The strange thing about a place is familiarity. Typically, the things that are familiar to us are comfortable for us. And who doesn’t like comfort? I personally like that old fashioned comfortable feeling from time to time. However, something quite strange happens when one gets too comfortable with the place they are. For some reason, too much comfort tends to equal apathy, or, a certain poisonous boredom. This of course means that we must be, always, actively seeking new ways to stay involved with the community around us. Of equal importance to the community around us, we must find ways to stay progressive and always be searching for more. Searching for more what? I guess that’s what we are searching for more of – whatever it is. Of course, I like to think that I know what I’m searching for and it comes down to more guidance from my Father to do what He needs. This search will, I believe, always result in that which is opposite of apathy and even sometimes, that which is opposite of comfort.
Anyway, that is a different discussion than what I want to talk about and I want to talk about China. I do want to talk about China in conjunction with familiarity and comfort, but in a different sort of way. I want to talk about how it is so strongly connected to leaving. Sometimes, it seems to me, leaving has a bad connotation and I can understand why. Connect it to the rights words and you get sentences like, “then he left her,” and “why did they leave?” or “they left without a word.” Maybe I’m just stretching it, but at least to me, leaving tends to be tied into a sentence as the negative verb.
I spent almost all of January in Europe mainly to attend my Uncle’s wedding, but also for a bit of a vacation to visit some friends and meet some new family. I secretly wondered if going to Europe in the middle of my time here in China would affect the way I feel about China; Specifically, I wondered if I would miss the western world and have a difficult time returning here. To my relief, it has been quite the opposite. I was relieved to be back in a familiar place when I arrived in Beijing. I felt comfortable using what little Chinese I have and I stood in a crowded train station as the only westerner, body-to-body with the locals and I felt completely normal. When I arrived in Harbin I was greeted by two of my closest Chinese friends and we went and had my favorite Chinese breakfast (Nu Rou Baozi). As I lay in my bed I felt like I was finally home after a solid month of moving about in travel mode. That is when I realized something. I am home. In this I can now explain the positive effects of leaving. Sometimes we must leave a place or situation so that we can return to it and recognize it as something familiar and comfortable. While I was in Europe I went through a mental process where I had to think back to my living/working situation which involved thinking about China and changing the way I think about China. I no longer think about China as the place I will go, unknown, scary or any of those other mysterious things I may have previously connected to it. No, while in Europe I referred to China as home. During my Uncle’s ceremony I was introduced as the only person attending on behalf of my Uncle and from China. I craved Chinese food. I missed my Chinese friends. I said “Xiexie” and “Ni Hao” instead of “Merci” and “Bonjour” on several occasions. Our Father has a funny way of making life happen. He has a funny way of directing our path. He has a funny way of making a person leave what is uncomfortable only to return to it as comfortable. But of course, His ways are not funny, my perception is limited. I like it that way because it makes life interesting.
Amazing things are happening in China. I’m genuinely feeling at home and excited about this next term. The Father has made the most unlikely things fall together for His glory and I can’t even imagine what is in store this next term as our group has a confidence, familiarity and comfort that we previously lacked. The biggest question on most people’s minds now is what we will all be doing next. Will we stay in China or go? Well, I can only speak for myself and say that I never really thought I’d live in China in the first place so to make the prediction now about a decision that still has at least 6 more months left before it needs to be made is silliness. My official comment as of now is as follows: My perception is limited.
I realize that my blog entries are often vague and cryptic about what is going on with the community here, so I encourage you to email my sister, Chante’ at [email protected] and ask her for the update letter that I sent out. It has a lot more details about what is happening for the kingdom.
~Johnny Young
Anyway, that is a different discussion than what I want to talk about and I want to talk about China. I do want to talk about China in conjunction with familiarity and comfort, but in a different sort of way. I want to talk about how it is so strongly connected to leaving. Sometimes, it seems to me, leaving has a bad connotation and I can understand why. Connect it to the rights words and you get sentences like, “then he left her,” and “why did they leave?” or “they left without a word.” Maybe I’m just stretching it, but at least to me, leaving tends to be tied into a sentence as the negative verb.
I spent almost all of January in Europe mainly to attend my Uncle’s wedding, but also for a bit of a vacation to visit some friends and meet some new family. I secretly wondered if going to Europe in the middle of my time here in China would affect the way I feel about China; Specifically, I wondered if I would miss the western world and have a difficult time returning here. To my relief, it has been quite the opposite. I was relieved to be back in a familiar place when I arrived in Beijing. I felt comfortable using what little Chinese I have and I stood in a crowded train station as the only westerner, body-to-body with the locals and I felt completely normal. When I arrived in Harbin I was greeted by two of my closest Chinese friends and we went and had my favorite Chinese breakfast (Nu Rou Baozi). As I lay in my bed I felt like I was finally home after a solid month of moving about in travel mode. That is when I realized something. I am home. In this I can now explain the positive effects of leaving. Sometimes we must leave a place or situation so that we can return to it and recognize it as something familiar and comfortable. While I was in Europe I went through a mental process where I had to think back to my living/working situation which involved thinking about China and changing the way I think about China. I no longer think about China as the place I will go, unknown, scary or any of those other mysterious things I may have previously connected to it. No, while in Europe I referred to China as home. During my Uncle’s ceremony I was introduced as the only person attending on behalf of my Uncle and from China. I craved Chinese food. I missed my Chinese friends. I said “Xiexie” and “Ni Hao” instead of “Merci” and “Bonjour” on several occasions. Our Father has a funny way of making life happen. He has a funny way of directing our path. He has a funny way of making a person leave what is uncomfortable only to return to it as comfortable. But of course, His ways are not funny, my perception is limited. I like it that way because it makes life interesting.
Amazing things are happening in China. I’m genuinely feeling at home and excited about this next term. The Father has made the most unlikely things fall together for His glory and I can’t even imagine what is in store this next term as our group has a confidence, familiarity and comfort that we previously lacked. The biggest question on most people’s minds now is what we will all be doing next. Will we stay in China or go? Well, I can only speak for myself and say that I never really thought I’d live in China in the first place so to make the prediction now about a decision that still has at least 6 more months left before it needs to be made is silliness. My official comment as of now is as follows: My perception is limited.
I realize that my blog entries are often vague and cryptic about what is going on with the community here, so I encourage you to email my sister, Chante’ at [email protected] and ask her for the update letter that I sent out. It has a lot more details about what is happening for the kingdom.
~Johnny Young