who will love you
who will fight
who will fall far behind
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Saturday, October 8, 2011
and then 8 months later
i look back on some of the old things i've written in here and wonder at the weeks and months that passed in between some posts. what did i do? what have i forgotten? what pictures didn't i take, what words didn't i scrawl down? what made me laugh and cry? who was i?
i've been in china (third times a charm!) since february. did a semester at yunnan normal university, had some amazing times with the wonderful, diverse group of friends i made there. i miss them all dearly and once again have realized how painful it is to be in this constant state of transit, here and there a few months, a year, then off again - new people but the vestiges and memories of the old still clinging to you like smoke. kunming was a beautiful place. the sky was that painful, dizzying blue, the people kind and quick to smile. i loved the food, the drinks, the walks along wenlin jie. mornings spent crammed onto the bus headed to school. it was good to be a student again and i really enjoyed studying mandarin. i forgot how much i loved languages.
i got engaged in kunming, too.
in july the fella and i were strolling along hongshan lu after sitting out on the patio of a cafe, enjoying a pot of good strong yunnan coffee and having a Serious Talk about the future. on the way home we made our way into a little park area, all green and shady with the road a few feet off. i noticed c had stopped behind me - i turned and there he was on one knee(!), his face splitting into the most enormous smile and those blue eyes so big, scared, excited. there was a will you marry me and then i remember bursting into tears and saying of course, of course i'll marry you. we hugged, i cried some more, we walked to a vegetable market to get stuff for dinner then realized we were too excited to cook. we ate out instead and celebrated with cold beers and phonecalls and smiles that would not quit. i haven't looked back.
in august i made the move to chengdu, hot on the heels of an events and communications position with a chamber of commerce. it started as internship but will turn into paid work pretty soon - still need to find part-time teaching job to help supplement my income a bit though. i'm having fun with this position. there have been good perks - nights out, free meals, cocktail parties and interesting workshops. i'm learning how to put together and edit a magazine, optimize a website, prepare for an event and fit in with chinese co-workers. they are a laid back people in sichuan province.
unfortunately c had to head back to australia for job training but he will move back out here in early november to start a year long australian government-sponsored position with an energy company. i'm excited for 2012. will be with the man i'm going to marry, will be continuing on with this work that i love more and more, will be planning for the future.
january 2013 we hope to get married in canada, in my little hometown with its pretty old church and 3 feet of snow on top of everything. after that, who knows. toronto - fingers crossed. i miss home but right now things are good. chengdu is kind to me. the weather's awful but i have the feeling that this is where i'm supposed to be, right here, right now.
i've been in china (third times a charm!) since february. did a semester at yunnan normal university, had some amazing times with the wonderful, diverse group of friends i made there. i miss them all dearly and once again have realized how painful it is to be in this constant state of transit, here and there a few months, a year, then off again - new people but the vestiges and memories of the old still clinging to you like smoke. kunming was a beautiful place. the sky was that painful, dizzying blue, the people kind and quick to smile. i loved the food, the drinks, the walks along wenlin jie. mornings spent crammed onto the bus headed to school. it was good to be a student again and i really enjoyed studying mandarin. i forgot how much i loved languages.
i got engaged in kunming, too.
in july the fella and i were strolling along hongshan lu after sitting out on the patio of a cafe, enjoying a pot of good strong yunnan coffee and having a Serious Talk about the future. on the way home we made our way into a little park area, all green and shady with the road a few feet off. i noticed c had stopped behind me - i turned and there he was on one knee(!), his face splitting into the most enormous smile and those blue eyes so big, scared, excited. there was a will you marry me and then i remember bursting into tears and saying of course, of course i'll marry you. we hugged, i cried some more, we walked to a vegetable market to get stuff for dinner then realized we were too excited to cook. we ate out instead and celebrated with cold beers and phonecalls and smiles that would not quit. i haven't looked back.
in august i made the move to chengdu, hot on the heels of an events and communications position with a chamber of commerce. it started as internship but will turn into paid work pretty soon - still need to find part-time teaching job to help supplement my income a bit though. i'm having fun with this position. there have been good perks - nights out, free meals, cocktail parties and interesting workshops. i'm learning how to put together and edit a magazine, optimize a website, prepare for an event and fit in with chinese co-workers. they are a laid back people in sichuan province.
unfortunately c had to head back to australia for job training but he will move back out here in early november to start a year long australian government-sponsored position with an energy company. i'm excited for 2012. will be with the man i'm going to marry, will be continuing on with this work that i love more and more, will be planning for the future.
january 2013 we hope to get married in canada, in my little hometown with its pretty old church and 3 feet of snow on top of everything. after that, who knows. toronto - fingers crossed. i miss home but right now things are good. chengdu is kind to me. the weather's awful but i have the feeling that this is where i'm supposed to be, right here, right now.
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