"But I want this family..."

You were absolutely right, man. What we have now, it is a family, and it's one that I will be sad to lose.

I remember the time, almost one year ago, when I was the only teacher at our center along with two TAs. After class one day, I looked at our empty TSC. There were no toys or papers strewn across the table, no names on the lockers, or hardly any books on the shelves. I thought to myself, "I wonder what it will be like when this place isn't so quiet anymore, when the lights will be turned on and the room will be filled with the buzz of activity. I could never have imagined what I would be given. Yes, there have been ups and downs, but the experience I have had with all of you is unlike any other that I have ever had. It is with a heavy heart that I admit our joy is only temporary. Like you, I want this family, too, but our great misfortune is that we were destined to lose each other right from the beginning; it is the nature of our industry. The clock started counting down the day we all met.

But that doesn't mean we have to be sad. What's important now is that we enjoy each other's company together while we still can. There are still so many beautiful memories to create with one another.

Comments

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 The game has cool historical references that have survived even today.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...

...for Christmas

Take it away, Mr. Crosby!

Elementary, dear.

Some of the teachers, myself included, have asked our students, "If you could have superpowers, what would you want?" Of course I'd love to be able to teleport and control the very fabric of space and time, but there are other, more practical powers that I'd also like to have. One such power I'd love to have is the intellectual capacity to absorb and comprehend all that is around me. I'm talking about Sherlockian powers of deduction, where I could notice every little thing about a person and accurately guess everything about them. That would really come in handy right about now. I can't believe that even after a year, I'm still experiencing jarring culture shocks. This one's got to be the most upsetting, too, mostly because it involves family. The ball's in my court now, though, and what happens next could really define my eventual departure from Vietnam. Walking on eggshells now...

Nhớ Nguồn

Search This Blog