First Communion 127/365

Last Sunday was First Communion at the little local Catholic Church we've been going attending.  It was the first time I've ever seen a "First Communion" service and I thought it was sweet.

Communion is something that both Protestants and Catholics do, but we do it very differently. Actually, even within the Protestant faith there are many different ways and views of taking communion. Which I've always found rather ironic since the word "communion" basically means unity.

In the Catholic faith it is taught that the bread literally becomes the body of Jesus, and the wine actually becomes the blood of Christ. Catholics take Communion every time they go to church. To them, they are literally taking into themselves the body and blessing of Jesus Christ.  They go to great lengths and pains to make sure they never drop a crumb or spill a drop.

Protestants believe a wide range of things about Communion. Some believe it's just a symbol, an act we preform at church to remind our selves of Christ sacrifice. Others believe it's more than just a symbol, that something spiritual happen when we take Communion.  Some Protestants take Communion every Sunday, some take it on the first Sunday of every month, and still other hardly take it at all (I went to one church that only took it three times a year).

When William and I were in Prague on our honeymoon we learned that for centuries the churches in that city would fight and even kill each other over how to take communion and what to believe about it.

(Picture we took in Prague of a church that changed hands several times between "we want to drink the wine" and "only the Priest takes the wine" groups)

One thing we all do agree on though, is that it's a special thing we do to honor and show our faith and love for Jesus. 

The Catholic church has a very long process of classes one must take in order be presented to the Priest for their First Communion.  These adorable second graders have been studying and learning for about a year in preparation for this special Sunday morning.

Whatever you believe about God or Communion, you have to agree that these 
kids look so sweet all dressed up in their white dresses and tiaras and veils (some even had family veils handed down through the family) and suits and ties.

No More Visa 91/365

There are several places in the world that require permission to travel to. This is called a visa. Usually it's not too hard to get. You visit the nearest consulate for the country you want to visit, fill out some paperwork and give them some money. A few days later you go back to the consulate and pick up your passport with a shiny new sticker that says you are allowed to visit.

OR... You can just hire a visa service to do all that for you. It costs a little more but it's way worth it. When we got our first visa to visit China I spent two days waiting at the Chinese consulate. One day to drop off my passport and one day to pick it up. It would have been worth it to pay someone else to do that for me.

Our first Chinese visa was a tourist visa. It was good for 90 days. It allowed us to get into the country. After we arrived the company we were working for got us a business visa that allowed us to stay for a year. Finally we ended up with a "Permanent Resident" visa that came with William's "Alien Worker" permit. Both had to be renewed every year.

To get our Permanent Resident Visa we had to fill out lots of paperwork and get a very silly but very long "physical exam" that required half a day spent at a specific hospital shuffling down a long hallway in a flimsy hospital gown with all the other foreigners trying to get visas. Then we spent another day at the "Exit Entry Bureau" waiting for our number to be called. Luckily we were allowed to wear our own clothes at that place and it was close to the fake market so you could get a little shopping done on your way home.

To renew it every year we had to fill out more paper work and spend another half a day at the Exit Entry Bureau, and then report to our local police station.

It all sounds very tedious and silly, I know. And trust me. It was.
(You can read more about the silliness of the red tape on my friend Shelly's Blog, Tai Shan.)
Maybe that's one reason why we felt a little sad this week when we realized that our permanent resident visa expired on the 6th of April as we were flying back from a week with William's parents

It definitely feels like a chapter closing. We are no longer residents of China. We can no longer just jump on a plane and fly back there. We can't visit without applying for another tourist visa, just like every one else. We are now solely residents of the United States.

It feels a little sad. It also makes life here feel a little more concrete.

Lost in Transitsion 80/365

We currently live in a nice house on a hill in the the country with lots of goats, two dogs and several cats. We've been there for 5 months. We thought that we had become well adjusted to our new life in America. We can go to the grocery store without getting lost and over whelmed in the juice isle. We can be in public places without standing too close to people or forgetting to say "excuse me" if we accidentally bump into them. We even stand in line in civilized manner....

But it seems when we do leave our hill or our small town we get a little confused. What do you mean my passport can't be used as my main form of ID? America has a lot of silly rules for a country that boasts of freedom. I can't even walk across the isle from my bag to chase my baby in the airport?

After a very long day of traveling and feeling a little out of place William asked me "Why are we so messed up?! I thought we were a lot better adjusted than this."
Well so did I, but I guess we need a bit more practice coming down off our hill of goats.

I tried to comfort William as best I could. You see, we spent ever waking moment for the past three years trying to adapt, understand and even at times mimic a completely different culture. There were times when we tried to "be Chinese." There were other times when we felt completely lost too, but we usually tried to understand those times and figure out how to we could 'fit in' better.

Anyway, that's a lot of effort put into a another culture and sometimes even to forget or let go of our own.

But now we are back in our own culture. Mostly. We are still living in the upper south of the US, which is totally different from California where we both grew up.
So I think it's going to take us a little time and maybe a little more effort to adjust back. Or maybe we just never will and we'll always feel a bit out of place where ever go.

At any rate, please forgive us if we stand too close to you in public, or if we crowd the elevator door, if we forget to how to stand in line, or if we don't have what Americans seem to think is proper ID.

Ash Wednesday 58/365

Today is Ash Wednesday. This morning we got up early and went to the 8am mass at St. Patrick's Catholic church and the Priest put ashes on our foreheads.

Many Protestants have the misconception that only Catholics celebrate Ash Wednesday and Lent. But actually the Methodists, Presbyterian, Lutherans and Reformed churches also honor Ash Wednesday with the wearing of ashes on the forehead.

My favorite part about Ash Wednesday, apart from the time to reflect on the past year and look forward to "spiritual spring" and Easter, is that the ashes are made from the palm branches from the previous year's Palm Sunday.  I like that the palms from such a joyful Sunday come full circle and help us prepare for the reflective time of Lent.

When the Priest put the ashes on our foreheads today he said "Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return." This always reminds me that I need to live a more deliberate life. It reminds me that life is short and that I want to think about what I do more. Instead of just drudging threw thoughtlessly.  


But today it meant something so much more. I'm not sure if I can put into words how I felt about it. But then they put the ashes on Baby Girl's forehead and said to her "Remember, O man, that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return." I felt very sad.  I know I'm not perfect, I know I'm human. But Baby Girl is so perfect to me. I don't want to think about her life being short. I don't want to think about her being human. She's my little Angel from heaven. 

Well enough of all that heavy stuff! After naps and food we went out and played with the goats. Played in the mud. And got stuck in the rain. It was a wonderful day.