The Head of School spoke in our morning staff devotions about the importance of keeping our school’s purpose in mind. It is not only a question of “WHAT” we teach, but “WHY” we teach that really sets our school apart from others. Yes, we are committed to training students at high academic levels, we are pursuing achievement that leads to opening doors for these third culture kids to attend elite universities worldwide, and we are seeking to give them a unique worldview and perspective on global citizenship. Yet, more than anything else, we are here to invest in the “WHY” of these students’ lives. “WHY” are these students walking through my classroom door? Words like: Purpose, truth, hope and LIFE are breathed and orated within the walls of this school.
Thank you for taking the time to read this long post! See you next week!
This Week's Hilarious Highlights
(in which surprisingly mostly have to do with the bathroom… sorry?)
- Squat toilets: I have faint memories of using them as a child in Cameroon, but using them as an adult is quite different. Let’s just say I was in there a lot longer than usual and I really need to work on my leg muscles because squatting for long periods of time…. is a literal struggle.
- Whilst we are discussing toilets, you should know that most places in China do not provide toilet paper, you bring your own when you go to the bathroom. This is not too shocking except for the fact that they also ask you not to flush your toilet paper because the piping in China is not that strong. I think at this rate I’m going to clog up over half of Qingdao’s piping system because I keep forgetting that I’m not supposed to flush toilet paper. Sorry, China.
- I woke up a little late one day and forgot about not drinking out of the tap (China's water being unsafe due to high metal concentration and perhaps some bacteria, too). I spent the whole morning reading stories of people experiencing all sorts of reactions to the tap water (vomiting and diarrhea being the most mild) and I spent the entire day paranoid I was going to be struck by some horrible symptoms. Nothing happened to me at all and I’m praising heaven for it (though I plan to avoid experimenting any further with my stomach’s tolerance in the future).
- Last night, I took a taxi by myself and got home using the words “yes”, “no”, and “thank you”. It was a 35 minute drive and it cost me $6.00. Miracles do happen. Ha.