Readers Digest

I dropped the ball this week. It was Thursday night; I hadn’t worked on a blog for this week and had absolutely no inspiration for a topic. My mom suggested I do a Reader’s Digest-type style. I have 4 topics that I want to write about; some I’ve been wanting to for a while but would be too short for an individual blog. Besides, I only have a few more blogs left, so I’m trying to write about all the topics I would like to share with you before I’m home again.

Topics:

1: recap week.

2: teachers in Bethesda.

3: top places in Taiwan.

4. my new job.

Topic 1: Recap.

Sunday:

We have been going through the last few chapters of 1 Peter in our team devotions. In one of our last devotions, which Esther led, we learned about hospitality. Tian and Esther took it to the application level; they invited Mirjam, me, and two staff (who are also residents) for dinner, which they cooked themselves! I hadn’t been feeling so well, but my stomach was much better, something I was extremely happy about! They prepared for us fancy sliced cucumbers marinated in sesame, garlic, vinegar, and soy sauce; penne noodles with tomatoes cooked in a cheesy tomato sauce (which was completely made from scratch) and topped with baby shrimp and sprinkled with oregano seasoning. Our dessert was tiramisu. The whole meal was delicious, and after practically eating nothing for the past 2 days, it was wonderful.

Dinner time.

It was so yummy and not too sweet!

Wednesday:

I love it when I can go out and take the residents with me. In the afternoon the Wang Laoshi asked me to take some girls and go to 7-11 to pick up something she ordered. Thankfully she wrote it down on a piece of paper so I’d just have to show the lady at the front and not have to speak. In the evening I took some residents to the ocean, about a 30-minute walk after dinner, since the weather was nice and we all needed some exercise. One of the girls needed to be back at Bethesda at 7 pm, and guess when we got back… yes, we were up on the 3rd floor as the clock struck 7 pm lol. I was so tired after my long walk, we all were, that I stayed up on the floor much longer than usual because they were watching a movie and my legs were so tired I didn’t want to move. Mirjam even came up to find me because she didn’t see me in the missionary house.

Thursday:

Today and tomorrow are holidays here. Most of the residents who have homes have left for home for a few days. Since many girls from the 3rd and 4th floors have gone, they combine the rest together on one floor, and one teacher looks after them—one in the morning and one in the evening.

At 7:40, Tian, Esther, and I helped the teachers bring the 2nd floor of Joy House out for breakfast to Blue Plate. It was nice to be able to take them out; I pushed the grandma of the floor. She is so sweet and thanked me, albeit toothlessly, every time we stopped anywhere. We also went to the supermarket, and they picked snacks for them to eat. When we got back, we cleaned the 7th floor, a guest room, and kitchens for when all the guests come for Bethesda’s 70th anniversary. At 3 pm we went to the movie theatre with some of the girls. We went to watch the new Snow White. I’ve heard some critical things about it, so I went to it rather skeptically. Honestly, I was really surprised at how it was. I enjoyed it a lot, even though I didn’t understand the dialogue very well. 7/10 for me. 6.8/10 for Tian. 7.6/10 for Esther. 6/10 for Mirjam. We asked the residents what they wanted to have for dinner afterwards; they all exclaimed, “Hot pot.” I was thankful it was not McDonald’s—their go-to restaurant.

The view from the very highest level of the Hope House.

The movie theatre was small but the chairs were very comfy!

Hot Pot Time!

Friday:

One of the best days, why? Because I got to spend most of the day hanging out with the residents, both boys and girls. I technically had the morning off but couldn’t help myself. I knew they were going to sing karaoke, and I secretly wanted to watch but didn’t just want to intrude. When I saw some of the girls on the balcony waving at me and asking me if I wanted to come up, which of course I did. I joined their singing and dancing on the 3rd floor with the mixed 3rd and 4th floor residents. Then we went to the big chapel with the mixed boys group, and they sang karaoke. Each of the residents got to pick a song and sang to it, and sometimes the other residents joined by dancing. It was very amusing. I was asked by the third floor to help out in the afternoon because there would only be one teacher and 14 residents. The afternoon was just as fun. Again we went to the big chapel with the boys group and played some games, girls vs. boys with hula hoops, ping-pong, badminton rackets, etc… but the best one was when the boys had to stand in a line, facing the stage, and write the number the teacher said with their bums, haha! From what I got, it was a consequence of losing. I was asked several times to participate in the singing and games, but I don’t like performing singularly in public, so I denied the request using the excuse that “I’m the picture-taking person.” For dinner we had cold chicken nuggets, fries from McDonald’s, a green vegetable, rice, and a soup.

The boys are fun to watch, they have a lot of energy!

Getting ready to play some games.

Nothing is better than a little friendly competition.

Saturday:

Mirjam, Tian, Esther, and I haven’t had much time to hang out together, so Mirjam told us earlier in the week we could do a fun activity and we could use her car to drive us all somewhere. We wanted to try this really nice-looking (but expensive) restaurant called “Sad Boys Club.” I know that’s a weird name, but it looked so good, was Western, and had great Google reviews, but when we got there, it was packed. We searched around for a few restaurants, but they too were also full, as it’s the weekend and a holiday weekend. We ended up going to Mirjam’s favourite, “Blue Plate.” She was very happy. We had such a hard time figuring out a fun activity to do but ended up deciding on going to a hot spring. However, this was not your typical hot spring. Mirjam wanted to be surrounded by nature and not be in a swimming pool setting. It was an adventure for sure… Let me start at the beginning. Before we left, Mirjam jokingly said that if the trip would take 30 minutes to get there, it would be 2 hours for us, given our track record of getting lost. Little did we know how accurate this would be once again. We were following Google Maps, and it had us going through the windiest, skinniest road up a mountain, and when we got there, the road was blocked off. A guy up there told us we were in the wrong spot, a common mistake made by many. The place we wanted to go to was on the mountain next to this one, and we had to turn back and go all the way down the mountain again. Tian, Mirjam, and I all remember reading in the Google reviews not to follow the map because it leads you to a dead end. We all thought that it meant when we got to the place to walk, haha. Thankfully we found a really nice young local gentleman who was willing to bring us all the way to the starting point. We all agreed that if it weren’t for him, we would have never found the place. The journey to our destination was kind of a sketchy one, as we had to manoeuvre our way through a rocky shore, walk through the water while avoiding strong currents, and then climb up steep rocks with a rope to hold onto. I was scared at times, but it was all worth it, because the view was beautiful! The hot spring itself was pretty small, there were a lot of people there and the temperature was extremely hot so I only went in for a little while and only up to my waist. The trek back was uneventful and less scary but we were all pretty tired at the end and were happy to eat dinner while watching a movie.

The most terrifying part for me as I didn’t want to fall and get wet or ruin my phone.

Outdoor rock climbing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We reached the end of our journey :)

The view from the very top.

Topic 2: Teachers in Bethesda.

I have great admiration for the teachers in Bethesda; they have so much they need to do every day. They don’t merely come to supervise the residents, they have a lot of other responsibilities. There’s paperwork to fill out, computer work to do, baking to plan, meals to dish out, medicine to sort through, temperatures to take, activities to find, clothes to wash, residents to look after, etc… I have grown to love the teachers I’m interacting with, especially the bakery teachers and the 3rd floor teachers.

In the bakery there are two teachers, an older one and a younger one. The older one is the one mainly in charge, while the younger one also oversees but not as much. Both of them are very friendly and kind. They find things for me to do to help with the baking, which I appreciate. The teachers are responsible for planning the baking menu for the week, making sure they have all the ingredients, instructing the residents what to do, and making sure everything is weighted, baked right and tastes right. There’s paperwork and other things I’m sure they do, but I don’t know what they are, as I’ve never asked.

(This next part is what happens in the Hope House 3rd floor)

Each floor has 2 teachers; they rotate through the week. Most of the time they take turns, but occasionally they both work together on the same day. The teachers have 8-hour shifts and usually start work at 2 and finish at 10. Then the night teacher arrives to be there in case something happens to a resident in the night. There’s no teacher in the day, except on weekends, as the residents are busy with work and are looked after by their workshop teachers. I arrive on the 3rd floor at 2:55 pm, and usually the teachers are doing paperwork or computer work. I never know who’s working, but there are clues when I walk in. If Wang Laoshi is working, I’ll see her motorcycle helmet on the table on the balcony or her apron on the chair; if neither are there, it’s Tian Laoshi. The residents are mostly independent and can shower themselves except we have a 60-year-old on our floor, and it is the teachers job to help wash her along with another resident. When I’m there, the teachers go grab the daily medicine from the nurses station and clothes from the clothing building. In the evening, they dish out the food for dinner and then afterwards hand out nightly medicine, take temperatures, return the food cart to the kitchen, put the residents clothing in the washing machine, plan out the next morning’s meal, brush the residents teeth after the meal, supervise the residents if we go outside, etc… Those are just their daily checklists. There are also classes to attend, and when the residents go home, the teachers need to make sure that they aren’t forgetting anything—clothes, morning, afternoon, and evening medicine—and that the papers are signed by the parents. The hardest part, I feel like, would be, as a teacher, dealing with the attitudes of the residents, the crying, the screaming, the fighting, etc… For the most part, from what I’ve seen, the residents get along with each other, but there are also times I’ve witnessed that they really don’t, just like siblings, you know? Some have been so deeply wounded in their past that when they get angry, they get angry and sometimes become rather aggressive.

My absolute favourite teacher is Wang Laoshi. In Kajsa’s words, “she’s very spunky.” I have developed a great relationship with her these past 2 months. Mirjam originally put us with her and her floor because she “knows foreigners,” which is helpful for me but especially for Kajsa. She knows a bit of English, albeit very little, and is about the only teacher I understand what she is saying the majority of the time as she doesn’t speak so fast and pretty clearly. I appreciate her because she trusts me and lets me do activities with the residents which is nice because I don’t feel completely useless on the floor. I take them for walks, out shopping (locally or in the city), or out to eat at restaurants (like McDonald’s). I am grateful because she always makes sure to send the only girl who I can understand pretty well, communicate with and who can read Mandarin. Wang Laoshi also lets me help her out with different daily things, like every night I take the residents temperatures and record them in the book.

One of my favourite pictures taken with Wang Laoshi.

Topic 3: Top Places in Taiwan.

7 Star Beach: This view of the ocean and mountains was the most spectacular I’ve ever seen. On the day we went, it was a bit windy, but that made the waves roar, which was a beautiful background for pictures! Kajsa and I were thrilled. What made this beach even more enjoyable was that the shore was made out of rocks and not sand. The sea was three colours; at the very back we had a greyish blue, the middle was a bright blue, and white foam washed up on the shore.

I love doing gymnastics and what better background than the ocean :)

Ocean poses.

Liyu Lake: A great scenic place to walk around. Another nice way to do it is by bike; it is a nice, enjoyable ride and not super long, about 20 minutes around the whole lake. There are also many stations to rent a boat; you use your feet to drive it or a fast boat like the one we did with some guests. You can also canoe or paddle board on the lake, as it is relatively calm. The only thing you can’t do is swim in it… unless you just “happen” to fall in.

So many boats you can choose from to rent.

Someone brought their parrots and let them fly around.

Bay Bing: This is the closest place near Bethesda, an approximately 30 minute walk. Whenever we go anywhere to walk it’s always there. It has a really nice view of the ocean and there’s a place right beside it which is the only place you can go swimming because it’s more in a protected area. There is so much drift wood that gets washed upon the shore that the government made it a competition to see how creative people can get using the drift wood and making it art. There are definitely some very creative ones.

Besties!

Shipping Container Starbucks: My first question is, why doesn’t Canada have these cool Starbucks?? Made out of 29 recycled shipping containers, it is one of a kind. Definitely worth checking out!

What a cool design.

Bubble Tea Places: I’ve had wayyy too many bubble teas to count, and still more to go. Here you can get a large bubble tea for $3 CAD; it’s three times the price than it is in Canada. Crazy. My favourite is milk tea with jelly boba added, 10% sugar and little ice. Best place is Presotea and cheapest is Ding Go.

Restaurants: Every weekend we go out to eat for basically all the meals. It’s so hard to resist because the food is delicious and, depending on where you go, can be pretty affordable. There are so many various restaurants here, from Thai, to Japanese, to Italian to Vietnamese, Western, etc. Most are unfamiliar, but there are a few restaurants from home, like McDonald’s and Subway.

Topic 4: My New Job.

Starting Tuesday, I will have a new job in the afternoon from 3 pm to 7 pm. Mirjam stopped me late Wednesday night with a request; she asked me if I would be willing, for the whole month of April, to work in the Joy House. Esther and Tian have a few guests coming in the next few weeks, so they are allowed to take lots of time off to spend with them. Since they both work on the 7th floor, a floor that really needs help, I was asked to help out. Normally I would say I’m very willing to go where I’m needed, but in this case I did hesitate. Did I want to be a help? Yes, of course. The thought of not helping out in the 3rd floor, being with those girls who I’ve bonded very well with, and taking them out is heartbreaking to me. Of course I’d do it and I knew it was the right thing but I still found it hard to commit to it willingly at first. Mirjam said I could think about it and tell her what my decision was the next morning. It weighed heavy on my heart that evening, and needed some advice. I called Kajsa (because I knew if anyone she would understand my struggle) and my mom, and they strongly believed I needed to do this. They both reminded me I came to Bethesda to serve and step out of my comfort zone (hence my blog name), and maybe this was just another way God was helping me do that. Maybe I’ve gotten too comfortable with what I’ve been doing and need to be challenged in a new way? They also remind me that I need to die to self and to go into a new job with the right heart attitude. However, they told me it would be fair if Mirjam and I came to an agreement one that maybe meant I wouldn’t have to spend the rest of my time in Bethesda on the 7th floor. Working in the Joy House will be different; these residents are not so independent, and most are in wheelchairs. I’ll have more responsibilities, like feeding them, cleaning up after meals, playing with them, and supervising them by making sure they don’t injure themselves etc… But the hardest thing for me that I will be doing is showering them. Nothing against them personally, just those types of things makes me feel uncomfortable, probably mainly because I’ve never done it before. However, it’s just another part of the learning process, and it helps when I look at it from the residents perspective, as it would probably be just as uncomfortable for them to be washed by someone else. The upcoming change was hard at first, but now that I have thought about it, I do look forward to serving the residents in Joy House 7th floor and showing them, through my actions and words, that they are special and God loves them just as much as He loves any of His children. I also hope to be a blessing to the teachers there by taking a bit of a load (and stress) off their shoulders because they have lots to do like the Hope House teachers and maybe even more. Anyways, Mirjam and I were able to come to an agreement, which makes me happy. For the last week I’m here, I will be back working with the 3rd floor. I’m looking forward to introducing my mom to the residents and teachers I’ve grown to love so much!

Well that’s all for now. Sorry for the delay in this weeks blog post. Until next time,

Soli Deo Gloria,

Hosanna