OK, are you writing resolutions?  What are some of yours?  I haven’t written any new ones – I am still working on the ‘101 things I want to do before I die’ list that I made last year.  Some of them I have accomplished in the last year, with many still left. 

But, the most important one was ‘to teach overseas for a year’ – and that is what I am doing!  This time in Taiwan has been such a great learning adventure. 

Looking back over December – the month went quickly.  The teachers from NanAo went on a field trip early in the month.  We had a tour bus, equipped with a tv/dvd/karaoke.  So, we sang for a lot of the trip.  My goodness, some of the teachers really have incredible voices.  We visited an old village with some very scenic spots.  The other teacher is Sonia, one of the English teachers. 

     012  009

Then, we visited a commercial nursery – full of beautiful fields of flowers.  Wei Fu Chan is standing in a field of flowers – the math teacher who happens to be very good with his English. 

 018  019  016

 I had a very different, but a very delightful Christmas.   I taught a unit on Christmas.  Here are some students reading in English.

  003  005

On Christmas Day, we had school.  Christmas is not a national holiday here in Taiwan.  Here are some pictures of our rally on Christmas morning.  Please note the different attire – the Administrator had a winter coat on, the students were wearing only shirts. 

 006  004

 The weekend before Christmas, the foreign teachers had a Christmas weekend together.  We visited the National Palace Museum and Taipei 101.  (If you would like to see the New Year’s fireworks display from Taipei 101, visit http://3c.msn.com.tw/soapbox101.asp.)  We also had a special Christmas dinner celebration at a restaurant that had some very nice jazz music – full of Christmas songs.  Here are some of the pictures of us together for that weekend. 

021  026  019

One of the things I really missed from back home was all the decorations, and the lights.  So, here are some things I did get to see.  My desk, bamboo trees at school, Christmas display at Taipei 101, a huge tree at the Taipei Main Station, the tree at the church in NanAo, and the tree at The Home of God’s Love orphanage in LuoDong.  There were a lot more decorations than I thought there would be. 

002  013  015    017  027  017  002

I even got to see Santa at Taipei 101.  He must have lost weight from running up and down so many chimneys!! 

 018

Now, here we are at the beginning of a New Year.  Today I visited the first beach I saw when I came to NanAo – watched the waves crashing on the shore, listening to the sounds of the water.  The power behind those waves continue to astound me. 

 004  022

I was doing a study for the English class I teach on Tuesday nights.  The character we are studying is Elisha, a friend and successor to Elijah.  I came across something that Chuck Swindoll had written about this man, and I want to end with this thought. 

“Shortly before his death, Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote Youth and Age in which he reflected over his past and the strength of his earlier years.

To me, the most moving line in this quaint work is the statement: “Friendship is a sheltering tree. . . .” ”

I, too, have come to realize what a wealth I have in friends.  So, this year, I want to encourage you to be a sheltering tree to a friend who needs you.  Also, make sure that you have friends you can go to when you need a place of shelter. 

As the New Year begins, make this year count.  I have challenged my students to find an area in their life where they want to be better.  I challenge you as well.  Make a difference in someone’s life this year, and start with your own.

 Happy New Year from Taiwan