I did decorate our apartment with Halloween and Fall decorations which has been fun. Jeff also got the kids some costumes and some caramels to make caramel apples when he was back in the U.S. We do have some Halloween activities we are planning as well. But....the start of school, the change of the weather, Halloween, the occasional bonfire/hayride, birthdays, and Thanksgiving will not be the same. I know I'm stating the obvious, but I just feel like I need to draw attention to the fact that there are many things to be thankful for back in the Midwest during the Fall. "Thanksgiving", the very holiday bears a chance to offer thanks to God. I recently read in a book called One Thousand Gifts "We only enter in the full life if our faith gives thanks".
Ecclesiastes 3:1-14. I know that there are many times when I have to lay claim to this passage and the following: Philippians 4:8 "Finally brothers whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things."
Pure joy in her face. Why? Because she is able to fully live in the moment.
Recently, I went to a flower market and picked up a gorgeous big bouquet of sunflowers for less than $10.00. Here is a picture of a lady I was with and her $10.00 bouquet. Unbelievable how cheap it was to have something so beautiful. Yet, we are able to experience God's beauty every day for nothing-just the price it costs to stop and notice.
A few weeks ago Grace had a bit of a cold that Mr. Li happened to notice. The next day he brought some remedies for her. After taking his advice for one day, her cold was practically gone! Cut the tops off of pears, dig a little whole down into the middle, then put a sugar cube inside. Put the top back on and steam them on the stove. When they are soft, allow them to cool, then open the top and scoop out the inside with a spoon to eat. We all ended up having one. He also brought her some cold syrup which was grape flavored.
There is an expat weekly e-mail that I receive here in Beijing that tells about a new restaurant or store to try. A few weeks ago they told of a place that served Taiwanese food and offered a free meal to the first five responders. I won, so we went. We rode our bikes not too far and when we pulled up with our printed off map in hand, Jeff actually asked, "Is this really it?". It was a hole in the wall, very small, just not what we were expecting. In fact, the refrigerator/freezer was plugged up OUTSIDE the restaurant and about 5 tables inside. Of course, we had driven past thousands of local restaurants but have just not been brave enough to try some. Well, the owner was outside in front, so there was no escaping, we had to be ALL IN. Jack and Grace were already hesitant as you can imagine so we immediately started in with the bribes, like, "If you just try something and don't make any rude comments we can have dessert when we get home." We walked in and heard 80's rock music and actually felt a little comfort from it.
We selected about four dishes to share (family style is primarily how you order in China) and it was really good. Plus, the couple that owns it speaks a little English and we thought, well, we should go back there just to get to know them better! Just thought I would share that brutally honest story.
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