Reflections from Day 5- 2.6.15:
Today was officially passport day and our children’s passports arrived. Because it was a fairly low-key day, our group had the chance to take a full day excursion and go 2 hours outside of the city where we have been staying, into the mountains where the Shaolin Temple is located- the birthplace of Kung Fu. (and for those of you who were Kung Fu Panda movie fans- you might enjoy this post even more) Nate loved the idea of this little excursion, as he was in martial arts/karate for a number of years and this would involve some Kung Fu and if you're this close to where it all started, you sort of have to go check it out, right?
Our guide shared with us that many children are sent to Kung Fu schools around age five and are there until around age 15 when they graduate. These schools are boarding schools and families surrender seeing their child but once a year, (generally during Chinese New Year) all in order for their child to master Kung Fu while getting a good education. In turn, they then have the opportunity to be a part of the military, or earn a job as a security officer/official, or be a Master in Kung Fu and teach others the art of Kung Fu. They can choose to have their child learn at the Shaolin Temple Kung Fu school or other local Kung Fu schools. Over 30,000 children are enrolled in one of the biggest schools and they are also taught Zen Buddhism while learning to master Kung Fu.
The buildings, though many were temples, were absolutely stunning to look at; however, one cannot walk amongst Buddhist temples without your heart breaking for these people.
People come from all over to visit this temple and region and as we walked throughout the grounds, you would watch locals walk to the temple entrances, kneel before the incense bowls, light incense and walk into the temple and do a number of religious rituals all to multiple golden Buddhas that were inside of the various temples we walked past.
It was heartbreaking to see how vigilant many of the people were as they kneeled
before golden god after god- gods that cannot see, hear, understand,
or answer any of their prayers.
You also would find a lot of prayer beads for purchase around the grounds, which are used as a part of their religious ceremonial practices to count their recitations.
One of the largest temples housed about 8 or so very large golden Buddha statues.
(we weren't technically supposed to take photos inside of the temples of the Buddhas and other ornate objects as this was "holy ground" for worship for those who had come to kneel and pray in these temples, but I tried my best to zoom in on a few from the outside) As we walked among the temples, you would also find monks walking throughout the grounds or keeping incense lit.
Another building was the ancient library and they said that it housed the various “Buddhist scriptures” that they are taught in Buddhism along with other religious artifacts. Chinese culture is certainly steeped in tradition and even in talking with several people during our last two weeks, we’ve come to realize that though there are many who still are Buddhist, many of the younger generation in China are either agnostic or Atheist.
It has been amazing to see how many interesting conversations you can start here and the many questions that people will ask when they find out that Nate is a pastor. It's a pretty interesting "lead in" to many a gospel-centered conversation as those who live in "closed countries" and have had little exposure to the gospel are always so inquisitive when they ask what Nate does for work and he shares with them. We’ve been able to have some amazing conversations with several individuals during our trip and I’ve been so proud of Nate and how clearly he has been able to share the gospel with several individuals who have eagerly asked so many questions about the Bible and Jesus. Our friend in Beijing was so inquisitive asking numerous questions about the Bible. While we were on our way to and from the Great Wall...
Nate and I talked to her about so many different topics she brought up and helped answer questions she had about who Jesus really is.
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| "Jesus Reigns" - captured on the side of the Great Wall |
She had been given a Bible a year or so ago by a mission team and said she had read through parts of it, but had trouble understanding a lot of it. As Nate explained many of the things she was asking or confused about, she responded with a heart-breaking statement as she said, “I understand it so much more when you talk. If I had someone like you to help teach me the Bible, I think I would understand it so much more.” Like many Chinese, she had some very limited exposure to Biblical things, but you could tell because of this that she did not have a clear understanding and certainly no way to truly be taught all that I think she would be willing to learn if given the opportunity.
The verse came to mind from Romans 10:14-15, "How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!"
The verse came to mind from Romans 10:14-15, "How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!"
We found out that our friend in Beijing will be in the states around Easter time and we told her we’d love to figure out a way to have her join us for Easter Sunday. When we shared this about her attending a church with us in the states, she looked at us so clearly and said, “You mean, I can go to church there? That would be so amazing!” For those living in China, church is fairly unfamiliar and unless it’s a government run or endorsed church (which usually in most cases will not be a true Bible-believing church), it is illegal for them to attend. Most have never attended a church and so to hear us say she could attend a church with us freely as a Chinese citizen, was a bit mind-blowing to her. ( Can we just say, we would LOVE to have her join us on Easter if her schedule allows for it) It was beautiful to see how many "God moments" were orchestrated during our trip.
While we were with her in Beijing, we had seen another temple there that was a Tibetan Buddhist temple. There we had seen where the people write out their "prayers" or "wishes" of what they desire to have answered and leave them for "Buddha to fulfill". A common theme in Buddhism is to wish for good luck, health, wealth, wisdom, peace and happiness. The Chinese believe a lot in luck and happiness and its a central theme to most everything you come across in China, from home décor to general conversations.
While we were at the Shaolin Kung Fu Training Center, we were able to watch a Kung Fu demonstration, which was pretty amazing.
Today was probably what I would consider her first big meltdown day per se. It wasn’t all that bad, but she had a rough 2 hour drive back to the hotel and was fighting sleep so hard and was crying and just didn’t want to be on that bus! We gave her a Coke and then she was fine....JUST KIDDING. (we don't let her drink Coke, she just wanted to hold it.)
It’s been a little harder to feed “B” when we are out and about as she is still trying to figure out solids and how to chew some foods and is not into most snacks that many of the kids are eating. Though her file said she could eat certain things, we learned that most of the things that she was eating would have been cooked to a mush and then made into a paste-like substance. That said, she loves foods of similar texture, but has a hard time still taking to harder solid foods and knowing how to chew them or what to do with them. Thankfully some friends back home provided us with some food packets (organic fruit/veggie squeeze packets and those sort of things) before we left for China and we took them with us and they have been so helpful and she loves every single one of them!)
Today was the first day that she actually continued understanding how to take something from her hand and put it into her mouth. This evening, she even knew how to pull it into smaller pieces before putting a bit into her mouth. It’s been fascinating to watch her eat and learn to try new things and experiment with food; although, many of our experiments aren’t quite successful yet.
We’ll eventually get there though as she continues to learn how to chew and eat in a new way. Until then, we continue to supplement her diet with things familiar that are Chinese that we find at the breakfast at our hotel or have found in Chinese stores.
After we arrived back at the hotel, she settled in for the evening and was so full of personality. She just laughed and giggled and talked and talked (mind you we have no idea what she’s saying) She would look at us, smile and start saying things, then start laughing. (apparently she thinks she's hilarious) She continues to love to stare at her reflection in the mirror. (I'm sure our hotel room was likely the first time she'd ever seen her own reflection or looked in a mirror) She loves to reach out for us and certainly recognizes us now and will give us the biggest grins.
It’s so fun to see her slowly go from a very solemn, quiet, and sad child that nothing we did could warrant even the slightest grin, to it taking very little now to get a big smile out of her. The littlest things amuse her- whether it’s hitting a balloon around the room, playing with a simple Kleenex or paper napkin, or playing with a shoe- every little thing she touches or sees is fascinating. We often wonder if she ever went outside of her orphanage much at all or how much exposure she had to the outside world. For most children with her background, it is generally very little to none.
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