The Taste of Bittersweet and New Horizons

Yesterday, my time here in Vietnam officially became one year longer than I originally intended. Friends, family, work, my students, a sense of duty...all played their part in this. In between the time since my last arrival anniversary, much and more has happened. I took a trip to Da Nang, the Philippines, Hawaii, home, Phu Quoc, and Nha Trang. I survived another full year of teaching at the government schools. I got promoted to Senior Teacher. I ran a marathon and even signed up for another. I made new friends, and said goodbye to others.

And now, there's still more to come. I've been promoted again, this time to work as a part of the academic development team at the head office. I'll also concurrently test the new program I help develop in the classroom through a special pilot course. In a way, doing all this feels like what I could've done had I followed my peers' footsteps more closely in college.

The promotion is as scary as it is exciting, though. Can I hack the work load? Will I even enjoy it all? So far signs point to yes, but if later things sour, then what? I suppose that will at least give me a clearer vision of what step to take in the future.

Speaking of the future, Japan is around the corner, and so is that marathon I'm getting further and further behind on my training for. Then, I might even run off to Morocco. But of all the things on the horizon, the lonely star and field of red is what I'm wondering if I'll see.

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Chinese Chess - Cờ Tướng - 象棋

The latest interest I've taken in my quest to learn more about my Vietnamese heritage is the game of Chinese chess. It is a bit ironic to look for Vietnamese culture in a game that has the word "Chinese" in its name, but I found that it is only so for the sake of translation. I have taken to this game for a number of reasons. 1. The game has cool historical references that have survived even today. Let's start with the board itself. Unlike a chess board, which is played on the squares, Chinese chess is played on the intersections of lines. What is most recognizably different from normal chess boards, however, is the large gap in the middle of the board as well as the lines that form an "x" on opposites sides of the board. The square that contains the "x" is known as the "fortress," or 宮(gōng ) in Chinese. The center divider is the river where s ome Chinese words are visible. The words on the left say, 楚河 (chǔ hé ) , mean...

As a person who's done a fair amount of traveling, I couldn't agree more with this:

Paradise Falls wouldn't even hold a candle to this place.

Waiting and Waiting

March 1st. Now every day for the next two weeks will be agonizing torture. Have I been accepted? Have I been rejected? Will my career advance? Will I be right back where I was this time last year? I've been told to be patient, keep my head up, to not worry about things that aren't in my control. That's tough going, but I'm trying. How apt, then, that I'd come across this quote again: “I wanted you to see what real courage is...It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.” I thought my chances were small in the beginning, but I did see it through. Now back to waiting to see if this time is my "sometime."

Nhớ Nguồn

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