Dear Friends and Family,

It is hard to believe that we are ending our first week of classes! We have had a great week so far.  Yesterday, our lessons about E–ter—discussions continuing today.  At the end of the morning yesterday (remember, I told you it started raining lightly?), well, He held off the hard rain so we finished our egg hunt.  When class was done at noon, it was pouring!  We had to walk to get to the taxis—some had umbrellas but some of us neglected to carry one—we all got wet (at least our feet sloshing though the water that had not run off yet).  It had briefly passed through my mind that it looked like rain, and I have an “emergency poncho” but alas, it was in the hotel room. I do have it with me today as it may be scattered showers. I was afraid that we’d have people go down with colds, etc. due to getting soaked, but most of the team seems fine today. The blessing in all of this is that the weather is not burning, bright and hot as it often is and is supposed to stay this way (according to the forecast) through Thursday of next week (our last day of class!)  Thank you for your lifts!

I rested last night and have gotten a bit better but the cold is hanging on.  One of our lead teachers, Dale, picked up some type of a virus and ran a fever yesterday which finally broke last night. He is resting today and hopefully will be back in commission tomorrow.  He said this was the nicest location he has had for camp so couldn’t figure out why he got sick!

Because we have some out of town students who must stay through this weekend, we are teaching one day of the weekend (Saturday) and will finish on Thursday.  So, tomorrow, Saturday, is actually the beginning of week 2.  We will have class in the morning and then have a “movie” afternoon rather than activities to give the teachers a bit of rest.  The reason for this is that Sunday will be really demanding as that is the day set aside for seeing the terra cotta warriors—a must-see in Xi’an—as well the old walled city of Xi’an and Moslem market (so named because it’s a shopping area—where you can bargain—that is located near a very old Moslem mosque.)  It is in the heart of the old walled city Xi’an along with other ancient sites.  If you know your Chinese history, you know that Xi’an (Chang An) used to be the ancient capital of China before Beijing and Emperior Chin of the Chin (therefore CHINa) dynasty had the tomb built with the terra cotta soldiers—thousands, all life size, everyone different and modeled after actual men, and painted.  These “soldiers” were to guard him on his way in eternity. It’s an amazing story and visit!

Class will resume on Monday (day 2 of week 2) and our graduation ceremony will be on Thursday.  Free day Friday before we fly out to Beijing on Saturday morning.

Tonight is our big birthday party.  We will have 6 large birthday cakes—one for each class—and will do skits (Jordan is heading these up) and have music and dance (Hokey Pokey, Limbo, etc.)  This is always a great night and the kids love it.  The birthday cakes here are beautiful—about like our round birthday cakes but not as high. Frosting is very light, but the most amazing thing is how they are decorated. All different—and with fruits (and sometimes little cherry tomatoes!)—they’re are truly works of art.

Last night more encounters and opportunities.  We continue to need your thoughts and support. Thank you for standing with us in this way.

Love,

Becky