overdue update

Summer is in full swing, and the weather is not letting us forget it! As I'm sitting here at 6:45AM sweating buckets, I have no plans on leaving the position I hold in front of my fan blasting me, until I absolutely have to.
And apparently it's not just in the tropics of Vietnam--I've heard many reports of the over-dramatic heat hitting my friends in LA and yes, even Seattle. Craziness! I hope you're all finding ways to stay cool and find energy. My favorite answer: a nice fruit slushy!!
Because of the heat, the city turns the power off for different neighborhoods for certain amounts of time every once in awhile, in order to save energy and prevent uncontrollable blackouts. This has come at seemingly horrible moments at home--in the middle of lesson planning or getting ready for work; until we get to work and realize the power is off there too! Last week this happened about 4 times, once during class. I recently changed classrooms, so I am now in a middle room with no windows...my students went a little crazy in the pitch black. Luckily another teacher down the hall came to my class with his laptop open as a flashlight, to guide me and my class to join him in his room with a window. It was hot, smelly, chaotic, and tiring.
After about 45 minutes I think, the power came back on, so teaching my second class was just fine. What an experience though! Talk about change of plans...
This weekend I went with some friends to get massages again. The place we go to is a project to benefit the blind. The masseuses (is that the right word?) are mostly all blind, and very good at what they do. Both times I've gone I've had the same woman, and she's great! It's interesting though, since we don't speak the same language, and she can't see so I can't even use gestures or facial expressions to communicate with her. But she can hear my tone and hear when I laugh, so we had some good "conversations" through these means. And of course I could see her smile and hear her tone as well. I am really learning a lot about communication in all forms and senses of the word.
Since the other teachers have been here I've been trying to reestablish a routine that adapts to my new home, neighborhood, mentality, schedule and community. Kaitlyn has started joining my on my morning walks, which is nice. That, like so many other things, was a time I have been used to having just to myself, so it was really hard at first to share it. But we set up a system that the night before, we decide if it's going to be a talking walk or a solitaire walk. If it's a solitaire walk, we'll go together, but not talk; listen to our own music or whatnot. It's been really great, and again another learning experience for me in change and adaptability.
Sunday evening the pastor at DIF (Danang International Fellowship) and his wife invited the 20-30-somethings out to eat elephant fish. So we all met at their house and then rode our bicycles to a patio restaurant to eat wonderful fish and get to know one-another. After, some of us went out to Karaoke, something I've now done twice since I've been here. It is so much fun! My mom likes to do it at home with her friends from work, and she'd tell me how they had private rooms and it was really quaint and fun. It always sounded a little uncomfortable to me, because in my head it's like on the movies when there's a stage at a bar or something, and all eyes are on you. Actually not just the movies, also in reality like at O'Houlies! =)
But here, it's so common, there are multiple Karaoke places on every street, and they are just small rooms for a group of people to hang out in. No pressure, just lots and lots of fun! A great experience indeed.
I'm getting to know my new housemates more and more each day, and it is wonderful. Even Kaitlyn and Ashleigh, who I knew well before I came here, I am getting to know them more and more as we all spend more time together and in a different capacity than ever before. I am truly excited to see what lies ahead for us.

and so it begins

Well, this past week has been a whirl wind for sure. With the arrival of Kaitlyn, Ashleigh, Christa, Robin and Andrew, along with moving into the new house, I feel like my time in Vietnam has just begun as well! I honestly didn't realize what sort of adjustments I would go through just in moving to a new neighborhood, and not living on my own anymore. Having people around all the time is a major change for sure. It is definitely nice having them all here, and also exciting to get to experience all of their "firsts" with them as I did just a few months ago. Each one of my new roommates are amazing and wonderful and I am so excited to know them each better as the days roll on.

Losing the independence I grew comfortable in has been hard in the past couple days. Of course I can spend time alone when I want to, or go somewhere alone if I chose. But I don't have to anymore. I've had a hard time even piecing this together for my own understanding, so forgive me if this sounds ku ku. I just am going through a transition from the way I've been living for over 3 months, to another way of living. It's not bad, it's just what it is: a transition. It's not easy and smooth as I anticipated it would be. But my roommates are all understanding and aware of this, and I love them dearly. This transition marks the next chapter of this story, and it is one I am eager to unfold.

Let me tell you about life in this new house!
There are 7 bedrooms, a roof, a kitchen, and a large entry-way space where we keep out bicycles and refridgerator. The past 2 nights we've had some major rain along with thunder and lightening. The rain flooded our roof as well as the bedroom (Robin's) that is on the roof! Needless to say, there was a mini-stream making its way down the stairs. Quite the adventure, but everything is fine, hot and dry this morning!

It is common in Vietnam for families to have a helper, to clean and cook in their home. The school has hired a wonderful woman to help us. She is a great cook and a very sweet lady. She will bring her 10 month old son with her on Saturday for us to meet!

That's one thing about the people here--everyone is family. Welcoming, loving, accepting, caring, sharing, and interested in the well-being of others. I feel like Ubuntu is going to materialize in so many more ways than I could've anticipated or dreamed of, and I'm praying for an open heart to be able to learn and learn and learn what I can of love and sharing and community and self-sacrifice. I am filled with excitement and a loving fullness when I think about the character and personalities of each person I am going to be living with for the next year or two. I know I have a lot to learn, and I am filled with the hope and possibilities that God will reveal to each of us through one another.

"We affirm our humanity when we acknowledge that of others."
What does it mean to acknowledge the humanity of another? Is it possible to think that one person has more or less humanity than another? I can't think of a circumstance that that could be true. Thinking like that puts many things into perspective: in my daily life, how do I chose who I will or will not make eye-contact with, will or will-not smile at, will or will-not talk to, will-or will-not help carry a large basket from one side of the road or another....? Do I compare one person's humanity to another? or to my own? Why am I more willing to help or become involved in the lives of some people and not others?
Am I alone in this? Maybe this is something that I am falling victim to because I am so wrapped up in my life and situation. I find that this is often truest in my life in regards to the people I see the most regularly, the people I am "closest" to: family, friends, roommates. It's easier to connect with the people you don't have to answer to at the end of the day. The people I'm "closest" to should be the first place I open myself up to for sharing, caring and loving. If I can't do it at home, it makes my efforts in the community a joke.
Going back to my transition to living in a community now, I feel that this is a major issue I'm dealing with. Now that I have people to come home to and do life with, I think I am filled with a fear of being known and completely vulnerable. I will be held accountable for maintaining relationships and living out what I talk about. It's a great fear in that it will challenge be to become the person I feel I am being molded into, but also in that it will be uncomfortable, hard and trying.
and I can't wait.

ubuntu ubuntu ubuntu ubuntu

"Ubuntu is the essence of being a person. It means that we are people through other people. We cannot be fully human alone. We are made for interdependence, we are made for family. When you have ubuntu, you embrace others. You are generous, compassionate. If the world had more ubuntu, we would not have war. We would not have this huge gap between the rich and the poor. You are rich so that you can make up what is lacking for others. You are powerful so that you can help the weak, just as a mother or father helps their children. This is God's dream."
-Desmond Tutu

Another new beginning

The other APU teachers have arrived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am so so happy they are here, FINALLY! =)
It is absolutely amazing to see them and hug them and chat and laugh. Marvelous I tell you. My heart is smiling very very big right now.
For the four days before their arrival I was down with the flu, and that was no fun. Lots of sleeping, coughing, fever, blah blah blah. I'm slowly getting better, but not quite there. I took two days off from teaching but now am back into classes, which are moving along quickly it seems.
When the new teachers arrived we moved into a new house! It's beautiful, and we're making it our home, little by little. Pictures to come soon.
It's only been one full day since everyone has been here, but I've already gotten to share parts of my life here with them--having coffee from my favorite coffee lady, riding bikes to the market, and a few of them have even sat in on some of my classes! Tomorrow morning I am taking two of them to the beach for sunrise. Mmmmmm.
More to come soon, I just wanted to quickly share with you this exciting week and new chapter of my time in Vietnam.
I hope you're all well and loving life, wherever it's leading you! Follow THE Leader.
Be kind, rewind.
Love Love Love,
Audge

Superkids Day Camp

http://picasaweb.google.com.vn/lh/sredir?uname=haisuperkids&target=ALBUM&id=5352631588658834113&authkey=Gv1sRgCKi13Zviv9SLLg&feat=email
(For more Superkids day camp pictures)

Saturday was Superkids Day Camp.
We got there at 7am and prepared for the children to start arriving, though I think some were there before us, their excitement surely pushing the parents to be rid of them for the day! Just kidding. Well, in some cases. Not for the mother of my student, Lewis. She came to me shortly after I arrived telling me in the little English that she knows, that this is the first time she has left Lewis somewhere all day, and she was nervous. She asked me if I would keep an eye on him, and of course I assured her he would be fine and I would keep track of him for her. And I wasn’t just saying it, I was fairly confident that I would be able to check up on him every so often, since I was set at a station that the groups would rotate through all day long.
Did I mention that Lewis is one of my oldest, and most well-behaved students? I wasn’t worried, though I did feel a twinge of unexpected responsibility after her request.
The camp was set up at the park in Danang. We had a big red and white striped parachute tent set up as “home base” for the day. Then there were 5 white tents set up around the big tent. There was a station under each tent., with activities led by some of us teachers, along with volunteers from Azusa Pacific University, as well as Seattle Pacific University. All of my worlds collided! My hometown, my university, and my current life, all together in Vietnam. It was a nice homey thought.
Activities included tag, making bracelets, face painting, balloon animals, skits, baseball (my station) and a few others. There were 5 in the morning, and then 5 in the afternoon. Baseball was new to ALL the kids. For some reason this really surprised me, but I guess it shouldn’t have. The APU team brought 9 donated children’s mits, an aluminum bat, rubber bases, a tee, and 4 soft baseballs. It was great! We explained the basics to each group that came through our station, including (and limited to) “This is a ball. This is a bat. This is a glove.” Then Tyler and I would physically demonstrate that they would be hitting off of the tee and the others would be trying to pick up the ball that had been hit.
It was so cute, they were so excited!!! When a child was up to bat, we had to show them how to hold the bat, how to aim to hit the ball, and not to swing until we told them to, as to avoid injury. We devised a more clear “thumbs-up” system after Tyler and I took a few hits while trying to get away from the batter. Things got better.
In the morning session we made sure everyone got to hit, then in the afternoon we instructed them to run around the bases after they hit the ball (and we of course had many runners choose the 3rd, 2nd, 1st base route), and also for the fielders to throw the ball to the teacher after retrieving it. It was a lot of fun! They all had a better understanding of how the game worked—what we had told them at least—in the afternoon, and many were even hitting the ball pretty far! It was awesome to see, the kind of joy that makes you laugh in pleasure without realizing it.
Overall, it really was a great day. There were a few bloody noses (from the weather, not the baseball), and maybe one knee scrape. No one fell in the lake and we didn’t lose anyone! Obvious markers of a successful day.
I had a lot of fun getting to see my students outside of class, like I’ve mentioned about the field trips, but this was better: A whole day of fun and activities, playing and joking. It was amazing. I really bonded with a lot of my students and it was fun to see them in class this week, sharing with them this new level of knowing and understanding between us. I feel my love for these kids continue to grow more and more every week and I can’t thank God enough for the incredible things He’s doing in my life and for the many ways He is blessing me in my relationships, experiences and support, here and from home. Amen and amen!