a half at Stone-Table, I left and went to BCA. I didn't want to leave Stone-Table and I was super upset. I got to BCA and had previously learned that there was a Spanish 1-4. I wanted to be in Spanish 3 but my dad wanted me to be in Spanish 2. I knew that the way I progressed was different from normal students in languages and I decided to enter Spanish 3 even though my wonderful Spanish teacher Mrs. Nielson didn't say it could be too hard but I could tell what she felt. I entered Spanish 3 and I don't believe I had any problems. We reviewed from Spanish 2 so I learned as much as I could! I went from Spanish 1 to Spanish 3 and I was really happy. I did struggle a little but with the tenses but I got used to it later. By the end of the year, Mrs. Nielson could talk in Spanish for most of the class and I'd barely notice she wasn't speaking in English. We read little books and did homework. I enjoyed it a lot! It was my favorite class. I think I was the only one who enjoyed it that much. About half way through the year I asked Mrs. Nielson if another language would be a good decision. I researched it online and found different views. So, that night I prayed about it and asked God what language I shold learn after Spanish and if I should even learn another. The next day, Olivia an I drove into the McKay's Mill Neighborhood (which I had never been to before),and stopped and ate at the Chinese place. I had remember something similar sounding to Thank-You in Chinese and said it to Olivia. The man at the cash register asked me if I spoke Chinese or wanted to learn it. I took his card or paper (I don't remember) and took this as a sign from God. THE VERY NEXT DAY!? I couldn't believe it. It was the quickest prayer answered from God I've ever experienced. I emailed my parents the info and started my first Chinese lesson which I believe was on Friday morning at 8am. I was not happy with getting up that early but I did it. I remember going to Mr. Li's house and feeling totally lost at first. I bet I had the worst kind of pronunciation and understanding of Chinese. He taught me about culture and language at the same time. I noticed that he said, "Thank God" and I wasn't sure if he was a Christian or not. I don't remember how I found out but he sure was a Christian. Can you believe it? God answered my prayer, gave me a Christian Chinese teacher, and now I'm moving to China because I feel like it is what God wants me to do. It might sounds crazy but Chinese isn't hard for me and I'm constantly asked if it is hard. For me, Chinese isn't. It is all memorizing. That's pretty much it. Mr. Li says I have a lot of potential and he believe that I'll have great Chinese skills some day. It makes me really happy to hear that! I give all the credit it God and I'm super excited to see what he puts in my way. Hopefully, in July (20-25th) of 2009 I will move to Chongqing, China and attend Sichuan International Studies University (SISU) and learning Chinese for 1-4 years. I will be living with some of Mr. Li's relatives (his cousin and her grandmother) in an apartment owned by Mr. Li's uncle. Moving to China isn't a way to move the farthest I can from my family out of rebellion, or just wanting something new. I am going to China because I feel like God, the creator of the universe whether you believe so or not is directly calling me to go there. God created China too and not just America. I think we forget that sometimes. Traveling and seeing God's majestic wonders is one thing but moving to a different place and seeing all that God has made and how it is so different just makes me ever so excited. I hope to see you in Chongqing, China visiting me and my Chinese family. If you read this entire passage, I applaud you! It was long! :)
